6 Less Obvious Signs
It’s often called the sunshine vitamin because unlike other nutrients, vitamin D is not provided by food but made when our skin is exposed to the sun.
But, given the summer we’ve had added to the classic British weather we face year round of dull, more dull with hints of dull, Brits are dangerously deficient in this crucial vitamin.
In fact, it’s estimated that a staggering one in five adults and one in six children do not have adequate levels of vitamin D.
‘Not only have we got the British weather to deal with but we’re living an increasingly indoor life,’ says nutritionist Kim Pearson.
‘Children no longer play outside like they used to, opting for iPads and games indoors and so many of us work inside all day, so we’re seeing a rising problem of vitamin D deficiency.’
Those at risk, she explains, include anyone with darker skin types, as the darker your skin, the harder you will find it to synthesise vitamin D.
Others at risk include pregnant and breastfeeding women and those who cover their skin for religious purposes.
‘I regularly test my client’s vitamin D levels and of the last 20 clients that I have tested, six were deficient, six had suboptimal levels and just eight had optimal levels.
‘Those with optimal levels were usually either supplementing, or spent a significant amount of time abroad in sunnier places’.
This is a serious public health issue as a lack of vitamin D long-term has been found to increase risk of cardiovascular diseases and even cancer.
On a more everyday level, many of the symptoms that confound doctors could be signs of vitamin D deficiency.
Here are the key signs:
1. You get frequent infections
Vitamin D is vital to the health of the immune system.
‘Without sufficient amounts, our immune cells are unable to react appropriately leaving us more susceptible to infection,’ says Pearson.
‘Vitamin D is essential to the function of two essential parts of the immune system, adaptive and innate immunity.’
Adaptive immunity is that which remembers viruses you have had – for example, chicken pox – and ensures you don’t get them again.
Your innate immune system is present in places like inside your nose and is there to guard against everyday infections. Both are essential and both need adequate levels of vitamin D to function, says Pearson.
If you feel like you’re always catching any infection going and/or it takes you longer than most to shake it, get tested.
Now, scientists are studying the role played by vitamin D deficiency in an increased risk of cancer, in particular colorectal, breast, pancreatic and prostate cancers.
2. You’re depressed – especially in winter
‘Vitamin D is understood to play a key role in maintaining healthy levels of serotonin in the brain,’ says Pearson.
‘These are neurotransmitters in the brain that are essential to mood and deficiencies have been associated with depression.’
In 2014, researched published in the journal Medical Hypotheses looked at 100 scientific papers on vitamin D and found a specific link between vitamin D deficiency and Seasonal Affective Disorder or SAD which happens when people experience low mood during the winter months, thanks to a lack of light and sunshine.
‘Vitamin D levels fluctuate in the body seasonally, in direct relation to seasonally available sunlight,’ said research Alan Stewart of the University of Georgia College of Education.
‘For example, studies show there is a lag of about eight weeks between the peak in intensity of ultraviolet radiation and the onset of SAD, and this correlates with the time it takes for UV radiation to be processed by the body into vitamin D’.
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