Vitamin D is absolutely essential for good health.<\/p>\n
Also known as the sunshine vitamin, it is made in your skin when exposed to sunlight.<\/p>\n
In spite of that, vitamin D deficiency is one of the most common nutrient deficiencies in the world.<\/p>\n
Up to 42% of the adult population in the US has low vitamin D levels, which can cause health problems.<\/p>\n
Vitamin D is particularly important for bone health and immune system function.<\/p>\n
This article discusses how much vitamin D you need.<\/p>\n
Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin that functions like a steroid hormone in the body.<\/p>\n
There are two forms of vitamin D in the diet:<\/p>\n
D3 is the more powerful of the two types, and raises blood levels of vitamin D almost twice as much as D2.<\/p>\n
Large amounts of vitamin D can also be made in your skin when it is exposed to UV-rays from sunlight. Any excess vitamin D is stored in your body fat for later use.<\/p>\n
Every cell in your body has a receptor for vitamin D. This vitamin is involved in many processes, including bone health, immune system function and protection against cancer.<\/p>\n
Vitamin D functions like a steroid hormone in your body. There are two forms in the diet, D2 and D3. It can also be produced in your skin when exposed to sunlight.<\/p>\n
Vitamin D deficiency is a problem all over the world.<\/p>\n
However, it is especially common in young women, infants, the elderly and people who have dark skin.<\/p>\n
About 42% of the US population is vitamin D deficient. However, this rate rises to 82% in black people and 70% in Hispanics.<\/p>\n
If you have access to strong sun all year, then occasional sun exposure may be enough to fulfill your vitamin D requirements.<\/p>\n
However, if you live far north or south of the equator then your vitamin D levels may fluctuate depending on the season. The levels may go down during the winter months, due to a lack of sufficient sunlight.<\/p>\n
In that case, you need to rely on your diet (or supplements) for vitamin D, as well as on vitamin D that is stored in body fat during the summer.<\/p>\n
In adults, a vitamin D deficiency may:<\/p>\n
In children, a severe vitamin D deficiency can cause delays in growth as well as rickets, a disease where the bones become soft.<\/p>\n
Furthermore, vitamin D deficiency has been linked with several cancers, type 1 diabetes, multiple sclerosis, high blood pressure and thyroid problems.<\/p>\n
Vitamin D deficiency is very common worldwide, but occurs at higher rates in specific populations. A deficiency in vitamin D is linked to various health problems.<\/p>\n
How much vitamin D you need depends on many factors. These include age, race, latitude, season, sun exposure, clothing and more.<\/p>\n
Recommendations from the US Institute of Medicine suggest that an average daily intake of 400\u2013800 IU, or 10\u201320 micrograms,<\/strong> is adequate for 97.5% of individuals.<\/p>\n However, some studies have shown that the daily intake needs to be higher than that if you aren\u2019t being exposed to sun.<\/p>\n Depending on who you ask, blood levels above 20 ng\/ml or 30 ng\/ml are considered as \u201csufficient.\u201d One study of healthy adults showed that a daily intake of 1120\u20131680 IU was needed to maintain sufficient blood levels.<\/p>\n In the same study, individuals who were vitamin D deficient needed 5000 IU to reach blood levels above 30 ng\/ml.<\/p>\n Studies in postmenopausal women with vitamin D levels below 20 ng\/ml found that ingesting 800\u20132000 IU raised blood levels above 20 ng\/ml. However, higher doses were needed to reach 30 ng\/ml.<\/p>\n Overweight or obese individuals may also need higher amounts of vitamin D.<\/p>\n All things considered, a daily vitamin D intake of 1000\u20134000 IU, or 25\u2013100 micrograms,<\/strong> should be enough to ensure optimal blood levels in most people.<\/p>\n 4000 IU is the safe upper limit according to the Institute of Medicine (IOM). Make sure not to take more than that without consulting with a health professional.<\/p>\n Vitamin D intake is recommended at 400\u2013800 IU\/day, or 10\u201320 micrograms. However, some studies suggest that a higher daily intake of 1000\u20134000 IU (25\u2013100 micrograms) is needed to maintain optimal blood levels.<\/p>\n Blood levels of vitamin D are assessed by measuring 25(OH)D in the blood, which is the storage form of vitamin D in the body.