The Science of Vitamin D

By Terrance Franklin


In simpler times, one was be hard pressed to be deficient in Vitamin D. Right now, it is suspected that 50% of people don't get adequate. Actually, if you can think about another person that gets extra sun than you, odds are it is you!

All fooling aside, vitamin D insufficiency is more and more common which is an issue due to its importance in regulating around 1000 genes. Deficiency has been linked to consequences as diverse as depression to very poor bone health.

In the industrial revolution (also in some areas of the earth today) a disease termed rickets that caused deformed bone growth in kids was alarmingly prevalent, specifically in cities. However, kids of the same economic background in the country did not experience it. How could one vitamin influence so many functions?

Why Vitamin D should be in your emergency supplies

Vitamin D is necessary for the absorption of a number of vitamins and minerals and modulates many hormones within the body. The range of hormones is really wide including testosterone, estrogen, growth hormone, and serotonin.

Testosterone and growth hormones especially are necessary for muscle recovery that could become a big problem when bugging out. Serotonin is amongst the most essential neurotransmitters for regulating brain function and mood. There is even a theory for winter depression linked to lower vitamin d amounts.

However the most vital function for people who have children is appropriate bone growth. Vitamin D controls the absorption of calcium, among other things and lack of vitamin D is the major reason behind rickets, a disease that causes forever distorted growth.

Even for those with no children, the benefits of having healthier bones in a post-apocalyptic world should be obvious. In case you can't move, you will find a difficult time surviving.

Different forms, different ways to get it

Vitamin D is a fat soluble molecule (like vitamin A) which means you can store it if you want to. There are 2 nutritional supplies of Vitamin D. D2, or ergocalciferol is primarily found in plants and D3, or cholecalciferol is primarily found in animal sources. Like vitamin A, the animal source is much more absorbable to the body.

The right method to supplement D vitamins

Vitamin D is not a nutritional vitamin in the strictest sense since it could be created by exposure of the human skin to sunlight. There are numerous factors leading into how much exact time you would have to get the appropriate level including type of skin, latitude, time of the year and weather conditions but I was able to find a nifty calculator to figure out the amount you will require.

It is bad news if your doomsday fortress of solitude happens to be a silo, underground complex or cave . However don't worry, for it is quite possible to supplement with vitamin D if essential as well. Cold water fish, meats, eggs as well as mushrooms are good sources of vitamin D as well.

If you want to use a supplement - D3 is the best with regards to shelf life as well as potency.




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