There has most definitely been a shift in the weather this week to let us know winter is here. I love these crisp frosty days, the winter light on sunny days and taking walks to look at the incredible ice formations. There are definitely down sides to winter too - by the time you read this, the weather could well have turned to that gloomy, damp type of winter weather which see so much of in the UK, and even more so up here in Highland Perthshire where I am. After a while that can really start to get you down, added to that we are so much more likely to catch colds and other bugs at this time of year…
In this newsletter, I’m going to explain why so much of that is down to your levels of vitamin D, which is sometimes called the ‘sunshine vitamin’ (and hence a lack of it in winter).
We’ll look at all the stuff you really need to know about vitamin D (this is how I’m going to convince you that really is vital for life and you should get yourself tested if you don’t know your levels already). We’ll look at how you can tell if you might be a bit low, who should get tested, and where to have it done (and what to say to your doctor to have this done free of charge). Oh, and how to boost your levels naturally through food. However, you do need to know that food sources will NEVER give you enough vitamin D in winter. And as if that's not enough already, you can also download my eBook with more on keeping you in tip top health.
WHY YOU REALLY, REALLY NEED THE D
Vitamin D is a superstar vitamin. More correctly, it’s actually a hormone. If levels are too low, this is bad news for health. It plays a crucial role in modulating our immune system, mental health, gut health, improving fertility and indirectly keeping our hormones in balance. Then it has also been linked to other nasties such as cancer, osteoporosis, rickets in children, asthma, tuberculosis, multiple sclerosis (and other autoimmune diseases), heart disease, diabetes and dental problems [source: PLoS One. 2013;8(3):e58725.]
WHY SO LOW?
There are lots of reasons why can be low in vitamin D - the biggest reason being that the sun doesn’t shine much in the UK - even in the warmer months, and most of us only spend a little bit of time in it when it does… Additionally other reasons include:
Sun cream. Your body makes vitamin D after contact with the sun’s UV rays but, as we’re a nation of sun cream fanatics (and this covers the skin, blocking the rays of sunlight from getting through), you might not be getting enough straight-up sun.
Age. Among other things that go a bit wrong as you get older, your body is less good at turning the rays from the sun into vitamin D. Specifically, the kidneys are less good with age at turning it to the active form of calcitriol.
Kidney or liver disease of any kind also means vitamin D is not converted to the active form.
Tummy troubles. Problems with the digestive system (and I’m not talking about disease here – just an imbalance that may cause anything from a few manageable symptoms to more serious trouble ‘downstairs’) mean the digestive tract does not absorb the vitamin D as well.
Obesity (technically that’s a BMI or body mass index of 30+) has the fat cells in your body hoover up the vitamin D. So then it’s stored – unusable – in your fat cells and is not whizzing around your body in your blood.
Lack of sleep. Just as you need sunlight to make vitamin D, you need sleep to actually use it.
Stress. The presence of the stress hormone cortisol reduces the uptake of vitamin D by special vitamin D receptors. It literally sits there, in the body, without being able to be used. What a waste!
Your skin colour. The darker your skin, the less vitamin D you will make. This is due to the higher levels of melanin in your skin that protect against UV light. By blocking the sun’s rays, it also curbs the body’s ability to make the pre-cursor to the active vitamin D.
Nightshift workers and anyone else who doesn’t spend much time in the sunlight, including children wearing sun cream all the time and babies. Quite simply, you need the sun on your skin.
DID YOU KNOW?…
Research shows you’re 11 times more likely to be depressed if you have low vitamin D than if you don’t. [Source: PLoS One. 2013;8(3):e58725.]
