{"id":1038,"date":"2017-12-14T08:08:31","date_gmt":"2017-12-14T08:08:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/veryhealthy.life\/?p=1038"},"modified":"2021-07-14T13:35:06","modified_gmt":"2021-07-14T13:35:06","slug":"17-benefits-vitamin-d","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/veryhealthy.life\/17-benefits-vitamin-d\/","title":{"rendered":"17 Benefits of Vitamin D"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"1. Stronger Bones<\/h3>\n

Vitamin D<\/a> has a great number of different crucial roles throughout the body, which you will discover as we go through this list. One of the lesser-known of these benefits however is the ability to strengthen bones. This happens because vitamin D encourages the efficient uptake of calcium and magnesium \u2013 the minerals that are used to form the bones.<\/p>\n

This is why people who don\u2019t get enough sunlight exposure are prone to brittle bones. It\u2019s also why consuming vitamin D is one of the best ways to reduce your likelihood of osteoarthritis in old age, as well as being one of the best ways to combat it if you already suffer from the condition.<\/p>\n

\"\"2. Increased Testosterone<\/h3>\n

Another thing that might not spring immediately to mind when considering the benefits of vitamin D, is the fact that it can increase testosterone<\/a>.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s possible because vitamin D is not really a vitamin in the conventional sense but rather a prohormone. That means that it can help the body to produce and regulate its use of hormones, including testosterone.<\/p>\n

Boosting testosterone can have a ton of different positive benefits for the body. This will increase muscle mass, virility, strength, energy levels, and more!<\/p>\n

\"\"3. Diabetes<\/h3>\n

Did you know that vitamin D may be helpful in the management of diabetes<\/a>? The thing to remember here is that vitamin D is a prohormone and can regular levels of different hormones at different times.<\/p>\n

Hormones are not just responsible for our moods and our energy levels, they also regulate things like appetite and our sleep-wake cycle.<\/p>\n

Did you know for instance, that our hormones are largely responsible for things like our energy levels, our ability to metabolize foods, etc? When we eat, it alters our mood, our hunger, and the way that sugar is utilized throughout the body.
\nThis is why something as seemingly unrelated as vitamin D can actually have strong benefits when it comes to sugar regulation and conditions like diabetes.<\/p>\n

\"\"4. Lung Function<\/h3>\n

Another perhaps surprising benefit of vitamin D is that it can support your lung function.<\/p>\n

Studies show that vitamin D can actually help you to breathe more easily by allowing you to take in more oxygen <\/a>with each breath.<\/p>\n

It also appears to help combat many different conditions that can negatively impact on respiration. It has even been suggested that vitamin D can help to improve athletic performance.<\/p>\n

The mechanism of action isn\u2019t fully known, but that shouldn\u2019t really matter. It helps you breathe\u2026 what more do you need to know!<\/p>\n

\"\"5. Strength<\/h3>\n

We already know that vitamin D can help to boost testosterone levels. This alone can be enough to increase strength both in the long term and in the short term. At the same time though, it can also increase strength in another way \u2013 by increasing the absorption of calcium<\/a> and magnesium.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s because these minerals aren\u2019t only used to strengthen bone, they\u2019re also used to strengthen connective tissue, which has been shown in studies to actually increase contractile strength and thereby help athletes to lift and push greater weights around.<\/p>\n

\"\"6. Teeth<\/h3>\n

Another pleasing side benefit of having better absorption of calcium and magnesium<\/a> is that it can support the formation of other structures in the human body that require minerals. This includes the teeth, which are of course made from bone.<\/p>\n

The result is that you can end up with whiter, cleaner looking teeth that suffer from fewer problems. It may also make them less prone to breaking if you should fall or have another accident.<\/p>\n

\"\"7. Energy Levels<\/h3>\n

Have you ever met someone who just seems to have tons of energy? Who is always moving, always full of life? Never seemingly burned out and drained?<\/p>\n

These people very often spend a lot of time outdoors. Very often then are types who travel a lot, or who enjoy activities like surfing and camping. Sure, they enjoy those activities partly because they have the energy<\/a> to enjoy them, but the correlation also works the other way around.<\/p>\n

Spending more time outside gives them more energy because vitamin D helps them to produce more of the right hormones.<\/p>\n

If you want more energy, spend more time outside!<\/p>\n

\"\"8. Sleep<\/h3>\n

Another reason that energy levels are so closely linked with vitamin D is that vitamin D boosts sleep<\/a>. When you sleep better, you wake up performing better in pretty much every capacity.<\/p>\n

Getting more vitamin D, especially at the start of the day, can help you to regulate your biological clock and tell your system what time to feel awake and what time to feel sleepy.<\/p>\n

This is why many biohackers, including the popular Dave Asprey, recommend taking a dose of vitamin D at the start of the day in order to enjoy better sleep throughout the night.<\/p>\n

\"\"9. Insulin Regulation<\/h3>\n

Vitamin Ds ability to alter things like appetite and metabolism can also extend to better regulation of insulin.<\/p>\n

