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Sources of Vitamin D

What are the sources of Vitamin D?

As opposed to all other vitamins, most of our intake of vitamin d is not obtained from food. Your body actually produces vitamin d when it is exposed to the sun. Although there certainly are risks involved with too much sun exposure, such as skin cancer and sun poisoning, you need to make sure you allow your skin to see the sun enough to obtain your intake of vitamin d. Generally, very little time actually must be spent in the sun to produce an ample amount of vitamin d. For most people, just a few minutes in a day will be plenty. This will allow you to get your daily allotment of vitamin d without harming your skin.

Vitamin d helps to control how much calcium is absorbed from the food you consume. Most people are well aware that calcium is required to build strong bones, but it has other uses. It is required for your body to send messages across nerves. Vitamin d makes sure that there is always enough calcium in the bloodstream for these tasks to be successfully performed. Vitamin d is also important for your immune system. Recent studies have shown that it helps reduce the risk of contracting colon cancer, as well as several over dangerous ailments.

Vitamin d3 is formed under the skin. It is known as cholecalciferol. When ultraviolet light, found in sunlight, reacts with cholesterol that naturally exists under the skin, this d vitamin is created. Then, the liver converts d3 into a much more active form of the vitamin. It is then sent off to wherever the body needs it most. A small part of the vitamin d remains in the kidneys and liver, to help reabsorb calcium in the blood. Any other vitamin d present is either sent to the bones, to help them retain enough calcium, or to the intestines, to aid in the absorption of calcium.

Although you will get most of your vitamin d from sunlight, it is present in some foods. The type of vitamin d, found in foods, is vitamin d2, or ergocalciferol. Ergocalciferol works identically to cholecalciferol, causing it to be often used in supplements.

Sources of vitamin d can be found in a few varieties of foods. The best natural food sources for this vitamin would be oily types of fish such as Salmon, eggs, beef liver, and fortified food products such as breakfast cereals, milk, flour, and margarine. Other than exposure to sunlight, mushrooms are the only natural source of this vitamin for vegans.

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