<\/p>\n However, there has been some debate over the definition of optimal blood levels.<\/p>\n The Institute of Medicine (IOM) and the Nordic Nutrition Council base their recommendations on the following blood levels:<\/p>\n These organizations claim that blood levels of over 20 ng\/ml meet the vitamin D requirements of more than 97.5% of the population.<\/p>\n A committee at the IOM did not find higher blood levels to be associated with any additional health benefits.<\/p>\n However, other experts, including the Endocrine Society, recommend aiming for higher blood levels that are closer to 30 ng\/ml (75 nmol\/l).<\/p>\n Vitamin D levels are generally considered sufficient when above 20 ng\/ml (50 nmol\/l). However, some experts claim that blood levels above 30 ng\/ml (75 nmol\/l) are optimal.<\/p>\n You can get vitamin D from:<\/p>\n Vitamin D intake is generally quite low, since very few foods contain significant amounts.<\/p>\n Foods that do contain vitamin D include fatty fish like salmon, as well as fish liver oils.<\/p>\n Egg yolks also contain small amounts, and in some countries milk and cereals are enriched with vitamin D.<\/p>\n However, supplements are also widely available, and are both safe and effective.<\/p>\n The main sources of vitamin D are sunshine, fatty fish, egg yolks, fish liver oils, fortified foods and supplements.<\/p>\n Summer sun exposure is the best way to get enough vitamin D.<\/p>\n However, the amount of sunlight needed varies.<\/p>\n Older individuals and dark-skinned people produce less vitamin D in the skin.<\/p>\n Geographic location and season are very<\/strong> important, because vitamin D can\u2019t be produced year round in countries that are far from the equator.<\/p>\n Even though the sun may be shining, it is not necessarily strong enough to produce vitamin D.<\/p>\n Here are a few facts about vitamin D production in the sun:<\/p>\n In strong sun, exposing arms and legs for 5\u201330 minutes between 10 AM and 3 PM is usually enough to meet the daily requirements of most light-skinned people. People with darker skin may need a little more time.<\/p>\n One study showed that extended sun exposure during summer was enough to ensure excellent vitamin D levels during winter, regardless of vitamin D intake.<\/p>\n However, if you live far from the equator, you probably need to consume supplements or foods that contain vitamin D.<\/p>\n Vitamin D requirements can be met by sunshine alone during the summer. During the winter, and for those living far from the equator, supplements may be needed.<\/p>\n Information about vitamin D overdose is outdated, and toxicity is extremely rare.<\/p>\n It is associated with dangerously high amounts of calcium and phosphates in the blood, along with low levels of parathyroid hormone.<\/p>\n This is typically only seen in individuals who have accidentally or intentionally taken extremely<\/strong> high doses of vitamin D for long periods of time, such as 50,000\u20131 million IU\/day for months.<\/p>\n The upper level of harmless intake is set at 4000 IU, or 100 micrograms, per day.<\/p>\n However, up to 10,000 IU per day has not been shown to cause harm to healthy individuals.<\/p>\n That being said, very few people actually need more than 4000 IU a day.<\/p>\n A study of 17 thousand people taking varying doses of vitamin D, up to 20,000 IU\/day, did not demonstrate any signs of toxicity. Their blood levels were still lower than the upper range of normal, which is 100 ng\/ml, or 250 nmol\/l.<\/p>\n Also, it is not possible to overdose on vitamin D from sunlight.<\/p>\n Keep in mind that although large doses are unlikely to cause harm or toxicity, they may be completely unnecessary.<\/p>\n The recommended upper intake level of vitamin D is 4000 IU\/day. However, even higher dosages have been shown to be safe in some studies.<\/p>\n Vitamin D is essential for bone health and many other aspects of health.<\/p>\n A deficiency is incredibly common, and may have severe health consequences for many people.<\/p>\n If you\u2019re thinking about adding more vitamin D to your diet, consider the following factors:<\/p>\n At the end of the day, vitamin D is highly important. Correcting a deficiency is simple, cheap and can have immense health benefits.