Insulin<\/a> is a hormone that is released when blood sugar levels increase. This in turn causes the body to absorb that sugar where it can then either be used or stored as fat. By controlling the release of insulin, vitamin D can give us more balance over our blood sugar and this in turn can help to prevent weight gain and control the symptoms of diabetes.<\/p>\n

Specifically, vitamin D works its magic by increasing our insulin sensitivity and through that, it helps us to make more use of the sugar in our bodies.<\/p>\n

\"\"10. Athletic Performance<\/h3>\n

We\u2019ve seen that vitamin D can strengthen bones<\/a> and muscle contractions. We\u2019ve seen that it can improve breathing. And we\u2019ve seen that it increases energy levels.<\/p>\n

And seeing as we\u2019ve now just learned that it also enhances insulin sensitivity, it only follows that this is an all-round great nutrient for any athlete to use if they want to see performance increases across the board.<\/p>\n

\"\"11. Mood<\/h3>\n

Using vitamin D will put you in a better mood. This is partly because it helps to improve things like your energy levels and your insulin<\/a> sensitivity, both of which will help to automatically improve your mood.<\/p>\n

At the same time though, vitamin D will also help to combat the effects of SAD. SAD stands for Seasonal Affective Disorder and is a condition that causes people to feel depressed and low in energy when it is winter.<\/p>\n

The theory goes that this is due to inadequate exposure to light and sun and that this causes unwanted hormonal changes. Reverse the process by increasing your vitamin D intake!<\/p>\n

\"\"12. Flu<\/h3>\n

According to relatively recent research, vitamin D might be the very best supplement you can take in order to combat the common cold and the flu<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Many of us know that vitamin C can help the body to combat colds and strengthen the immune system. However, this recent research actually suggests that vitamin D is even more potent in that regard.<\/p>\n

In fact, the studies found vitamin D to be almost as effective as a flu vaccination!<\/p>\n

\"\"13. Immune System<\/h3>\n

It\u2019s not just flu and colds that vitamin D can help with, it\u2019s your immune system<\/a> in general. This means that by using vitamin D, you can reduce your likelihood of contracting a wide range of different conditions.<\/p>\n

By keeping infections and bacteria at bay, you can avoid a range of conditions that would otherwise leave you feeling tired, sluggish, and burn out \u2013 or that might lead to more serious complications over time.<\/p>\n

Whatever the case, vitamin D can be a powerful tool to help you feel your best and to avoid unwanted illnesses.<\/p>\n

\"\"14. Children<\/h3>\n

While everyone can benefit from vitamin D, the benefits appear to be especially pronounced for children. This is partly due to the fact that children are still growing and therefore need extra support for their bones and their connective tissue.<\/p>\n

At the same time, vitamin D can help to improve their general health and to avoid conditions like asthma, eczema, and allergies. It can also prevent the appearance of \u2018atopic\u2019 diseases and decrease arterial stiffness<\/a> in children.<\/p>\n

Children should aim to consume roughly 400 I\/U a day in order to enjoy these benefits. Of course, it\u2019s even better if you can convince your children to spend a little less time playing computer games and a little more time outdoors!<\/p>\n

\"\"15. Cancer<\/h3>\n

Yes, vitamin D is another supplement\/nutrient that has anti-cancer benefits. That\u2019s because it plays a key role in regulating the formation of new cells, which we know to be one of the processes throughout which cancer can begin.<\/p>\n

It is also a key player in the role of cell-to-cell communication and can increase the production of the hormone calcitriol Calcitriol is important because it is able to slow the growth of blood vessels<\/a> in the cancerous tissue and thereby prevent the proliferation and metastases of that tissue.<\/p>\n

Not only that, but vitamin D is also involved in gene expression, influencing over 200 human genes \u2013 and those are just the ones we know about.<\/p>\n

\"\"16. Pregnancy<\/h3>\n

Vitamin D is good for children as we have seen, but it is also good for parents that are with child. That\u2019s because deficiencies in vitamin D have been linked to higher-than-average risks of preeclampsia<\/a>, a dangerous condition that affects women during childbirth.<\/p>\n

Using vitamin D also decreases the likelihood of needing cesarean. This is a good prenatal supplement to take for that reason, though you should always consult with your doctor first.<\/p>\n

\"\"17. Other Benefits<\/h3>\n

Vitamin D is undoubtedly a crucial nutrient for our bodies and we can see all of the reasons that we need to get it by browsing the list. Thing is though, we are discovering new benefits of vitamin D all the time. Just look at all the DNA<\/a> it can affect!<\/p>\n

In short, there are likely many more advantages of vitamin D that we haven\u2019t even discovered yet and that\u2019s why it\u2019s so important to get as much as possible naturally by spending time outdoors.<\/p>\n

If you can\u2019t spend more time outdoors then \u2013 and there are many legitimate reasons why this may be the case \u2013 then make sure that you are supplementing or getting it from fish and mushrooms instead.<\/p>\n\r\n

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