Vitamin-D : A Worldwide Deficiency
In the current world, we might have become economically wealthy but health wise deficient.
Today almost 50% of world population is suffering from Vitamin D deficiency and the number has been growing since the last Decade.
From the data above it can be inferred that Its only the non equatorial countries that are suffering from deficiency but also the equatorial ones like India,China and Mongolia which receives ample amount of sunlight throughout the year.
Further Details can be found from Interactive Graph Here
Vitamin D-`eficiency Consequences
Vitamin D Deficiency results in abnormalities in calcium, phosphorus, and bone metabolism. VDD causes a decrease in the absorption of dietary calcium and phosphorus, resulting in an increase in PTH levels.The PTH-mediated increase in osteoclastic activity creates local foci of bone weakness and causes a generalized decrease in bone mineral density (BMD), resulting in osteopenia and osteoporosis. An inadequate calcium–phosphorus product causes a mineralization defect in the skeleton.In young children who have little mineral in their skeleton, this defect results in a variety of skeletal deformities classically known as rickets.It also causes muscle weakness; affected children have difficulty in standing and walking, whereas the elderly have increasing sway and more frequent falls, thereby increasing their risk of fracture.
The significance of Vitamin D and Functions Beyond
Usually, Vitamin D is often seen linked to promoting bone and muscular health but recent studies have shown implications much beyond.
Cancer
Many studies have suggested a link between low vitamin D levels and an increased risk of cancer, with the strongest evidence for colorectal cancer. In the Health Professionals Follow-up Study (HPFS), subjects with high vitamin D concentrations were half as likely to be diagnosed with colon cancer as those with low concentrations.A definitive conclusion cannot yet be made about the association between vitamin D concentration and cancer risk, but results from many studies are promising.
Cancer: Vitamin D decreases cell proliferation and increases cell differentiation, stops the growth of new blood vessels, and has significant anti-inflammatory effects Research Link.
Reverse Damage to Heart ? D3 Can do it.
In a paper published in the International Journal of Nanomedicine, they describe how they used nanosensors and a cell model to identify the molecular mechanisms that vitamin D-3 can trigger in the endothelium, which is the thin layer of tissue that lines blood vessels.
The new study suggests that vitamin D-3 — a version of vitamin D that our bodies produce naturally when we expose our skin to the sun — plays a key role in preserving and restoring the damage to the endothelium that occurs in these diseases.
Its significance goes beyond to the areas such as Type 2 Diabetes, Heart Diseases, Hypertension, Obesity, Tuberculosis. All these, in turn, contributes to other lifestyle diseases
Cause and Prevention
- Lack of Sunlight: The major factor contributing to Vitamin D deficiency is not only low exposure to Sunlight but also the frequency, timing, and the activity levels.
Standing more time in Sunlight does better?: No
Shorter yet more frequent time staying in Sun helps along with clothing to ensure sunlight is received by the body
The process is not as simple as the sun hitting your skin and vitamin D appear in your blood. What actually happens is that vitamin D3 is first transformed by a process known as hydroxylation in the liver to 25-hydroxyvitamin D3, often written as (25(OH)D3), and then again in the kidney to its active form, 1,25-dihydroxy vitamin D3, written as (1,25(OH)2D3). The level that is checked in your blood is 25-hydroxyvitamin D, often written as 25(OH)D, which includes vitamin D2 and D3. By staying in the sun, you limit this process and can actually get less vitamin D. You also have a lower risk of burning and damaging your skin with short exposures
- Obesity and High Body Fat: It is believed that the fat under the skin holds onto the fat-soluble vitamin instead of releasing it. Hence there is an overall deficiency of Vitamin D. However there are more studies being conducted in this direction further.
- Fat Malabsorption: People with one of the fat malabsorption syndromes (e.g Crohn's disease or Celiac disease).Vitamin D is fat soluble, therefore it requires some dietary fat in the gut for absorption. Individuals with reduced ability to absorb dietary fat might require vitamin D Supplement
Dietary Cause: Not eating an adequate amount of Vitamin D can also cause a deficiency.
