Vitamin D is an anti-inflammatory hormone made in the body through exposure to ultraviolet light. Its main function is to stimulate receptors in your gut sending a message to your DNA to absorb calcium. Vitamin D receptors are found throughout your body. Below is a list of a few of the common Vitamin D receptor locations and the implications of deficiency of this vitamin:

Receptor Deficiency of Vitamin D can cause:
Brain (D modulates neurotransmitters) : Depression (seasonal affective disorder)
Breast: Cancer
Skin : Psoriasis
Prostate : Cancer
Lymphocytes : Interruption in immune response
Ovaries: Cancer
Islet cells of pancreas : Diabetes
Muscle and bone : Achy and soreness, pain
Aortic endothelium : Cardiovascular disease

Vitamin D deficiency is often misdiagnosed as fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome, and others. Deficiency has also been associated with multiple sclerosis, graves disease, and age related muscle wasting. Degenerative arthritis also progresses more rapidly when there is a deficiency of Vitamin D because of its anti-inflammatory properties.

The average adult has a physiologic requirement of 1,000 – 5,000IU’s of vitamin D per day. Direct sunlight from UVB rays through hydroxylation in the liver and kidney creates vitamin D3. A half hour of full body exposure in a noon-time sun will create 10,000 – 25,000IU of vitamin D3. The best option is to test your blood’s level of 25(OH) vit D3. The optimal vitamin D3 levels are 40-65 ng/ml. A deficiency is designated as less than 20 ng/ml and toxicity, although very rare is designated as greater than 150 ng/ml. 1,000 IU’s a day will increase the blood levels of D3 by 10ng/ml after 4 months of supplementation. So, if your blood levels are around 20 ng/ml, you should be taking 2,000 – 4,000 IU’s of vitamin D3 per day.

Stay healthy this flu season, have your vitamin D3 levels tested and make sure you are getting an adequate amount!!!!

References:
Baynes, John W, Dominiczak, Marek H. Medical Biochemistry 2nd edition. Elsevier Ltd 2005.

Robbins and Cotran. Pathologic Basis of Disease. Elsevier Ltd. 2005

Regalla, Sylvia MD. Dr. Jeffrey K.Harris Memorial Integrative Health Care Series. Rochester General Hospital. “Vitamin D; More than the sunshine vitamin”. October 17th,, 2009