Vitamin D - the Sunshine Vitamin

One of the most important preventive factors that regulate human health is Vitamin D. It is a fat soluble vitamin that is stored in the fatty or adipose

tissues of human body. Vitamin D mainly consists of two parts - ergocalciferol and cholecalciferol. Vitamin D helps our body to absorb Calcium and as we all know, Calcium and Phosphorus are the two most important components required for bone formation.

Vitamin D deficiency can cause diseases such as rickets in children and osteoporosis in adults. Adults below 50 years of age without osteoporosis require 400 - 1000 IU of Vitamin D. For adults who are older than 50, would need 800 - 1200 IU of Vitamin D. For people grossly deficient in Vitamin D, or suffering from osteoporosis or rickets, Vitamin D supplements are also available in the market.

The Vitamin D requirement can also be supplemented with foods like dairy products (fortified milk, cheese, cream, butter), fatty fish (salmon, tuna, mackerel). But the Vitamin D available from such foods is not adequate. Then where would we find a source which gives us abundant Vitamin D?

Well, we need not look much further. The Sun is the greatest source of Vitamin D. Whenever our skin is exposed to sunshine, it synthesizes its own Vitamin D. No wonder, Vitamin D has such an apt name - the Sunshine Vitamin. Researchers have found out that spending 10 - 15 minutes in the sun would be quite sufficient for our body and it would synthesize the daily requirement of Vitamin D.

Though it has not been proved conclusively, some studies exhibit that people having higher concentration of Vitamin D in their blood, are at a much lower risk of suffering from cancer and diabetes.

Therefore, utilize the inexhaustible source of sunlight. It is the most reliable, inexpensive and widely available source of Vitamin D - the Sunshine Vitamin and will help you stay healthy.