Vitamin D is crucial when it comes to healthy bones. It's a fat-soluble vitamin, which means your body stores it within fatty tissue. Although your body does store vitamin D, it's still important to receive an adequate amount of vitamin D on a daily basis. If you're concerned about your vitamin D levels, ask your healthcare provider check your levels.
Vitamin D and Bones
Vitamin D is important to your bones because it helps make them dense and maintain strength. Without enough vitamin D, you can develop rickets, which is a bone disorder that leads to soft, weak bones. This means that your bones could break very easily or you could sustain more fractures than you normally would. Vitamin D also helps keep your teeth strong and healthy.
Vitamin D and Your Body
Vitamin D helps maintain and regulate your phosphate and calcium levels, according to MedlinePlus. When you don't receive enough vitamin D, your body starts to produce hormones that actually release phosphate and calcium from your body; this is what leads to rickets. Vitamin D is so important that it can actually make its own vitamin D.
Sources
Vitamin D is not in many foods. It's found naturally in foods such as eggs, cheese, butter, fish and fish oil. Other foods that contain Vitamin D are fortified with it, which simply means the manufacturer has added vitamin D to that particular food. Cereal, orange juice and milk alternatives or substitutes are all fortified with vitamin D. Your body can make its own vitamin D after you've been out in the sun. There is no specific amount of sun exposure that scientists have found appropriate for everyone. Depending on where you live, you may only need 10 minutes of sun exposure a few times per week. Your doctor may even recommend vitamin D supplements if you have certain conditions, such as a malabsporption disorder or if you live in a region where there is not very much sunlight.
Dosage
The amount of vitamin D that your body needs will depend on your skin color, genetic makeup, weight, where you live, the amount of sun exposure you get and whether you have any chronic conditions. While all of those factors will influence how much vitamin D your body needs, the average person requires at least 600 international units, or IU, daily, according to FamilyDoctor.org. Infants who are breast-fed exclusively are at an increased risk of a vitamin D deficiency because human breast milk does not supply an adequate amount of vitamin D. Speak with your child's pediatrician if you plan on breast-feeding to determine the best way to keep your infant's vitamin D levels where they should be.
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