Vitamin D
Most healthy adults do not need to take vitamin D supplements. Extra vitamin D does not improve health in those without bone disease. Get your vitamin D the old fashioned way - A. Marc Gillinov MD

image by: Der Arzneimittelbrief
HWN Recommends
The Vitamin-D controversy…
As anyone who has read my regular posts online, you have learned that I am one of few wellness guys who isn’t ga-ga over Vitamin-D. It’s not the 1st time that I’ve cut against the grain in my career, but I want to offer an explanation that will hopefully explain my counter-cultural rationale…
In my humble opinion, Vit-D is the most misunderstood, but over-recommended supplement on the Planet. What is worth noting is that it is, in fact, a Hormone — not a Vitamin, and it is also the FIRST hormone to exist on Planet Earth. Hmmmm. So it’s been around for hundreds of millions of years, we as a species have co-existed with this Hormone for at least 6 million years, and NOW, all of a sudden…
Resources
Should everyone be taking vitamin D?
Vitamin D is said to help stave off fatigue, depression and even cancer. But some experts argue that for people with healthy levels, supplements are not helpful. What’s the reality?
Can Vitamin D Help Fight Covid-19?
Studies under way around the world are examining whether the ‘sunshine vitamin’ can help prevent or treat the new coronavirus.
Do You Need to Take Vitamin D?
Most healthy adults do not need to take vitamin D supplements. Extra vitamin D does not improve health in those without bone disease. Get your vitamin D the old fashioned way •Sun exposure (in limited quantities) •Healthy diet, including foods fortified with vitamin D
Millions of Americans take vitamin D. Most should just stop.
Outside of rare cases, rigorous studies of the supplement don’t find any health benefit.
The health benefits of sunlight: Can vitamin D help beat coronavirus?
We’ll learn more from randomised, controlled clinical trials that are currently under way, but for now the evidence that vitamin D supplements can prevent severe illness is pretty weak. But the importance of vitamin D for our bones isn’t in doubt and many of us simply aren’t getting enough.
Vitamin K2: The Most Important Yet Underrated Vitamin for Your Heart and Bones
When it comes to vitamins, we hear a lot about C, our Bs, and D. But rarely do we ever hear anyone hype up the merits of vitamin K along the lines of, “Eat your greens Jimmy. They have lots of vitamin K!”
Expert Advice: The Dynamic Duo D3 + K2
When you see vitamins D3 and K2 together in a single supplement, it’s meant for keeping your bones strong and healthy...
How Vitamin D and Vitamin K2 Help Osteoporosis
The researchers found that bone mineral density was significantly higher in the groups given vitamin D3 alone and vitamin K2 alone compared to the group that received only calcium. In addition, they found that the group that got the combination of vitamin D3 and vitamin K2 had the highest bone mineral density.
The Synergistic Interplay between Vitamins D and K for Bone and Cardiovascular Health: A Narrative Review
Vitamins D and K are both fat-soluble vitamins and play a central role in calcium metabolism. Vitamin D promotes the production of vitamin K-dependent proteins, which require vitamin K for carboxylation in order to function properly.
Don’t trust the internet on vitamin D
Even world-class medical organizations are down on vitamin D pills, including Britain's National Health Service. In its advice, the body says that "most people don't need to take vitamin supplements and are able to get all the vitamins and minerals they need by eating a healthy, balanced diet." The British Heart Foundation agrees, saying that "there are no shortcuts when it comes to nutrition -- supplements are not a replacement for healthy food." They're right, and those snake-oil peddlers down at the drugstore are wrong, right? Not so much.
Everything you ever wanted to know about vitamin D
Knowing your vitamin D levels might not be as important as you think.
Study Examines Vitamin D3's Potential Effects On Blood Vessels
In the ongoing debate about which supplements are useful and which aren’t, just a few continue to surface with evidence-based benefits. Among those, vitamin D3 is already near the top of the list – and a new study just added another reason to consider it, especially if you're at risk for or already have heart disease.
Your vitamin D tests and supplements are probably a waste of money
Screening for vitamin D has exploded — with no good evidence that it helps people.
