fitnessandfood

A lot has come out about vitamin D in the news recently.  The BBC reports that the vitamin can help stave off the mental decline which affects people as they grow older, and another report suggests that the vitamin may help prevent Parkinsons’ disease as well.  Yet another, earlier report suggests vitamin D can reduce the risk of dying from all causes, from heart disease to rickets, cancer to multiple sclerosis. That’s pretty powerful stuff.

Apart from any mental benefits, vitamin D is important in maintaining bone health, in the absorption of calcium and phosphorus, and in helping the immune system.  This means that if you are taking a calcium supplement to prevent bone loss, it may not be doing you any good if you are vitamin D deficient and are having trouble absorbing the nutrients.

The body makes vitamin D when it is exposed to the sun, or it can be obtained from foods such as oily fish, and those fortified with vitamin D, such as milk, cereals, and soya drinks.  If you live in a country where you don’t see much sun (like Scotland) and you don’t eat fish, you may want to consider taking a supplement. Ideally you should take a vitamin D and calcium combination with at least 1000 international units of vitamin D.  The house range of vitamins at Whole Foods is pretty good, as are the vitamins at Trader Joes.