Vitamin D deficiency is most commonly caused by a lack of exposure to sunlight. Some disorders can also cause the deficiency. The most common cause is lack of exposure to sunlight, usually when the diet is deficient in vitamin D, but certain disorders can also cause the deficiency.
Today, 25(OH)D less than 12 ng/mL is considered evidence of severe vitamin D deficiency.
Having inadequate levels of vitamin D may correlate with unintentional weight gain. A study on women over the age of 65 found that participants with a lower vitamin D level experienced more weight gain. A systematic review of 23 different studies found similar associations between vitamin D deficiency and obesity.
Besides boosting mood and promoting calcium absorption, recent studies have shown that vitamin D may also aid in weight loss. For people with extra belly fat, a vitamin D supplement may be beneficial.
In general, the two main causes of vitamin D deficiency are: Not getting enough vitamin D in your diet and/or through sunlight. Your body isn't properly absorbing or using vitamin D.
Symptoms of vitamin D deficiency may include:
Fatigue. Not sleeping well. Bone pain or achiness. Depression or feelings of sadness.
“Adding an over-the-counter vitamin D supplement can make improvements in just three to four months time.
[9,10] Low vitamin D leads to bone abnormalities (e.g., osteomalacia, osteopenia, and osteoporosis) and worsens muscle strength. [11] In otherwise healthy individuals, fatigue can be a manifestation of low vitamin D levels and its impact on reduced maximum functioning of skeletal muscles via vitamin D receptors.
Recent findings: Low vitamin D levels are associated with increased symptoms of depression and anxiety. For this reason, vitamin D screening should be performed in the prevention and treatment planning of these mood disorders.
In persons with vitamin D deficiency, treatment may include oral ergocalciferol (vitamin D2) at 50,000 IU per week for eight weeks. After vitamin D levels normalize, experts recommend maintenance dosages of cholecalciferol (vitamin D3) at 800 to 1,000 IU per day from dietary and supplemental sources.
The best food sources of vitamin D are oily fish, including salmon, mackerel, and sardines. Other sources include egg yolks, red meat, and liver. Vitamin D is added to some foods too, including breakfast cereals, plant milks and fat spreads.
Use the CVS Health At Home Vitamin D Test Kit to get accurate and comprehensive results in the privacy and comfort of your own home. Simply collect your blood sample using this convenient kit, mail it to the lab, and receive your results through a secure online portal in just a few days.
Some side effects of taking too much vitamin D include weakness, dry mouth, nausea, vomiting, and others. Taking vitamin D for long periods of time in doses higher than 4000 IU (100 mcg) daily is possibly unsafe and may cause very high levels of calcium in the blood.
Growing evidence has demonstrated that vitamin D has a role in sleep regulation [12]. Specifically, vitamin D deficiency (VDD) can increase risk of sleep disorders and is associated with sleep difficulties, shorter sleep duration, and nocturnal awakenings in children and adults [13,14,15].
Oranges may be the closest you'll get to a fruit containing vitamin D.
Vitamin D does not directly give you energy however studies have shown that vitamin D can increase energy levels from within the cells of your body and that excessive fatigue and tiredness may be caused as a result of a vitamin D deficiency.
Therefore, conditions that affect the gut and digestion, like celiac disease, chronic pancreatitis, Crohn's disease, and cystic fibrosis, can reduce vitamin D absorption.
Vitamin D status influences musculoskeletal health. Low vitamin D levels may lead to clinical manifestations, including bone pain, muscle weakness, falls, low bone mass, and fractures, with subsequent diagnoses of osteomalacia, osteoporosis, and myopathy.
Vitamin D stimulates hair follicles to grow, and so when the body does not have enough, the hair may be affected. A vitamin D deficiency may also be linked to alopecia areata, an autoimmune condition that causes patchy hair loss.
IBS and Vitamin D deficiency
Symptoms include a combination of diarrhoea or constipation, bloating, urgency (the need to use a restroom in a hurry), white or yellow mucus in the stool and the sensation of incompletely passing stools.
Research has found that an average serving of 2 eggs contains 8.2mcg of vitamin D, a substantial portion of the recommended dietary intake of vitamin D [2], making them a great addition to the diet to support the intake of adequate levels of this vital vitamin.