What Is Vitamin D Deficiency?

What is vitamin D deficiency?

1. You Lack The Sunshine Vitamin
2. Deficiency Of The Vitamin That Keeps Your Body Healthy
3. There Are Some Factors That Put You At A Significantly Higher Risk
4. Symptoms And Signs Vary
5. It Is Usually Easy To Treat and Prevent

Did you know that the sun offers you health benefits too? In fact, it grants your body one of the most crucial vitamins it needs - vitamin D. And, compared to all the other nutrients, vitamin D has a receptor for every single cell in your body. These times may just be the perfect opportunity to talk about what vitamin D deficiency is. Although quarantine rules are more relaxed as opposed to the past couple of weeks, some of us are still limiting ourselves from going out when it is not needed. Now more than ever is the best time to keep your vitamin D levels in check since most of us stay indoors for the majority of the day. Today, we’ll be taking a closer look at what exactly vitamin D deficiency is, its risks, and some tips on how you can prevent it. Read on!

You Lack The Sunshine Vitamin

Vitamin D, also known as the “sunshine vitamin” is attained from the sun. The cholesterol in your skin produces it while you are exposed to the sun’s ultraviolet B (UVB) rays. When you are diagnosed with a vitamin D deficiency, it means that you do not have an ample amount of the vitamin in your body. Fortunately, the sun isn’t your ONLY source of vitamin D. The vitamin is also found in foods such as fatty fish and fortified dairy products. However, it may be difficult to get high amounts of this from your diet a lone, especially if you don’t get any sun exposure at all. This is why some turn to supplements to keep their vitamin D levels in check.

Deficiency Of The Vitamin That Keeps Your Body Healthy

Think twice before overlooking this vitamin because it is one of the many types that keep your body, especially your bones, healthy. Firstly, with a vitamin D deficiency, your bones become weaker. In fact, Rickets, a disorder for weak and soft bones in children, is caused by a shortage of vitamin D in the body. Vitamin D is also needed in your body for the calcium and phosphorus that builds bones. To add to that, a vitamin D deficiency will decrease your body’s capability to keep your bones healthy because it is what promotes optimal absorption of calcium from your diet. Lastly, a vitamin D deficiency will affect your parathyroid glands. This is what plays a role in regulating your body’s levels of calcium and phosphorus. When your body lacks vitamin D, the parathyroid glands won’t work at their best to keep your calcium in a standard range.

There Are Some Factors That Put You At A Significantly Higher Risk

Aside from the lack of sunlight, there are some individuals who are at a higher risk of vitamin D deficiency. One such group is older adults because as you age, your skin doesn’t generate vitamin D as efficiently as you did. Additionally, your kidneys are also less able to actively convert vitamin D. Individuals who are obese are also at a higher risk of vitamin D deficiency because their body prevents the vitamin from getting into the blood.

Symptoms and Signs Vary

How will you know if you are experiencing a vitamin D deficiency? Most individuals don’t realize they are deficient. This is why being on top of your vitamin D levels is important. You may not know that it is already occurring and having a significant impact on your body. Some signs and symptoms of a vitamin D deficiency are:

• Getting sick often
• Being constantly tired
• Experiencing bone or back pain
• If you’ve been feeling down and sad frequently
• Slow healing of wounds
• Low mineral bone density
• Hair loss
• Muscle pain

It Is Usually Easy To Treat and Prevent

Now that you recognize the negative impacts of a vitamin D deficiency on your health, you’d be happy to know that with some life modifications, you can easily prevent and treat it. Going out in the open may put you at higher risk for COVID-19, and you wouldn’t want that. So how do you go about it? Modify your diet. Make sure to incorporate food sources of vitamin D into your diet such as oily fish, beef liver, cheese, mushrooms, and egg yolks. Aside from these, since food may not be enough to supply your body with enough levels of vitamin D, consider consuming supplements to fill that nutritional gap. Vitamin D supplements are available for purchase here at the Puritan’s Pride website! Click here to make a purchase!

Key Takeaway

As most of us are all staying indoors as much as possible, now is an ideal time to tackle the importance of vitamin D. We hope that this article provided you with informational facts regarding what vitamin D deficiency is to help you stay on top of your health, even at home.