Commonly referred to as the “sunshine” vitamin, vitamin D is a mandatory nutrient for boosting bone, muscle, and teeth health. Yet, it’s the most neglected vitamin, with over a billion people worldwide reporting vitamin D deficiency. The vitamin D deficiency pandemic, known as hypovitaminosis D, affects people in all age groups and ethnicities and hurts the overall mortality of the population.
Evidence Showing a Lack of Vitamin D
The leading causes of vitamin D deficiency are insufficient outdoor activities, poor exposure to sunlight, and inadequate intake of vitamin D-rich foods. People having vitamin D deficiency often exhibit varied symptoms, below being the most common ones.
Frequent Infections and Ailments
Vitamin D is a key building block in reinforcing a healthy immune system. The vitamin has the power to moderate adaptive and intrinsic immune responses while strengthening your immunity. Vitamin D interacts with body cells to address infections, and several studies have linked respiratory tract infections with vitamin D deficiency.
The deficiency of this valuable nutrient increases vulnerability to diseases and autoimmunity. In other words, a body lacking a quality supply of vitamin D will reduce its immune system’s capacity to defend against invading organisms and diseases. Inadequate vitamin D supply may be to blame if you frequently suffer from colds, flu, pneumonia, and bronchitis.
Drowsiness and Lethargy
Everyday lifestyle challenges, including lack of exercise, overworking, and lack of quality sleep, are leading causes of lethargy and tiredness. These symptoms could also happen due to medical treatments, illness, and excessive medication use. When you’re depressed or anxious, you might also experience fatigue and tiredness. However, these aren’t the only causes of feeling so exhausted, as vitamin D deficiency can also lead to these symptoms.
A study on 480 older adults confirmed that vitamin D insufficiency could trigger fatigue symptoms. Another one involving 39 children demonstrated that low vitamin D levels could lead to delayed bedtimes and poor sleep quality. Several other observational studies concerning female nurses linked low vitamin D levels with self-reported fatigue. Supplementing with the vitamin can decrease the harshness of fatigue triggered by other factors.
Back and Bone Pain
Vitamin D’s most powerful role is to boost bone and muscle health. An inadequate supply leaves the bones and muscles unable to absorb enough calcium. Lack of quality vitamin D supply often leaves the bones weak, causing osteomalacia in kids and adults alike.
When your body lacks proper levels of this vitamin, you might experience arthritis and muscle, bone, and back pain. Because vitamin D is responsible for boosting muscle and bone functions, when you don’t get enough of it, you might experience inflammation and joint pain. Vitamin D-rich foods and supplements could prevent inflammatory diseases and osteoporosis fractures.
Slow Wound Healing
Vitamin D is crucial for speeding up the healing process of wounds. It does so by boosting overall epidermal production and platelet growth. Lower amounts of 25-hydroxyvitamin D in your system often affect how fast injuries heal. You’ll find that when your system lacks adequate amounts of this vitamin, wounds caused by injuries or surgery will take longer to recover. That’s because the vitamins are responsible for reinforcing the functions of compounds that speed up the formation of new skin.
Additionally, this mandatory vitamin controls inflammation and addresses infections, a process that affects wound healing. A study involving 221 people, among whom 112 had foot infections, confirmed that participants with vitamin D deficiency had higher inflammatory markers, jeopardizing the healing process. Another study evaluating 60 participants with diabetes-related foot ulcers validated that participants who took vitamin D supplements experienced faster wound healing.
Bone Loss
When your body doesn’t get a sufficient supply of vitamin D, its ability to absorb calcium and bone metabolism reduces. Overall, taking enough calcium and vitamin D simultaneously can optimize the body’s ability to absorb calcium. You’ll often encounter low bone mineral density issues if you don’t consume enough of these two nutrients.
Low bone mineral density problems are prevalent among older people, especially those aged 50 and above. An observational study examining 1,100 middle-aged postmenopausal and menopausal women linked low vitamin D amounts to bone loss. Furthermore, studies link sufficient vitamin D supply with reduced muscle pain issues, improved bone mineral density, and streamlined blood levels. In its research on the best supplements for supporting optimal wellness and good health, PureHealth Research has confirmed the benefits of vitamins for improved overall fitness.
Hair Loss Issues
Stress and depression are leading causes of severe hair loss, but they are not the only causes. A lack of essential nutrients, vitamin D included, could cause hair loss. Several studies have associated low vitamin D levels with alopecia areata, an autoimmune disease that triggers premature hair loss and related conditions.
The human body uses keratinocytes to metabolize vitamin D in the skin. Keratinocytes are the skin cells responsible for processing keratin, an active protein in the skin, hair, and nails. Vitamin D deficiency leaves keratinocytes unable to regulate the shedding and growth of hair.
Weight Gain
An inadequate vitamin D supply in our bodies has been linked with unexpected weight gain. On several occasions, people with lower vitamin D supply experienced unanticipated weight gain. Multiple studies have all pointed out that when you are low on vitamin D, you’re more likely to become obese.
Some researchers have confirmed that most obese people have a low supply of vitamin D. In other words, the chances of putting on weight are higher when your body’s vitamin D levels go down.
Conclusion
It’s an established fact that every nutrient is vital in our bodies, and neglecting some of them could be catastrophic at the end of the day. One of the critical vitamins not given the attention it deserves by people all over the world is vitamin D. Most fail to understand that if they fail to take enough vitamin D, their overall wellness and health is affected. If you notice any of the above symptoms of vitamin D deficiency, it’s time you supplement your diet accordingly. In addition, you should consider spending more time outdoors!