Why vitamin D has the medical establishment totally confused
At some point in the last decade, screening blood for vitamin D levels became a routine part of medical care. Feeling a little low this winter? Get a vitamin D test. Think you didn't get enough sun last summer? Check your vitamin D levels.
A Tortured Love of Vitamin D
Why it may never be possible to recommend that everyone take a supplement—as much as people want to believe.
Are You Getting Enough Vitamin D?
No matter how old you are or where you live, there's a good chance that you could be deficient in vitamin D. A study published in the New England Journal of Medicine reported that an estimated 1 billion people worldwide have inadequate amounts of vitamin D in their blood.
Cold: And the Winner Is...
Since so many of us fall victim to this almost, if not definitely, yearly, most Americans want to improve their immune system so as to be less likely to contract one. And if you walk through a pharmacy you'll notice plenty of supplements touting the "immune-boosting" powers of Vitamin C, echinacea, and all sorts of other herbs and vitamins. The scientific and medical community, however, are still debating the efficacy of such supplements. Despite that, one vitamin has come to the spotlight with some very convincing evidence: vitamin D.
Do You Need to Take Vitamin D?
Most healthy adults do not need to take vitamin D supplements. Extra vitamin D does not improve health in those without bone disease. Get your vitamin D the old fashioned way •Sun exposure (in limited quantities) •Healthy diet, including foods fortified with vitamin D
Does Vitamin D Really Protect Against Colorectal Cancer?
It's been clear for many years that vitamin D helps keep bones strong, but studies have been inconclusive and conflicting about the vitamin's value in protecting against certain cancers, including colorectal cancer.
Huge Study Identifies Important Vitamin for Women Over 50
Some great news was just released that is sure to make big believers in the power of vitamin D smile... and maybe just a little smug. Not only is this little "vitamin that could" essential for keeping our brain cells healthy and percolating as we age, but taken with calcium, it offers a host of other health benefits, too.
Mayo Clinic’s Stunning Vitamin D Research
In essence, they sat down in front of a computer, typed the words vitamin D supplementation into medically oriented search engines, and read everything. If there’s one single take-away from today’s health tip, it’s that quite likely you yourself are deficient in vitamin D and you’d be wise to do something about it.
Supplements - So Which Ones Should We Really be Taking?
Have you taken your vitamins today? But are they really necessary or a waste of your hard earned money. A healthy, balanced diet may be all you really need!
The Man Who Sold America on Vitamin D—and Profited in the Process
The doctor most responsible for turning the sunshine supplement into a billion-dollar juggernaut has received hundreds of thousands of dollars from the vitamin D industry, according to government records and interviews.
The Vitamin D Debate
There’s been a lot of controversy lately about vitamin D recommendations. If you’re confused about how much you should be taking, you’re not alone.
Vitamin D And Calcium Controversy
Don't let the headlines get the best of your bones! Calcium and vitamin D are essential to maintaining healthy bones straight through perimenopause and menopause. Luckily, if you eat a healthy diet, they are more than attainable -- they are inevitable!
Vitamin D deficiency
The main reasons for low levels of vitamin D are: ●Lack of vitamin D in the diet, often in conjunction with inadequate sun exposure ●Inability to absorb vitamin D from the intestines ●Inability to process vitamin D due to kidney or liver disease
Vitamin D Deficiency including Osteomalacia and Rickets
Adequate vitamin D3 by synthesis in the skin and from dietary and supplemental sources is essential for bone health throughout life. Rickets in children and osteomalacia in adults are the classic but extreme manifestations of severe vitamin D deficiency
Vitamin D supplements are widely overused, doctors warn
Doctors are warning about vitamin D again, and it’s not the “we need more” news you might expect. Instead, they say there’s too much needless testing and too many people taking too many pills for a problem that few people truly have.
Vitamin D supplements may prevent millions of winter infections
If everyone took vitamin D supplements, more than 3 million fewer people in the UK would have respiratory infections like colds or flu every year. That’s according to a new analysis of data from nearly 11,000 people.
