New Research: You Need This Vitamin to Avoid Getting Sick

Many studies show that Vitamin D3 has remarkable abilities to prevent illnesses and promote your health and well-being. As preeminent medical scientist Dr. Paul Rosch put it in his January 2009 Health and Stress Newsletter: "There are well over two dozen diseases that have been linked with a lack of Vitamin D or have been shown to improve with appropriate Vitamin D supplementation." Vitamin D3 supplementation can be a powerful way to safeguard your health.

Beware of America's Sick Care System

Most of us have inadequate vitamin D levels. This is a concern, because the best way to deal with health problems is to prevent them. But unless you stay well-informed, that's not easy to do in the United States. Of our 2.2 trillion dollar health budget, little more than 2% goes toward prevention.

We have a for profit "sick care system", not a health care system. It treats health problems only after they occur. Americans spend more on health care than other country, yet we rank 45th in life expectancy. Health care has become a commodity intended to make money, not to serve the health care needs of people.

Vitamin D3, Stress and the Changing Health Care Landscape

So it's very important that you take responsibility for preventing health problems while you can. Supplementing with vitamin D3 can be a good way for you to do just that. Studies show that optimal Vitamin D3 levels will go a long way in protecting you against what the World Health Organization identified as America's #1 health problem: Stress.

Vitamin D3 grants protections against stress-driven heart disease, cancer, diabetes, premature aging, as well as anxiety and depression. Stress weakens your immune system, Vitamin D3 strengthens it. Learning how to lower your stress hormone blood levels will make a difference as well.

Get the Right Test to Determine Your D3 Levels

If you're in the sun regularly, chances are good that your vitamin D3 levels are OK. Just ten minutes in the sun without heavy sunscreen gives you about 10,000 IU's of vitamin D3. But if you're not in the sun regularly, you may need to take a Vitamin D supplement to get your blood levels up. Authoritative estimates for adequate supplementation are 5000 IU's a day for people who have no significant sun exposure.

The best way to determine your needs for Vitamin D3 is to get a reliable blood test. Then assess your needs accordingly. And then retest to evaluate whether your plan for supplementation is working, or if it needs to be modified. There are different schools of thought on how to supplement with vitamin D3. Let your blood levels inform your decisions,not just other's opinions. Share your concerns about your vitamin D3 levels with your physician.

Of the many tests available, the most accurate is to assess 25 hydroxyvitamin D or 25 (OH) D blood levels. Many medical scientists and other nutritional experts consider the so-called "normal" 20-50 ng/ml level to be too low. They consider 50-65 ng/ml (nanograms per milliliter) level to be optimal with levels under 32 being worrisome and levels below 20 indicating an extreme deficiency.

Here's What Vitamin D3 Can Protect You Against

Studies show that optimal Vitamin D3 levels have a favorable impact on many health risks and life problems. Here's some of what the research shows.

Cancer: The further away from the equator, the greater the cancer rates. Leading Vitamin D expert Dr. William Grant estimates that if D3 levels were higher, 2 million cancer deaths per year could be prevented.

Coronary Heart Disease (CHD): Low levels of vitamin D double risk of heart attack and premature death.

Autoimmune Diseases: Rheumatoid arthritis, Type 1 diabetes and multiple sclerosis are all more prevalent in people with deficient vitamin D levels.

High Blood Pressure and Stroke: Decreased Vitamin D stimulates parathyroid hormone which raises blood pressure and vitamin D inhibits mechanisms that raise blood pressure.

Depression: Reduced sunlight exposure and depression go hand in hand and studies show that increased Vitamin D blood levels and reduce the incidence of depression in older adults.

Diabetes: A Finnish study showed that children who took vitamin D supplements in childhood had 10 times less incidence of diabetes as adults.

Susceptibility to infection: Vitamin D produces 200 plus antimicrobial peptides that fight infections.

Make Sure You Buy the Right Vitamin D

Buy high quality vitamin D3 supplements from a reputable manufacturer. Avoid commercial pharmacy brands unless you're certain of what you are getting. Beware of supplements loaded with D2 (ergocalciferol) rather than D3 (cholecalciferol), the active form. Look for the words D3 cholecalciferol on the label.

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