The function of vitamin D is to promote the absorption of calcium from the intestine, to regulate calcium and phosphorous so that bones and teeth are strong, to promote healthy immune and nervous systems and to regulate the action of certain hormones to ensure normal cell growth and maturation. More recently it has been discovered that vitamin D strongly protects against a number of cancers.
Technically vitamin D is a hormone. Natural vitamin D is made when sunlight falls on the skin, it is called cholecalcferol. The synthetic form orergocalciferol is manufactured by exposing ergosterol from yeast to UV light.
We don’t need to be in the sun for very long to get enough vitamin D – just 45 minutes on the arms and legs should be sufficient depending on location. But because cancer authorities are asking us to stay entirely out of the sun to prevent skin cancer, some people are becoming deficient. The irony is that vitamin D deficiency actually increases the risk of some cancers including skin cancer, breast, colon, prostate and other organs. It also increases the risk of high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, MS and weakened immunity.
This year, the The Archives of Internal Medicine (2007; 167;1050-9) reported that the huge Women’s Health Study, which followed 31,500 women for 10 years, found that vitamin D coupled with calcium helped protect women from breast cancer, including the more aggressive forms.
It was estimated that 45,000 Americans die from cancer annually due to inadequate levels of vitamin D: half from low UVB doses based on where they lived, and half based on living in urban environments which reduced solar radiation exposure.
Another study conducted in Norway (2004) showed breast, colon and prostate cancer have a seasonal cycle related to vitamin D production by sunlight. This research indicates that vitamin D effectively fights cancer even in the later stages.
So what do we do to prevent cancer? Stay out of the sun or get some sun?
The answer seems to be to have light exposure when the sun is weak, that is early morning, or late afternoon, with less in summer and more in winter. There are some people who must stay entirely out of the sun.
Can you get vitamin D from food?
Some foods do contain vitamin D, but nothing is as good as the sun. There is natural vitamin D in oily fish, including cod, herring, mackerel, salmon, sardines and tuna. Lower levels occur in butter, egg yolk, meat and dairy products. If you are a vegetarian, the best source for you is solar.
Synthetic vitamin D is toxic in large amounts whereas the sun-sourced vitamin produces only safe blood levels. The only way to determine an individuals level of vitamin D is through a simple blood test. For cancer prevention and optimal health the body needs 600 to 1000IU/day which equates to roughly 30 minutes/day in the sun.
For more information see www.sunarc.org.
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