Vitamin D3

Optimize Your Vitamin D Blood Levels

Vitamin D isn’t technically a vitamin at all. It’s a group of fat-soluble pro hormones that target 230 to 2800 genes in your body1. The two predominant forms are vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol) and vitamin D2 (ergocalciferol). According to the Council on VitaminD, cholecalciferol (vitamin D3) is the naturally occurring form, made by your skin, while calcidiol (25-hydroxyvitamin D) is a prehormone in your blood that is directly made from cholecalciferol. Calcitriol (1,25(OH)2D3 or 1,25D3) is made from calcidiol in the kidneys and in tissues and is the most potent steroid hormone derived from cholecalciferol.2 A recently published study showed that vitamin D3 is slightly more effective than D2 at increasing serum 25-Hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D).3

Plants synthesize ergosterol, which is converted to vitamin D2 by ultraviolet light4. Vitamin D3 can be synthesized by humans in the skin upon exposure to sunlight ultraviolet-B (UVB) radiation, or it can be obtained from fatty fish or fortified foods in the diet.5

Fatty fish (such as salmon, tuna, and mackerel) and fish liver oils are among the best sources. Fortified foods, such as milk, ready-to-eat breakfast cereals, some brands of orange juice, yogurt, etc., provide most of the vitamin D in the American diet.5 Even so, many people fail to obtain even 400 IU daily.6 Risk factors for vitamin D deficiency includes, but is not limited to, strict vegetarians, lactose intolerant, aging, obesity, people with inflammatory bowel disease, people who live in Northern (sunlight-deprived) areas, people with dark skin, those who smoke and those who abuse alcohol.4

Vitamin D is essential for your health and you have two ways to bring your blood vitamin D to the optimal levels.7

1. Sun exposure: It has been suggested by some vitamin D researchers that approximately 10–30 minutes of sun exposure between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m at least twice a week to the face, arms, legs, or back without sunscreen usually lead to the blood-level equivalent of 1,000 IU Vitamin D taken orally in type III skin adults.4 However, overwhelming data established UV radiation as a carcinogen responsible for more than one million skin cancers per year in the United States alone, as well as for photo aging, an essentially universal problem among whites in middle age and beyond.8 The American Academy of Dermatology reaffirmed its position that vitamin D should not be obtained from unprotected exposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation from the sun or indoor tanning devices and continues to recommend that the public obtain vitamin D from a healthy diet and/or dietary supplements.
2. Supplement: Life Extension recommends you take 5,000 IU to 8,000 IU vitamin D3 daily. And take a 25-hydroxyvitamin D blood test after 3 months to assess and adjust your dosage so your optimal blood levels will be between 50–80 ng/mL year-round.

Once vitamin D3 is produced in the skin or consumed in food, it’s converted in the body to a metabolically active form known as calcitriol that does far more than just regulate your body’s calcium balance. Vitamin D affects cell differentiation, immunity, insulin secretion, blood pressure regulation, etc.4,5,9-27

Calcitriol is an important neurosteroid hormone responsible for many elements in brain development and behavior as well. Calcitriol increases brain levels of glutathione,10-15 a powerful natural antioxidant that is the body’s most important tool for detoxifying and excreting heavy metals and one that is rapidly consumed during oxidant stress from toxins and other sources.

Life Extension members can maintain optimal levels of their blood vitamin D effectively and inexpensively by supplementing daily with a 5,000 IU capsule. A two-month supply retails for just $11, but members can purchase it for only $8.25 (or even less with a multi-bottle purchase).

More Info on Vitamin D