Vitamin D Deficiency: Why Everyone’s at Serious Risk – But Particularly Women Who Intend to Have Babies!

Are YOU getting enough vitamin D?

About 40% of the US population is deficient in vitamin D, and this epidemic inadequacy may explain why so many Americans are suffering from preventable illness and disease.

If you slather on sunscreen and cover up when you go outside, you might be missing a key ingredient for your health! 40% of Americans are deficient in vitamin D, and the sun is the very best source of this amazing vitamin.

Vitamin D, the “sunshine vitamin” is essential for good health and has been shown to treat and prevent these conditions:¹

• Osteoporosis
• Depression
• Prostate cancer
• High blood pressure
• Breast cancer
• Infection
• Lung cancer
• Psoriasis
• Rickets
• Diabetes
• Irritable Bowel Syndrome
• Multiple Sclerosis
• Rheumatoid Arthritis

Find out how vitamin D deficiency can cause low grade chronic systemic inflammation by reading: Back to Basics: How Sunlight Can Reduce Inflammation.

All About Vitamin D

Vitamin D is a fat soluble vitamin that your body cannot make. But you can get vitamin D from food and sunlight.

Milk has long been fortified with vitamin D, but because so many people struggle with digesting casein (the protein in milk) large portions of the population no longer drink enough milk to provide them with this essential nutrient.

Vitamin D naturally occurs in fatty fish like salmon and cod, and fish oil supplements supply vitamin D too.

But in spite of vitamin D’s presence in common foods like milk and fish, many doctors think that we need MORE vitamin D in our diets. Some doctors even want the RDA (recommended daily allowance) of vitamin D to be officially increased.

They hope that an increase in the RDA would encourage more people to get vitamin D and keep their patients healthier.

Conveniently, you can get vitamin D for free because your body manufactures its own vitamin D when UV rays touch your skin.

Scientists are not exactly sure how vitamin D works, but they do know that it has powerful anti-cancer and anti-microbial properties that enhance immunity, help you build strong bones and keep you happy.

Unfortunately, you cannot rely on diet alone to supply enough vitamin D. Exposure to sunlight is the key to producing ample amounts of this essential vitamin.

How can you make sure that you are getting enough vitamin D?

Soak Up The Sun: Vitamin D and Cancer

Generally, your body will produce adequate amounts of vitamin D with 20 to 30 minutes of sun exposure on your hands, arms and face each day. (Keep in mind that sunscreen dramatically inhibits UV penetration.)

If you are worried about too much sun exposure, some dermatologists believe that regular exposure to sunlight can actually decrease your risk for some cancers and that sun is not necessarily the cause of skin cancer!²

Just like anything else, it’s all a matter of balance. So don’t be afraid of the sun; it can actually give your body the vitamin D it needs to function properly.

African Americans and Vitamin D

African Americans are among the most vitamin D deficient people in the country. The main reason is that skin with lots of pigment in it does not absorb as many UV rays as lighter skin. African Americans must spend more time in the sun to generate adequate amounts of vitamin D.

Without vitamin D, the health risks among African Americans are serious:

• African American women are 10 times more likely to be vitamin D deficient than white women!³
• Vitamin D may be one reason that prostate cancer is so prevalent among African American men.⁴
• Anyone deficient in vitamin D is more at risk for osteomalacia, a weakness of the bones and the muscles.⁵

Pregnant Women and Vitamin D

Everyone wants to have a healthy baby, and vitamin D, like all vitamins, is important for fetal nutrition. But women in the United States are not getting enough vitamin D and giving birth to vitamin D deficient babies who are at risk for illness and disease.

• 92.4% of African American newborns and 66.1 percent of white babies were vitamin D deficient at birth.⁶
• Babies who are vitamin D deficient are more susceptible to rickets, a disease that affects the development of bones, and osteomalacia.⁷
• Vitamin D deficiency may be a precursor to diseases later in life, including Type-1 diabetes, arthritis, multiple sclerosis and schizophrenia.⁸

Vital Choice offers a variety of products with the goal of providing everyone – and especially pregnant women – with pure, wild, organic sources of vitamin D. These Alaskan Sockeye Salmon Oil Supplements can help you get your daily dose of vitamin D, even if you can’t get outside.

Fortunately, vitamin D is a free vitamin that you can manufacture just by getting outside in the sunshine! But if you live in a cold or rainy climate or can’t get outside every day, then you may need to consume foods rich in vitamin D.

Vital Choice Seafood is a company that has a goal of providing everyone, especially pregnant and nursing women, with healthy sources of vitamin D. With an amazing array of delicious wild fish, fish oil supplements, and natural organic products, Vital Choice provides healthy convenience delivered right to your door.