Whats the buzz about Vitamin D

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Whats the buzz about Vitamin D?
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What is Vitamin D?

• Vitamin D is a steroid hormone that we make
  in our skin. A steroid hormone is any hormone
  derived from cholesterol that then turns genes on
  and off. Vitamin D affects the regulation of at
  least 200 genes.
• As the vitamin D travels in our blood it
  works with our Parathyroid hormone to determine
  how much calcium is in our blood and bones.
• If we dont have enough calcium in our
  diet, our body will pull calcium out of our
  bones. We MUST have enough calcium in our blood
  to make sure our muscles work, including our
  heart.
• When we are deficient in vitamin D, our
  parathyroid hormone can not work correctly and we
  can develop multiple health problems including
  osteoporosis.
• Along with calcium balance, vitamin D plays
  a significant role in our immune system,
  determining cell death, and neurotransmitter
  release in the brain.

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How did we get here? The history of Vitamin D

• From an evolutionary stand point, one thought is
  that humans lost our skin pigment as people moved
  farther north. This would have occurred over
  thousands of years.
• In the African deserts humans would need a lot of
  pigment to protect themselves, and could make
  adequate amounts of vitamin D because of the
  daily, intense sun shine.
• As early as the 1600s we began to see
  development of Rickets (a disease involving
  degeneration of the bones and muscle weakness) in
  populations moving away from agriculture and into
  urban lifestyles.
• In the early 1900s scientists began exploring
  the roll of sunshine and vitamin D on human
  health. Very large doses in the millions of
  international units were given to adults and
  children, several of whom died. This obviously
  gave vitamin D a bad name.
• In the 1960s a rare genetic disorder now known
  as Williams Syndrome was linked to vitamin D
  taken by pregnant women. It was believed that
  the vitamin D was the cause of this cluster of
  problems, but it was actually the genetic
  disorder itself that lead to high blood levels of
  vitamin D.

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How did we get here? The history of Vitamin D

• Many foods including cows milk and infant
  formulas were fortified starting in the early
  1900s to prevent Rickets. Very small amounts
  were used in order to give the general population
  a minimal amount to prevent disease.
• However, in the 1980s pediatricians and
  other providers started to see a resurgence in
  cases of Rickets. Case reports were shared and
  the buzz began.
• The cause of the resurgence was three-fold
• Successful campaign to encourage exclusive
  breastfeeding
• We know that breast milk and breastfeeding are
  best for mom and baby, but little or no vitamin D
  was found in breast milk. Why?
• Successful campaign to prevent skin cancer
  reduce sun exposure and use sunscreen every time
  you are in the sun. How much are we really in
  the sun?
• Movement of darkly pigmented people around
  the world to places with minimal sun exposure.
  Much of the resurgence in Rickets was seen in
  exclusively breast-fed African American babies in
  the Bay Area and Northwest.

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What do we know now?

• People with light skin will generate about
  20,000 International Units (IU) of vitamin D in
  their skin with 20 minutes of sun exposure over
  their entire body. Dark skinned people will need
  more sun time to make these levels.
• Current recommended daily intake for vitamin D is
  200-800 IU per day for adults and 400 IU for
  infants and children.
• Current level of deficiency is defined as 32
  ng/mL. Emerging research demonstrates an optimal
  vitamin D level falls from about 80-100 ng/mL.
• Some suggest that the majority of children and
  adults in the United States (and almost all
  African- and Mexican-Americans) are vitamin D
  insufficient.

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What do we know now?

• Emerging research implicates vitamin D as having
  a significant role in our innate immune system.
  This is the immune system we are born with, not
  the system that develops as we are exposed to
  diseases. Vitamin D seems to play a role in
  prevention of
• Type II Diabetes
• Thyroid disorder
• Lupus
• Multiple Sclerosis
• Autism
• Depression
• As it helps regulate the timing of cell death,
  Vitamin D also prevents the development of
  cancers including
• Breast Cancer
• Colon Cancer
• Current, cutting edge research is focusing on
  Vitamin Ds role in prevention of
• Hypertension and other vascular diseases
• Preeclampsia
• Common viral and bacterial infection (flu
  including H1N1)

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What should you do?

• Get your vitamin D level checked - 25 OH Vitamin
  D (the circulating vitamin D)
• Look for your level to be between 60-100 ng/ml
• We are finding that most women in this area need
  5000 to 10,000 IU intake per day to maintain
  these optimal levels, however a prescription dose
  of Vitamin D2 can help achieve faster results
• If you are obese, have Crohns disease or other
  disease that interupts fat absorption, take
  medications that disrupt fat absorption
  (Orlistat, Alli), or you have had gastric bypass,
  you will need higher doses and should carefully
  monitor your blood levels
• Can I get vitamin D from food ? yes, fatty fish
  is a pretty good source, but not enough. You
  would have to drink several gallons of fortified
  cows milk eat day to get enough Please do not
  do this!
• But, there is vitamin D with my calcium? Will I
  get too much?

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French children in the 1950s having a mandatory
sun bath. doria.keesling_at_saintpatrick.org 327-305
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