Low Vitamin D can make you sick - Relevant to Pittsburgh (university, living in)

[pghdude28]

Although written in the U.K., this is a great article discussing some of the health risks of living in a sun deprived region and is definitely applicable to Pittsburgh. Hopefully each and every one of you is getting enough vitamin D, but I'm sure there's thousands in this region with low vitamin d levels due to our extremely cloudy winters and very rare sun exposure. For those of you who bash a sunny summer day, think again.

Could a lack of Vitamin D be making you sick? - Mirror Online

I'll be posting some more articles about decreased serotonin levels due to lack of sunlight later in the week. With only an average of 32% sunlight exposure in a Pittsburgh January, this is definitely a very important health issue of living in a constantly overcast region.

[Catia]

Yes--we are 2nd least amount of sunlight, right behind Seattle.

yes vitamin D is an issue & few Dr's understand the need to test.
Not even the top docs in PGH tested my levels.
Mine was tested by a specialist in Los Angeles, as part of his standard work up-& I was found to be severely deficient.

Took me 2 years of suppliments & still levels are not to where they need to be.

Much of this is because of location & lack of sunlight.

Nothing puts vitamin D back into your system better or faster than natural sunlight.

Best vitamin D levels I've had, since I have known I am deficient was after spending 2 weeks in Central America, & it stayed up for about a month and 1/2, just like the Dr said it would!

Even with suppliments, sunlight is necessary.

The difference in the way I feel with almost normal levels is a TON better than I felt when I was severely deficient.
Low levels of vitamin D made me feel lethargic & achy.

[Hopes]

I have a Vitamin D deficiency too. This isn't just a sunlight problem for Pittsburgh. It's the modern world of people spending so much time indoors. That's the reason milk is fortified with Vitamin D. If you don't drink milk daily, you definitely have a deficiency.

Catia, I've never fully recovered my energy either. I have a double problem though. B-12 deficiency that isn't related to diet and a Vitamin D deficiency that is related to diet. I literally fell asleep while standing in my living room talking to my husband. I was the one talking---in midsentence I fell asleep. Prior to that, I was crawling back into bed just an hour after waking up. The doctor tested my iron and B-12 right away. After a month of B-12 treatment, my recovery wasn't miraculous like most people's so we started testing for other things. Vitamin D came up low. I probably have low Vitamin C too but we didn't test for that.

African Americans have it even harder. They are more likely to have a Vitamin D deficiency because their skin doesn't absorb vitamin D as quickly. Most African Americans are deficient according to studies. They get misdiagnosed because doctors don't realize there is a difference in the absorption. Their Vitamin D levels aren't tested and they get diagnosed with other things. Even at my doctor's office, I've talked with an African American staff members who shared fatigue and other issues with me. When I told her about Vitamin D, she was surprised and thankful. She asked the doctors she worked with and they tested her Vitamin D. It came back low. It was the very reason she was sick and tired.

Even if you drink milk, you're not likely getting enough Vitamin D. The daily values were based on when people spent more time outside in the sun. Since too much Vitamin D can be dangerous, the fortification hasn't been increased in milk to compensate for modern day indoor lifestyles.

It's true that doctors don't pay enough attention to this. Vitamin D doesn't just give energy, but it keeps the immune system strong and many other things. You can get Vitamin D from overcast days, but you need to spend twice the time outdoors. People with darker skin need to spend even more time outdoors. It's important to eating fortified foods, taking supplements, and spending more time outdoors. Many people don't know that cheese and other dairy products don't have Vitamin D because they aren't produced with fortified milk.

[gortonator]

Originally Posted by Hopes

I have a Vitamin D deficiency too. This isn't just a sunlight problem for Pittsburgh. It's the modern world of people spending so much time indoors.

Yup, my wife was diagnosed with a vitamin d deficiency about 2 years ago. When we lived in the eastern WA desert. 300 days of sunshine per year ....

There was some debate about this is Australia too, as everyone uses so much sunblock. I forget if it was fully deteremined if this lowered vitamin d levels, but it is a problem there too.

I read somewhere that all internet trolls should have their levels checked regularly, as spending so much time in dark basements, both physically and figuratively, is really bad for vitamin d levels.

[Copanut]

61 yrs living without the sun, I love it!!!

[Catia]

Your spot on about vitamin D Hopes! Also, the type of vitamin D supplement is important-vitamin D3 is much more absorbable than D2.

--don't worry about testing for vitamin C though-you do not need to test, if you think you are low can up your amounts easily & immediately. The body doesn't store C & you can titrate to tolerance, the only ill effect of too much C is a little bout of the runs, & it will go away quickly, because the body eliminates C pretty fast. That's how they figure out where the tolerance level is for day to day life.
If your tummy is sensitive to C or you get heartburn from the pills or powder, or orange juice etc--like for people with GERD you can try Ester-C, which will metabolize in the intestine instead.

Linus Pauling's research on C was incredible, & continues to this day-check this out for a wealth of reliable research:
Linus Pauling Institute at Oregon State University

If anyone is taking Iron supps-you should also take C with Iron to help it absorb.

[Caladium]

Today is the day people all over the country are supposed to ride the local metro/subways without pants. I kid you not. At least they do it down my way, not sure if Pittsburgh celebrates this. But if you guys do.... go put on some colorful undies, walk to your local subway stop, strip down, and get that vitamin D!

[Tiger Beer]

It only takes 20 minutes of being outside, every few days, to get enough Vitamin D.

[EveKendall]

Originally Posted by gortonator

Yup, my wife was diagnosed with a vitamin d deficiency about 2 years ago. When we lived in the eastern WA desert. 300 days of sunshine per year ....

There was some debate about this is Australia too, as everyone uses so much sunblock. I forget if it was fully deteremined if this lowered vitamin d levels, but it is a problem there too.

I read somewhere that all internet trolls should have their levels checked regularly, as spending so much time in dark basements, both physically and figuratively, is really bad for vitamin d levels.

As Hopes and gortonator both pointed out, Vitamin D deficiencies are not necessarily related to living in cloudy climates. The sun is pretty powerful and you get sun exposure even through the clouds (the worst sunburn I ever had was on a very overcast day in the Caribbean). My mom has Vitamin D issues and she has lived her entire life in Ethiopia and Italy--pretty sunny places.
The problems are most likely related to diet and time indoors. If you are someone who will not step outside unless it is a bright sunshiny day then you may be at risk.
(And I have a hard time taking any article seriously that quotes Gwyneth Paltrow, who apparently had the lowest levels of Vitamin D a doctor had ever seen. Ugh.)

[okaydorothy]

I have that issue also. Never had it when we lived on Long Island as I was outside a lot. But here I work in an office and my bit d is low. I even try to go out as much as I can for lunch.

Its ok though ; I just take a supplement.