Share:
Sunlight vitamins Vitamin D supplement makes sense for all adults
Vitamin D is important to the human body and has a key health function. A lack of vitamin D increases our risk of illness. Researchers have now found that it's hard to produce enough Vitamin D in the fall and winter. If we try to maintain a healthy vitamin D level, the intake of food and sunlight will not be enough. For this reason, the experts advise the intake of vitamin D supplements in autumn and winter.
Scientists from the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN) found in a study commissioned by the UK government that our vitamin D production in autumn and winter is often insufficient, if we rely solely on sunlight and nutrition. For this reason, the doctors now advise in a press release from Public Health England that vitamin D deficiency in winter by vitamin D supplements should be prevented.
Vitamin D deficiency can lead to serious illnesses. In the absence of vitamin D, our bones and muscles are weakened and may even be permanently damaged. Scientists from the UK now advise that all people should take vitamin D supplements at least during the winter months. (Image: puhhha / fotolia.com) Especially in children should be paid to a healthy vitamin D value
In autumn and winter, sunlight is getting weaker in most countries. The sunlight is then no longer sufficient to maintain a healthy vitamin D level. The SACN experts have now stated in a press release that it is difficult to balance this deficit through nutrition. For this reason, the doctors recommend the intake of vitamin D supplements during these seasons. Low levels of vitamin D, for example, can cause brittle bones and rickets in children, the experts warn. Especially small children often have low levels of vitamin D. One reason for this could be that breast milk apparently contains too little vitamin D..
Vitamin D is also found in some foods
Vitamin D is important for our body. So we should always look for a healthy vitamin D level to avoid health problems. Limited amounts of the vitamin are contained in foods such as oily fish, eggs and fortified cereals. However, only a fraction of the daily requirement can be absorbed through the diet and most of the vitamin is given to people through the action of the sun on our skin, say the scientists. According to official estimates, one in five adults and one in six children in the UK have low vitamin D levels.
In the winter months, it can quickly lead to vitamin D deficiency
The SACN scientists commented on the results of the new study that every person should consume about ten micrograms of vitamin D every day. That's how we can protect the health of our bones and muscles. In the winter months, it's going to be hard to come up with that daily value if you just rely on our diet and sunlight, the researchers say. So it can come in the so-called dark season quickly to vitamin D deficiency.
How do sunscreen products affect vitamin D production??
Recently there has been much discussion about the effects of sunscreens on our vitamin D levels. Is an adequate supply of vitamin D possible despite effective sun protection? Or do we not absorb enough sunlight through strong sunscreen? This can actually conflict between the vitamin D supply and the skin protection occur, which, however, can be relatively easily avoided.
Vitamin D deficiency can cause serious illnesses
The main function of vitamin D is the regulation of calcium and phosphate in the human body. These are crucial for healthy bones, teeth and muscles, explain the authors. In extreme cases, low vitamin D levels can lead to rickets in children. At a disease bones become weak, soft and begin to grow shapeless. In adults, vitamin D deficiency can lead to osteomalacia and cause severe bone pain and muscle aches, the physicians add.
Take vitamin D supplements for safety during the winter months
There have been repeated doubts about the effect of vitamin D in maintaining our health. However, the results now clearly show that in the winter months, all people should take vitamin D to reduce the risk of bone disease and fractures, so the conclusion of the British physician. If you are one of the people whose skin has little contact with the sun, you should take supplements with vitamin D even the whole year, advise the experts. (As)