Vitamin D, “the Sunshine vitamin” is an important part of our health & function. Increasingly so this time of year, as sun & UV exposure is at an annual low. If you suffer from “winter blues” there is a good chance you need more vitamin D in your life.
Vitamin D3 (AKA cholecalciferol) is a crucial vitamin for our immune system modulation (keeps it in balance up or down & protects from viruses), mental health & depression (think Seasonal Affective Disorder) and for our bone density (critical for getting Calcium into our body)! Vitamin D acts more like a hormone for us, than a vitamin. It’s involved in stimulating & driving dozens of metabolic pathways in the body, where traditional vitamins are building blocks for 1 or 2 molecules in our body.
D is a very unique vitamin in the sense that our body CAN make it (where we do not make other vitamins like A B or C- we rely on eating them for our daily intake). Our body makes this vitamin, using energy from the sun, perhaps we are more like plants than we realize! In fact, vitamin D needs in relation to sunlight (vs. UV-over exposure or skin damage) has been a driving force for hundreds of thousands of years for humans developing different skin tones. We also get a bit of vitamin D in our diet from animal products, mostly from fish.
Our skin uses the energy from sunlight to convert 7-dehydrocholesterol to vitamin D3- but the average Canadian doesn’t get enough sunlight for this and Health Canada recommends all adults take 2000 IU of D3 daily year round (which they bumped up from 1000 IU/d during the pandemic realizing that wasn’t nearly enough).
Naturopathic doctors like myself have been shouting from the rooftops for years that Canadians need more D, 1000 certainly wasn’t enough and 2000 IU/day may still not be enough (especially for darker months Sept-April, or for anyone with darker skin pigment). You can get your vitamin D levels tested on blood work, through your GP or by seeing me, your Naturopathic Doctor (either way it is an out of pocket expense to test your D on labs).
There have been hundreds of studies linking vitamin D to prevention of several chronic diseases as well. It seems to help prevent disease like dementia & osteoporosis, and not the least of which is cancers.
Here is a quote from a 2023 PubMed literature review on vitamin D and cancers:
“Vitamin D is well known for its role in regulating mineral homeostasis; however, vitamin D deficiency has also been linked to the development and progression of a number of cancer types. … The majority of evidence suggests that low circulating vitamin D levels are associated with an increased risk of cancers” -PMID: 37054849.
Having said all that, vitamin D is a Fat Soluble vitamin which we store in our body over time (we do not just urinate out excess), and it can potentially become toxic / harmful to over-supplement D. That is why getting a blood test every year or so is important to make sure you are taking the appropriate amount for your body (which can vary greatly person to person depending on diet, skin tone, sun exposure, stress & more).
Come see me to find out how much vitamin D you should be taking! D drops are available at all pharmacies and health food stores. I always Recommend an oil based drop is best. At the very least, public health recommends we all take 2 drops a day (starting with 400 units for newborn infants).
By Dr. David Collings, ND
References:
Seraphin G, Rieger S, Hewison M, Capobianco E, Lisse TS. The impact of vitamin D on cancer: a mini review. J Steroid Biochem Mol Biol. 2023;231:106308.