HH331: Key Nutrients-Vitamin D

Welcome back to another episode of health hack as I continue talking about key nutrients. And today I want to talk to you about vitamin D. It is a beautiful, sunny day outside, and of course, we all know that we get vitamin D from the sun. My question for you, though, is, are you exposing enough of your skin, your bare, naked skin, to the sun for enough hours a day for you to be getting all of the vitamin D that you need. And the answer is likely not. In fact, if you live in Canada or the northern part of the US, you are deficient in vitamin D unless you supplement, because we simply don't have enough hours of the day for enough numbers of days of the year where we would want to be exposing our bare, naked skin to the sun, and that is why supplementation is so important. Now, even for people that live in the Sun Belt, you could be deficient because you're inside on Zoom for much of the day, and only getting outside to enjoy the sun, you know, for maybe an hour a day. So think about how important vitamin D is, and know that we can run lab tests, very inexpensive lab tests, to find out your level of vitamin D. So vitamin D is excellent for your immune health, your brain health, your respiratory health, as well as bone health and teeth health. It helps regulate insulin levels as well as your hormones. And I've talked already about vitamin C in my last episode, and last week I talked about zinc as well, and that is the combination of zinc and vitamin C. And vitamin D is a very powerful immune boosting protocol that you can take throughout the fall and into the winter months to help keep you healthy. However, taking vitamin D year round, especially if you're living in Canada or the northern part of the US or other cooler climates is a great idea. And whether you you how much you take is dependent on you know what your levels are at. Generally, doctors will tell you that you can take 1000 I use a day, I find clinically that generally isn't enough, especially if people are already deficient, and a lot of people will need about 5000 IU a day, at least initially, to bring their levels up to being sufficient levels. As I said, this is something we can lab test. If you're interested in that, please reach out. Melissa, at your guided health journey.com. Doctors will say that your vitamin D levels are fine if your levels are between above a 20, whereas in integrative health, when we're looking at helping you thrive, we're looking to see your level between a 50 and an 80. And I myself, I take 5000 I use a day. I live in Canada. I have very fair skin, so I don't spend a lot of time out in the sun. I enjoy the sun. However, I'm also working, and so I'm inside on my computer, and I want to know that my body is getting what it needs in terms of vitamin D, so that's the dose that works for me in order to keep me within that optimal range. And it's interesting, because when covid hit and the world shut down, I was less busy, and so I was going for walks every single day. And I thought, well, if I am out in the sun, it's now springtime, going into summer, I'm spending more time outdoors. I don't need to take as much vitamin D, and so I cut back how much I was taking and when I ran my lab test about three months later, my level had dropped quite significantly. And I realized, Okay, that didn't work. I still wasn't spending enough time in the sun in order for my levels to remain at optimal levels. And so now I just take the same amount every day, year round, to make sure I'm supporting my body and my health. And any time that I actually spent out in the sun is bonus time in the sun, at least I know I'm getting the amount of vitamin D that I need. I personally love to take it with drops. I take it under my tongue in the morning, super easy. It is fat soluble, so having it with a little bit of fat, so I'll often have it with a smoothie that's got some fat in it, or just a little tiny morsel of coconut oil or some avocado in order to help with the absorption of that vitamin D in my body. So I hope this information is helpful to you, and I applaud you for being here and being interested in your health and taking proactive action and keeping yourself healthy.