By now, most of us have heard of Vitamin D. Known as the sunshine vitamin, Vitamin D is essential in keeping our bodies healthy. It has a multitude of benefits for all people, but especially people of color. I first became aware of the need for this vitamin last year when the COVID-19 pandemic began. I visited my naturopath and asked for recommendations on boosting my immune system above what I was already doing (healthy eating, good sleep, regular exercise). She educated me on the wonders of Vitamin D, and I've found it to be helpful in helping with my immune system, but a host of other things as well.
So What Does Vitamin D Do?
Vitamin D is produced in our body in response to sun exposure, and can help with
healthy bones and teeth
lung function
Brain and nervous system support
It can also help boost your immune system, which during the COVID-19 pandemic, has become of utmost importance. Since the immune system is our bodies natural defense mechanism against bacteria, viruses, parasites, and fungi, we want to make sure that we are doing all that we can to strengthen it and keep it in good working order.
People of Color and Vitamin D
Statistics show that about 46% of Americans are deficient in Vitamin D. For African Americans, that number is estimated to be around 76%-almost double our peers. Scientists attribute this to the fact that the wonderful melanin in our (African Americans)skin blocks the UVB solar radiation necessary for optimal synthesis of Vitamin D from the sun. Scientists believe that improving Vitamin D levels can help to reduce the prevalence of diseases that adversely affect our community such as cancer, diabetes, asthma, alzheimers, multiple sclerosis, AND COVID-19. Thankfully, Vitamin D can come from other sources besides the sun.
Photo by engin akyurt on Unsplash
How can I boost Vitamin D?
Thankfully, Vitamin D levels can be increased through diet as well and supplementation. So we already know that regular sun exposure (about 30 minutes a day) can help our body to make Vitamin D. But for African Americans, we need a little more than that. Here are some quick and easy ways to boost your levels:
Eat More Fish - Fish such as salmon, tuna, sardines, and even sushi contain Vitamin D and can help boost your levels.
Eating eggs-particularly the yolk can help boost your vitamin d levels.
Mushrooms are also a great source of Vitamin D if you follow a vegetarian or vegan lifestyle.
A Vitamin D supplement can also help boost your Vitamin D levels.
A Final Note
I take Vitamin D daily, and have found it to be tremendously helpful in keeping my immune system up, as well as other benefits. Before I started taking it, I had knee pain from a fall that happened about 3 years ago ( a long story for another day). I wasn't able to walk long distance or do any weightlifting without a knee brace since that fall. Once I started taking Vitamin D, all of the knee tenderness and pain went away, and I am back to my long walks as well as my weight training-without a brace! I've also noticed that it has helped to stabilize my moods.
Before supplementing with Vitamin D, I would strongly suggest that you speak with your doctor and/or pharmacist for guidance on how much you should take daily-especially if you take other prescription drugs. You want to make sure that you aren't over or under supplementing, and you also want to make sure that it will work well with the medications that you are already taking. I would also suggest that you find a quality Vitamin D supplement, because unfortunately a lot of what is out here on the market is not beneficial and full of junk and fillers. The brand that my family and I use is Michael's Naturopathic Programs Vitamin D3 K2. It's a small chewable tablet, so if you're like me and don't like to swallow pills, it is very easy to take. I also like this brand because it contains Vitamin K2, which when paired with Vitamin D3, helps the Calcium that vitamin D helps your body build (hence the healthy bones effect from Vitamin D) know where to go in your body, so that there is no overage of Calcium in the areas of the body where it's not needed.
Hopefully this post has been helpful, and you will be able to begin boosting your Vitamin D levels as soon as possible! Here's to longevity and good health!
*If you'd like to do further research on this subject, here are some links to get you started:
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