Vitamin D is one of the thirteen vitamins your body needs in regular amounts to keep functioning. Its specific function is to enable your body to process calcium and phosphorus. Vitamin D plays an important role in maintaining your teeth and bones, keeping your immune system strong, and regulating your blood pressure and insulin levels. Failure to get enough of this vitamin can have serious effects on your health.
Effects of Deficiency
If you have a vitamin D deficiency, your body cannot absorb enough calcium to meet its requirements, the Linus Pauling Institute explains. This causes skeletal calcium to leach out of your bones in order to maintain adequate levels of blood calcium in your system. Severe cases of vitamin D deficiency may lead to rickets, seizures, soft bones or osteomalacia, bone pain and muscle weakness.
Inadequate Sunlight Exposure
Failure to get enough sunlight is the most common cause of vitamin D deficiency, Merck Manual Home Edition notes. Your skin needs to be exposed to sunlight in order to manufacture enough vitamin D. This is why vitamin D deficiency is more prevalent among individuals who do not spend much time outdoors, such as elderly people in nursing homes or patients confined to bed. People with darker skin tones, especially those of African descent, also have a higher incidence of vitamin D deficiency.
Inadequate Nutritional Intake
Though not many foods naturally contain vitamin D, there are a few important ones to note that provide most of the American diet's vitamin D content, as the Office of Dietary Supplements reports. Products that are usually fortified with vitamin D include milk, most breakfast cereals, some brands of orange juice, yogurt and margarine. The best natural sources of this vitamin are fish oils and fatty fish such as tuna, mackerel and salmon. Without a regular intake of healthy foods containing vitamin D, you may be increasing your risk for a deficiency.
Fat Absorption Issues
Patients with cystic fibrosis, cholestatic liver disease and Crohn's disease may have difficulty getting enough vitamin D, since these diseases interfere with the body's ability to absorb the fat in which vitamin D is dissolved. You may also experience similar difficulties if you've had gastric bypass surgery. Fortunately, patients with fat malabsorption issues can usually address vitamin D deficiency by getting a prescription for vitamin supplements from their doctor.
Recommended Daily Intake
Preventing a vitamin D deficiency is simple -- the most important thing is ensuring that you get enough sunlight regularly and eat a variety of healthy foods containing vitamin D. By the standards of the National Osteoporosis Foundation, the recommended daily allowance for vitamin D is 400 to 800 IU per day for adults under 50 years of age, MedlinePlus notes. For people 50 years old and above, 800 to 1000 IU daily is considered adequate.
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