Of all the vitamins that exist today, vitamin D has been credited by many nutritionists as one of the essential vitamins in the body. Although it is one of the many readily available vitamins (you can get it directly from the sun just by walking outside), it is surprising that a good million people in the world today suffer from this deficiency.
It's most shocking when this last number has people living in areas where the sun is believed to be in excess (low latitude areas). The benefits of vitamin D in the body are self-explanatory, the main ones being increased intestinal absorption of calcium, magnesium, and phosphate, which are then synthesized for the formation of primarily healthy bones.
Conditions such as bone pain and back pain, hair loss and bone structures generally weak associated with vitamin D deficiency. A common disease in children is rickets. Scientists are also investigating the possible connections of vitamin D deficiency to diabetes, cancer, and high blood pressure.
As age increases, the higher the required vitamin D benefits, nutritionists put a healthy level of this vitamin at approximately 400 IU and 700 IU (international units) for children and adults. The highest amount of 800 is required by people aged 65 and over.
Ways to raise vitamin D levels
Maintaining that level is not an easy task and requires patience and constant dedication. If your levels are low, some ways can help raise the standards to the required amount.
1. Sun
Today's deficiency levels have increased. This is because, unlike in earlier times when people spent more time outdoors, most of our time today is spent indoors or at work stations behind desks trying completing a report that is past its deadline.
Most of these workspaces are in shades where the access of the sun by the body is limited. Researchers recommend no less than a 30-minute daily exposure of the body to the sun.
A few daily routines can help you give your body the highly anticipated benefits of vitamin D.
· Expose your arms directly to the sun for 20-25 minutes. This is as simple as it sounds. Just choose a chair with a slim back, put it outside on a sunny day, and let your body enjoy the sun. You don't sit under a shadow. The essence of sitting outside is exposing yourself to direct sunlight.
· Getting out of the office and strolling in the sun for a few minutes every now and then might be a better alternative for those whose schedules are too busy and do not allow to sit in the sun for long.
· Allowing children to do lots of outdoor activities is a great way to increase the levels of “sun vitamin” in their bodies, especially since their developing bones require high levels indirectly.
· Taking a break from work and traveling to areas rich in sunshine is another option to enjoy and access the various benefits, especially during winter, when only a few minutes of UV light can be experienced in days or weeks.
· Exercising in the sun regularly simply means a good increase in blood flow and therefore a higher rate of synthesis, which directly translates into a high rate of absorption of vitamins in the body.
Although staying in the sun is a good and perfect natural way to increase your amounts, care must be taken to avoid sunburns and rashes. A doctor should be consulted to prevent such adverse effects.
The sun can also cause skin cancer, and the doctor should suggest the necessary applications to enjoy the benefits of the beautiful sun.
In general, the sun is one of the best sources of the vitamin. It follows that vitamin-deficient patients are prescribed to sit in the sun for hours a day.
2. Fatty fish
Fish is known to be an important source of many vitamins. The vitamin is synthesized from the fat found in the body of fish.
A good serving of fatty fish two to three times in a week pays off, as a 4-ounce daily serving is about 127 percent of the recommended amount. The following fish are known to contain reliable levels.
· Salmon
· Herring
· Tuna
· Mackerel
· Sardines
3. Fortified foods (fruits and vegetables)
Fortified foods are known to have a good amount of vitamin D. However, it is essential to take note of the packaging of these fortified foods, as some do not. These fortified foods can be considered whole foods or supplemented with other flours. It can be beneficial when these fortified foods are eaten as snacks, especially for children and the elderly.
Here are some of these foods.
· Almond milk (a four-ounce serving provides about 17 percent of daily needs).
· Rice milk
· Orange juice.
· Cereals.
· Tofu
· Mushrooms.
4. Food of animal origin
General milk obtained from animals contains vitamin D. This translates directly to most dairy products, such as cheese and yogurt that contain it. Ricotta cheese is well known for its richness in vitamins and doctors are keen to point out the benefits of vitamin D obtained from this type of cheese.
Beef liver is also rich in vitamins, and substantial amounts of liver can easily be incorporated into daily servings. Take care that it is organic liver or from free grazing animals.
Eggs, and specifically egg yolks, have and could provide about 7 percent of the sun's daily vitamin needs. Having a couple of egg yolks in a single day, especially for people with a deficiency, is really satisfying. Since eggs have fat, fat helps a lot in the absorption of the vitamin through the intestinal walls.
This is supported by the quality of this vitamin being fat soluble.
Pork ribs have a good content of this vitamin, although it must be consumed with care, since they have an abnormally high fat content.
5. UV lamps and bulbs
Artificial UV light bulbs and lights have been developed today to help people with poor absorption and extreme risk of disease. The lamps are made with a width of approximately 17 inches and a length of 25 inches.
These lamps have high UV emission rates and pose the same risks to the skin and eyes. Therefore, it is advisable and it goes without saying that they are made for those who are under medical control. Appropriate eye protection is also used in such cases.
Eat a balanced diet to increase vitamin D levels
Increasing the levels of the vitamin sun in the body involves managing with your lifestyle and diet. This is the reason for the term balanced diet.
The concentrations required to increase the level of this vitamin in the body differ from person to person.
For example, a person with an average level does not require large amounts of these sources of the vitamin. A person with high or low levels of vitamins may need moderate or high levels of this vitamin, and therefore a high or low amount of the above sources, respectively.
You need to understand your levels to avoid wasting resources and also deficiency diseases. For this reason, it is recommended that you get diagnosed by a nutrition advisor before embarking on the journey toward increasing levels.
Can too much of this vitamin be harmful? Yes! Too much of everything is poisonous! Huge levels are usually accompanied by nausea, constipation, and weight loss. Excess vitamins can destroy the kidneys. High levels of vitamins increase the calcium content in the blood, indirectly causing disorientation and problems with the heartbeat.
The excess of vitamin that is obtained from the sun is not very poisonous, since the body limits the amount of this vitamin that it synthesizes from the sun. You can stay and bake in the sunlight for as long as you want. Supplements, however, are the main cause of the effects associated with high levels. It is more advisable to seek natural solutions for deficiencies rather than artificially synthesized supplements.
Final notes
Interestingly, being exposed to things like cigarette smoke subtracts huge amounts of the vitamin from the bloodstream and respiratory areas. This is why many smokers have respiratory problems, as the bones and muscles are weak due to deficiency.
The benefits of vitamin D are long-lasting, and there is no excuse (especially with this knowledge) to avoid living a satisfying life, especially when you want your bones, muscles, and overall body structure to not fail you.
These methods of increasing the vitamin D level are generally beneficial in that; They not only help increase vitamin D levels, but also supply additional nutrients and different vitamins to the body.
Adding fatty foods to your meal is an added bonus due to its fat solubility, as mentioned above.
With the knowledge of how to increase the level of vitamin D in your body, it will be easier for you to understand the different ways that you can increase your levels of vitamin D in the body without necessarily having to fight. We hope a lifestyle / diet change is on the way.
While there is no cure currently for this type of hearing loss to regenerate the damaged parts of the inner ear your hearing loss can be treated rather effectively with hearing aids.