Can I get enough Vitamin D from being in the sun?

CAN I GET ENOUGH VITAMIN D FROM BEING IN THE SUN?
Robert G Carlson, MD, FACS
Spending 15 minutes in the sun each day will allow your body to produce plenty of Vitamin D – that may be true if you are sitting on a beach in Florida at noon wearing nothing but a bikini, but for the vast majority of us that’s just not happening. For a Caucasian wearing no sunscreen, sitting in the summer sun in the mid-afternoon with 40 percent of their body exposed for 20 minutes will produce about 10,000 units of vitamin D. Unfortunately, once sunscreen is applied the Vitamin D production drops to nothing. If you have darker skin, the time required in the sun increases to 45 minutes a day. If you live above 35 degrees latitude, the body is unable to produce adequate amounts of Vitamin D from the winter sun. In fact the only adequate amount of sunshine in Boston occurs, between May and Sept, otherwise there’s just not enough sunlight for Vitamin D metabolism. So, the person working in Chicago during the middle of the winter will get absolutely no Vitamin D from sunlight, and vitamin D fights the common cold better than Vitamin C. So that’s why cold and flu season occurs during the winter season.
So can I get enough Vitamin D by eating a balanced diet? That won’t work, because Vitamin D is present, in small amounts, in only a handful of foods – oily fish, and eggs. Vitamin D fortified foods such as Vitamin D fortified Milk and Orange Juice are a joke containing a measly 50 units of Vitamin D2(the wrong kind of Vitamin D), not Vitamin D3. You will need about 5000 units a day to help your body fight the battle against the cold viruses, and by the way, that dose also reduces breast and colon cancer, diabetes, and heart disease. I don’t recommend Cod Liver Oil since its nasty tasting, and is full of Vitamin A, which blocks all the amazing benefit of Vitamin D. Now Vitamin D in gel cap form, sprays or liquids will provide all the necessary Vitamin D you will need, and will cost you only a few pennies a day.
For more information check-out www.andlos.com

I Love Vitamin D, but watch out for Vitamin A in your multivitamin

I Love Vitamin D, but watch out for Vitamin A in your multivitamins
Robert G Carlson, MD, FACS


No other nutrient, hormone or even drug has gained so much scientifically supported credibility than Vitamin D, demonstrating reductions in cancer, heart disease, blood pressure, chronic inflammation, diabetes, viral infections and the autoimmune diseases( arthritis, Lupus, Hashimoto’s thyroiditis). Even though Vitamin D has been shown to be so incredibly beneficial , it is often in very low doses in standard multivitamins, and often side by side with high doses of Vitamin A. Unfortunately some forms of Vitamin A actually BLOCK the benefit of Vitamin D. So grab your multivitamin bottle and look at how much vitamin D and Vitamin A is in it. Most multivitamins have woeful amounts of vitamin D , often ranging from 200 units to 1000, but we should be taking at least 5000 units a day and now more studies show absolutely no toxicity at 10,000 units(should consider this dose in the fall/winter months) and incredible benefits. So what about Vitamin A? The preformed Vitamin A (retinols) are often excessive in multivitamins and having Vitamin A in the beta-carotene form is the form you want. “Preformed” vitamin A comes only from animal products, fortified foods, and supplements. It is most commonly measured in International Units (IU). The Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) for vitamin A is 2,310 IU daily for women, 3,000 IU for men, although some food products identify the recommended dose as 5000 IU. Watch out because preformed Vitamin A is not your friend. Studies have proven that too much preformed Vitamin A results in a two fold increase in hip fractures, and a 16 % increase in total mortality, undoubtedly because it blocks all the amazing benefits of Vitamin D. Keep that form of Vitamin A no higher than 1000 IU. Now if the Vitamin A is in the beta-carotene form, there are fewer issues because it is found in plant foods, especially dark green and highly colored vegetables and fruits. It is converted to vitamin A only as our body needs it. Therefore one can’t get dangerous levels of vitamin A by consuming too much beta carotene. By the way that foul tasting modern day Cod Liver oil has up to 10,000 units of preformed Vitamin A….so don’t drink that stuff!