Vitamin D vs. Common Cold: And the Winner Is...
Since so many of us fall victim to this almost, if not definitely, yearly, most Americans want to improve their immune system so as to be less likely to contract one. And if you walk through a pharmacy you'll notice plenty of supplements touting the "immune-boosting" powers of Vitamin C, echinacea, and all sorts of other herbs and vitamins. The scientific and medical community, however, are still debating the efficacy of such supplements. Despite that, one vitamin has come to the spotlight with some very convincing evidence: vitamin D.
Vitamin D, the Sunshine Supplement, Has Shadowy Money Behind It
The doctor most responsible for creating a billion-dollar juggernaut has received hundreds of thousands of dollars from the vitamin D industry.
Vitamin D: What You Need To Know
Hardly a day goes by without some groundbreaking news about Vitamin D. Originally known for it's crucial role in maintaining calcium levels for bone health, it is rapidly becoming apparent that we have vastly underestimated Vitamin D's significant importance for our overall health and wellbeing.
The Vitamin-D controversy…
In my humble opinion, Vit-D is the most misunderstood, but over-recommended supplement on the Planet. What is worth noting is that it is, in fact, a Hormone — not a Vitamin, and it is also the FIRST hormone to exist on Planet Earth. Hmmmm.
5 Important Things You Probably Didn't Know About Vitamin D
When it comes to getting the nutrients and minerals our bodies need, vitamin D should not be overlooked. You might know that this fat-soluble nutrient helps keep your bones strong, but it does so much more. Some of its benefits may even surprise you.
5 Things You Should Know About Vitamin D Deficiency
Imagine there were a nutrient that could protect your bones, brain and heart, and maybe even help you live longer. It's 100 percent free, and all you have to do to get it is go outside. Seems like something everyone would have plenty of, right? Well, that nutrient exists -- it's vitamin D, which is created by our cells when our skin is exposed to sunlight.
The VitaminD Society
The Vitamin D Society is a Canadian non-profit group organized to: •Increase awareness of the many health conditions strongly linked to vitamin D deficiency. •Encourage all Canadians to be proactive in protecting their health and have their vitamin D blood levels tested annually. •Fund valuable vitamin D research.
Vitamin D Council
Information on the latest vitamin D news and research. Find out more information on deficiency, supplementation, sun exposure, and how vitamin D relates to your health.
GrassrootsHealth
GrassrootsHealth focuses on vitamin D education and raising awareness about high rates of deficiency by, among other things, hosting public forums across the US and Canada. Testing of vitamin D levels is available through participation in their D*action study - 4BoneHealth
Linus Pauling Institute
Vitamin D can be synthesized in the skin upon exposure to sunlight and is then metabolized in the liver and kidney to the metabolically active form called 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D. Through binding to the vitamin D receptor (VDR), 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D can regulate the expression of hundreds of genes involved in skeletal and other biological functions
MedicineNet
Insufficient Evidence to Rate Effectiveness for... Cardiovascular disease, high cholesterol, a blood cell disease called myelodysplastic syndrome, a muscle disease called proximal myopathy, colorectal cancer, warts, gum disease, bronchitis, asthma, breathing disorders, diabetes, metabolic syndrome, premenstrual syndrome (PMS), and other conditions.
MedlinePlus
You can get vitamin D in three ways: through your skin, from your diet, and from supplements. Your body forms vitamin D naturally after exposure to sunlight. However, too much sun exposure can lead to skin aging and skin cancer. So many people try to get their vitamin D from other sources.
NHS
Your body doesn't make too much vitamin D from sun exposure, but always remember to cover up or protect your skin if you are out in the sun for long periods. Taking too many vitamin D supplements over a long period of time can cause more calcium to be absorbed than can be excreted.

Introducing Stitches!
Your Path to Meaningful Connections in the World of Health and Medicine
Connect, Collaborate, and Engage!
Coming Soon - Stitches, the innovative chat app from the creators of HWN. Join meaningful conversations on health and medical topics. Share text, images, and videos seamlessly. Connect directly within HWN's topic pages and articles.