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Vitamin D is absolutely essential for good health. Also known as the sunshine vitamin, it is made in your skin when exposed to sunlight. In spite of that, vitamin D deficiency is one of the most common nutrient deficiencies in the world. Up to 42% of the adult population in the US has low vitamin […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":49,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[660,165,408],"featured_image_src":"https:\/\/d3toagd7ypryjs.cloudfront.net\/blog\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","acf":{"post_type":"post","post_subtitle":"","header":"","footer":"7 minute read","card_title":"Read: How much vitamin D should you take?","mobile_content":{"mobile_story_label":"","mobile_post_title":"","mobile_carousel_image":"","mobile_hero_image":"","mobile_content_body":""},"post_hero_image":{"ID":11024,"id":11024,"title":"How_Much_Vitamin_D_Should_You_Take_For_Optimal_Health- (1)","filename":"How_Much_Vitamin_D_Should_You_Take_For_Optimal_Health-1.jpg","filesize":25702,"url":"https:\/\/d3toagd7ypryjs.cloudfront.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/How_Much_Vitamin_D_Should_You_Take_For_Optimal_Health-1.jpg","link":"https:\/\/my.castlighthealth.com\/blog\/how-much-vitamin-d-should-you-take-for-optimal-health\/how_much_vitamin_d_should_you_take_for_optimal_health-1\/","alt":"vitamin d pills","author":"31","description":"","caption":"","name":"how_much_vitamin_d_should_you_take_for_optimal_health-1","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":10377,"date":"2020-05-11 18:04:12","modified":"2020-05-11 18:04:21","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/my.castlighthealth.com\/blog\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":961,"height":400,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/d3toagd7ypryjs.cloudfront.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/How_Much_Vitamin_D_Should_You_Take_For_Optimal_Health-1.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":62,"medium":"https:\/\/d3toagd7ypryjs.cloudfront.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/How_Much_Vitamin_D_Should_You_Take_For_Optimal_Health-1.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":125,"medium_large":"https:\/\/d3toagd7ypryjs.cloudfront.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/How_Much_Vitamin_D_Should_You_Take_For_Optimal_Health-1.jpg","medium_large-width":640,"medium_large-height":266,"large":"https:\/\/d3toagd7ypryjs.cloudfront.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/How_Much_Vitamin_D_Should_You_Take_For_Optimal_Health-1.jpg","large-width":640,"large-height":266,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/my.castlighthealth.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/How_Much_Vitamin_D_Should_You_Take_For_Optimal_Health-1.jpg","1536x1536-width":961,"1536x1536-height":400,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/my.castlighthealth.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/How_Much_Vitamin_D_Should_You_Take_For_Optimal_Health-1.jpg","2048x2048-width":961,"2048x2048-height":400}},"post_cta_status":"false","post_conclusion_status":"false","post_co_branding_status":"false"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/my.castlighthealth.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10377"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/my.castlighthealth.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/my.castlighthealth.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/my.castlighthealth.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/49"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/my.castlighthealth.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10377"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/my.castlighthealth.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10377\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/my.castlighthealth.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10377"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/my.castlighthealth.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10377"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/my.castlighthealth.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10377"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Bottom line:<\/h2>\n
What Are The Optimal Blood Levels of Vitamin D?<\/h2>\n
\n
Bottom line:<\/h2>\n
What Are The Main Sources of Vitamin D?<\/h2>\n
\n
Bottom line:<\/h2>\n
Can We Get Enough Vitamin D from the Sun Alone?<\/h2>\n
\n
Bottom line:<\/h2>\n
How Much Is Too Much?<\/h2>\n
Bottom line:<\/h2>\n
Take Home Message<\/h2>\n
\n