Vitamin D can put the brakes on the progression of Alzheimer’s disease. [source: MT Mizwicki, et al. Genomic and Nongenomic Signaling Induced by 1α,25(OH)2-Vitamin D3 Promotes the Recovery of Amyloid-β Phagocytosis by Alzheimer's Disease Macrophages. J Alzheimers Dis. 2012 Jan 1;29(1):51-62]
10 SIGNS YOU MIGHT HAVE A VITAMIN D DEFICIENCY
Depression or anxiety (including mood changes or irritability)
Bone softening (low bone density), fractures
Feeling tired all the time/ decreased performance
Muscle cramps and weakness
Joint pain (especially back and knees)
Difficulty regulating your blood sugar levels/ post lunch energy crash
Low immunity
Slow wound healing
Low calcium levels in the blood
Unexplained weight gain
Symptoms like these are commonly overlooked because they don’t feel life threatening, and they’re often dismissed as normal, everyday aches and pains you have to deal with. But you don’t have to put up with these symptoms of ill health!
WHO SHOULD GET TESTED?
If any of the above resonates with you, then you should definitely get tested. You might find your GP will do this for you. My experience is that they are usually amenable to this particular test.
If your doctor won’t test, consider getting it checked out privately. In the big scheme of things (like life and, you know, your health), the test is not expensive but it could change your enjoyment of your life.
The test is the 25-hydroxy vitamin D test (also known as the 25-OH vitamin D test or Calcidiol 25-hydroxycholecalciferol test). It’s the most accurate way to measure how much vitamin D is in your body.
Your doctor will want to know that there is a valid reason for having you tested. Go back through the list of symptoms and go in strong with this being the reason why you want to be tested.
If you’re the kind of person who doesn’t want to ask, feels uncomfortable asking or is just curious to know their levels, you can get the test done privately for around £40. It’s a finger prick test, so you can do it easily at home, then get guidance on how much to supplement safely. If this is you, and you want to know more, just hit reply to this email and we’ll talk.
If you do take a test and you’re very low, you’re likely need an intense 4-6 weeks supplementation at a high dose and then re-testing to see the impact it’s had. There is such a thing as too much vitamin D (known as vitamin D toxicity). You’d have to be going some way to get there, but it is possible, which is why it is essential you know your levels before you start guzzling any supplements.
I know what you’re thinking. Here’s a few of those ‘yes, buts’ you have going on…
I already take a vitamin D supplement.
I go out in the sun quite a bit
Wouldn’t my doctor ask to test me if they thought it were a problem?
I’m too busy to take time off to take a test.
If you seriously have nothing wrong with you, if you didn’t identify with any of the symptoms in the list, then don’t bother. But if you did…. And here’s a cautionary tale… one of my clients enjoyed sunning herself in the garden in the summer and was taking a supermarket vitamin D supplement. But in spite of this, her levels were only ¼ of what they should have been. The moral of this story is, be tested.
HOW TO UP YOUR VITAMIN D
Get yourself some sun. Recommended sunlight exposure is between 10 and 30 minutes a day with no sun cream. However, you’re going to have to wait for the spring for that - even on sunny days in winter in Scotland, the sun’s rays are just not strong enough to give us enough vitamin D… (There are other very good reasons to get out in the sun in winter though to raise cortisol - but that’s for another post!)…
Sunshine If getting out in the sun is not an option, sit in front of a light box that supplies 10,000 lux of full-spectrum light for 30 minutes every morning. This is an especially good option for winter months and those who work for night shifts. Bit of a faff, but it’s an option.
Take a supplement. You can take a generic 1,000 IU dose as an adult (but not children without consulting your GP) BUT, if you’ve no idea what your blood levels are, how to you know how much you should be taking?
Eat naturally vitamin D-rich foods like oily fish (salmon, sardines, fresh tuna, trout, halibut, mackerel, et.), high quality cod liver oil, egg yolks and liver. Do not be fooled into thinking the fortified foods are the same or have similar benefits. Fortified foods (like cereals, margarine and some yoghurts) contain a synthetic version of the vitamin known as D2 (the natural form is D3). Research shows this is less effective at raising levels of vitamin D in the blood. [source: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22552031]. Plus fortified foods are processed food which have all sorts of negative health effects (again, that’s for another post!)
If you'd like to read more about what you can do to improve your health this winter, and would like to subscribe to my newsletter, drop your email in the box below and I'll send you a free eBook with lots of tips to help keep you optimise your health and stay well this winter.
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