What’s the Deal with Vitamin D?

Getting enough vitamin D is important for a strong body and healthy lifestyle. Vitamin D, when taken with calcium, helps make and maintain strong teeth and bones.  It also aids in fighting off bacteria and viruses, helps with muscle function and allows the brain and body to communicate through our nerves.    

What happens if we don’t get enough vitamin D? 

Unfortunately without the proper amount of Vitamin D we increase our risk of bone fractures, muscle weakness and osteoporosis. No thank you! So, let’s reduce our risks by consuming the right amount of Vitamin D!  

How much Vitamin D do we need? 

Vitamin D is measured in International Units (IU) or micrograms (mcg) 

Children up to age 12 months: 400 IU or 10 mcg daily 

Men and Women ages 1 to 70 years old: 600 IU or 15 mcg daily 

Men and Women ages 71 years and older: 800 IU or 20 mcg daily 

Where can I get Vitamin D from? 

• Food 
  • Naturally vitamin D is not found in many foods, except fatty fish, mushrooms exposed to UV lights and a small amount from egg yolks, cheese and beef liver.  Therefore, we rely on our fortified food items to add more vitamin D into our body.  
  • Here is a quick and easy chart to refer to on foods that contain vitamin D

Food	Serving Size	Amount of Vitamin D (mcg)
Trout	3 oz	16.2
Salmon	3 oz	11.1
Mushrooms (exposed to ultraviolet lights)	½ cup	7.9
Canned Tuna	3 oz	3.9
Fortified Orange Juice	1 cup	3.4
Fortified Milk/Soy Milk/Non-Dairy Milk	1 cup	2.4 – 2.9
Fortified Yogurt	6 oz	2.0

• Sunshine 
  • Did you know that Vitamin D is known as the “sunshine vitamin?”   Your body can convert sunshine into Vitamin D.  Pretty cool, right?  But as the winter months approach, we find that our time outside decreases; therefore, decreasing our exposure to the sun.  So, we need to find that vitamin D in other ways.   

• Supplements 
  • If you are looking at this list and realize you are not exposed to sunlight or don’t eat any of these items or not enough to meet your vitamin D needs, a supplement might be needed for you.  

I hope this crash course on vitamin D helps you understand the importance of vitamin D and makes you familiar with where to find it too.  Now it is your time to shine by making an effort to include vitamin D into your daily routine!  

This blog was written by Amanda J. Stahl RD, LDN, co-founder of Simple Start Nutrition.  For more blog posts and nutrition information follow @simplestartnutrition on Instagram and Facebook.  Also feel free to contact us, by visiting our website (simplestartnutrition.com) to schedule an appointment to discuss your nutrition related needs.  We’re here to help.

References: 

https://www.eatright.org/food/vitamins-and-supplements/types-of-vitamins-and-nutrients/what-is-vitamin-d

https://www.mayoclinic.org/drugs-supplements-vitamin-d/art-20363792

https://www.nutritioncaremanual.org/client_ed.cfm?ncm_client_ed_id=452