Vitamin D Deficiency

Every day we see patients in the clinic who are vitamin D deficient. It is a multifaceted issue but aside from a medical condition (usually liver or kidney problems) that would cause the vitamin D deficiency, there are plenty of environmental issues that could be culprits. People with dark skin complexions (Africans, Islanders) are more protected from the sun then someone with a light skin complexion and thus the darker skin individuals do not reap the same benefits of short stints in the sun (as far as vitamin D absorption and synthesis is concerned) as their Irish counterparts might. If you are diligent with your sunscreen, you also will not get any vitamin D from the sun, as the sunscreen repels the UV light that is necessary for synthesis. If you live in the northern latitudes, and we're not talking about Siberia here people - we are talking about pretty much any place above the Florida-Georgia line (break into song if you like), the angle of the sun is only strong enough to help us between Memorial Day and Labor Day. If you are lucky enough to have an indoor job though - here comes the trifecta - you don't see the sun anyway! Soooooo how do we work on improving a vitamin D deficiency? Supplements are always helpful as there is very limited vitamin D in foods (see below).

3.5oz cooked salmon = 360 IU Vitamin D
3.5oz tuna in oil = 235 IU
8oz milk = 100 IU
1 whole egg = 40 IU
3.5oz cooked beef liver = 15 IU
3.5oz raw portabello mushrooms = 10 IU
3.5oz raw portabello mushrooms exposed to UV light = 446 IU

It is recommended that adults get approx 2000 IU of vitamin D each day, and with very few foods containing vitamin D, it is definitely beneficial to take at least 1000 IU/day as a supplement, with 2000 IU supplemented being better, then you could eat some foods with vitamin D in them, but that would be more like the icing on the cake! And while you're at it, and there are still 4 weeks left of prime rays, get outside and check out the sun (all you need is 10 minutes of exposure without sunscreen on to reap the benefits - then lather up!)