Vitamin D Daily Limits
Intake reference values for vitamin D and other nutrients are provided in the Dietary Reference Intakes (DRIs) developed by the Food and Nutrition Board (FNB) at the Institute of Medicine of The National Academies (formerly National Academy of Sciences)
Only a few foods are a good source of vitamin D. The best way to get additional vitamin D is through supplementation. Traditional multivitamins contain about 400 IU of vitamin D, but many multivitamins now contain 800 to 1000 IU.Cod liver oil is a good source of vitamin D, but in large doses, there is a risk of vitamin A toxicity.
Food Sources
IUs = International Units.
** DV = Daily Value. DVs were developed by the U.S.
Food and Drug Administration to help consumers compare the nutrient contents among products within the context of a total daily diet. The DV for vitamin D is currently set at 400 IU for adults and children age 4 and older. Food labels, however, are not required to list vitamin D content unless a food has been fortified with this nutrient. Foods providing 20% or more of the DV are considered to be high sources of a nutrient, but foods providing lower percentages of the DV also contribute to a healthful diet.
Conclusion
As evident from the above, the humble Vitamin D plays an overall greater role in overall well being of an individual but unfortunately due to our lifestyle choices we have this state where 50% population is affected. Since its deficiency itself is a direct cause of multiple diseases it becomes utmost important pay attention towards this issue.
I hope that the above article perhaps would have drawn your attention towards the importance of Vitamin D. If you have anything on it that may be useful, please add in the comments sections. Thanks for taking out time to read and if you like the same you may extend the support by upvoting and resteem.
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I don't agree with this:
I think our knowledge about our health, and our health itself is the best in our whole history.
We are living the best times of humanity right now, including our health of course.
Even if we don't have perfect health (for now) we are doing extremely well, don't you agree?
@dedicatedguy
Indeed we have a greater awareness and the times are getting better day by day in whatever areas you pick infant mortality, healthcare services etc. But at the same time, the only trade-off I see is that in this advancement we are somehow trading off our lifestyle which in turn can be dangerous for overall health.
For example, if you see this article here. Especially the people who are living a comfortable might be self-sufficient economically but losing big on health.
What do you mean by that? Yes there are unhealthy people, and wealthy but unhealthy people. But the health in the past was worse than what it is today.
We should not romanticize the past, our world today is better in every sense, and our health and level of live, is also better than ever. And it will certainly keep getting better, as always, thanks to technology.
@dedicatedguy thanks for taking out the time for the read. I do agree with you with a greater extent on this but if you see the see the current healthcare state. We might have been able to overcome the health facility but at the same time gave birth to so many lifestyle diseases, and we keep on hearing about them day by day.
For example Vitamin D is the most abundant and cheapest Vitamin that you may see, yet we are deficient of it.
Our health is not perfect, that's for sure. But I do think our health is better than it was before. The same happens with our live, we have better lives now than in the past.
@dedicatedguy
Yes I agree that as a whole, our knowledge about health is something that's bigger than its ever been, but the percentage of people that are health conscious appears to be horrifically low.
Probably, but it might still be higher than it was before.
I do see a trend among people about leading healthy lives, like eating healthy food, doing exercise, among other things.
Not everyone is healthy, but at least anyone can be healthy is the propose it to themselves, which wasn't the case in the past.
This is largely because we have been taught to demonize the sun because of fear of skin cancer.
We also spend too much time indoor. The sun is not just about Vitamin D. There are tons of other benefits including skin health, killing of pathogens etc.
I love your article! Sad to see my country - Poland in the orange color :/ I try to educate people in Poland that supplementation is a necessity, especially in winter and autumn but still not everyone takes it
Thanks a lot @anna.urbanska for stopping by :). I read your blog and you are doing a great job as well, Lets Hope if we can bring even 1% change That still can make a diffrence.
The post is very informative and accurate in its most part. But I don't get "Today almost 50% of world population is suffering from Vitamin D deficiency, an estimate suggests that 1 Billion people are suffering from Vitamin D deficiency" How does 1 billion equate to 50%
But I absolutely agree on the theme that VitD deficiency is in-fact growing and measures need to be taken.
@doc-for-life glad that you took out the time to read, Well nice observation and thanks for letting me correct it.
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