#1 Best Source of Vitamin D3 -- for FREE -- Revealed!
Plus Dangers of Overdosing on Vitamin D
by www.SixWise.com

There is probably a reason you have never been told the straight truth about one of the most natural, potent, yet overlooked healing nutrients in the world. The fact is that many medical groups and product manufacturers have spent billions over the past 30 years convincing you to avoid this "nutrient" by trying (and succeeding) to scare you into thinking it causes cancer.

The truth is actually far different than many public health agencies and sunscreen manufacturers would have you believe.
    
Are you open to letting nature take its course to heal and improve your health?
    
There's strong clinical evidence proving that this "natural nutrient" actually prevents and helps fight an astounding number of serious diseases, including:

• Prostate cancer

• Breast cancer

• Osteoporosis

• Depression

• Gum disease

• Schizophrenia

• Diabetes

Are you curious what this "nutrient" is? We'll give you some clues:

It's known to move at the speed of light. You can feel it on your skin (it feels warm), yet you can't touch it. Without it, there would be no life whatsoever on our planet. And best of all it's FREE (it can't be patented or sold for profit).

What is it?

Sunlight.

Why is Vitamin D so Important?

Vitamin D, which is actually not a vitamin but a secosteroid hormone, targets over 2,000 genes in your body; this is about 10 percent of the entire human genome! According to the Vitamin D Council:

"Current research has implicated vitamin D deficiency as a major factor in the pathology of at least 17 varieties of cancer as well as heart disease, stroke, hypertension, autoimmune diseases, diabetes, depression, chronic pain, osteoarthritis, osteoporosis, muscle weakness, muscle wasting, birth defects, periodontal disease, and more."

New research conducted by researchers at the State University of New York at Albany have even found that a potent form of vitamin D works to kill breast cancer cells.

"What happens is that vitamin D enters the cells and triggers the cell death process," researcher JoEllen Welsh said in an ABC News article. Further, when breast cancer cells were injected into mice, then treated with vitamin D, tumors shrank by an average of 50 percent, and some disappeared altogether. The results were similar with other types of tumors as well, including colon and prostate.

A recent study by researchers at Warwick Medical School also demonstrated the importance of vitamin D for preventing heart disease, diabetes and metabolic syndrome. Among the middle aged and elderly, those with high vitamin D levels had a 43 percent lower risk of heart disease or diabetes.

Sunny Deceptions

Ask most dermatologists in the United States, and they will tell you to faithfully apply sunscreen of a high SPF daily in order to protect your skin from the sun. This mantra has been recited by physicians and public health agencies to such a high degree that many Americans are now sun-phobic and either shun the sun entirely or only go out when well protected with sunscreen or sunblock.

The problem with this advice is that when you wear sunscreen, it blocks your ability to produce vitamin D in your skin.

"Vitamin D is important to overall health. People need to be aware that sunscreen, even at SPF15, blocks more than 90 percent of the sun's rays used to produce this vital vitamin," Dr. Michael Holick, MD, PhD of Boston University, said in a PRNewswire article.

But as you might suspect, 64 percent of Americans are unaware that sunscreen limits your body’s ability to produce this vital nutrient, according to a survey conducted by WELLESSE.

Now, as a result of public health campaigns and sunscreen advertising success, the majority of Americans are deficient in vitamin D.

How Many are Vitamin D Deficient, and What are the Risks?

 
Most people in the United States are vitamin D deficient, a health risk that has only recently been uncovered. In fact, a new study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine found that 75 percent of U.S. teens and adults are deficient in vitamin D.

The numbers could be even higher, however, as researchers used 30 nanograms per milliliter or more of vitamin D as the cut-off for healthy levels. Some experts, including the Vitamin D council, believe vitamin D deficiency may occur at below 50 ng/mL -- a detail that would put many more at risk. They explain:

"They [vitamin D researchers] found that the body does not reliably begin storing cholecalciferol in fat and muscle tissue until 25(OH)D levels get above 50 ng/ml. The average person starts to store cholecalciferol at 40 ng/ml, but at 50 ng/ml virtually everyone begins to store it for future use. That is, at levels below 50 ng/ml, the body uses up vitamin D as fast as you can make it, or take it, indicating chronic substrate starvation -- not a good thing. 25(OH)D levels should be between 50–80 ng/ml, year-round."

As it stands, virtually everyone, from the children through the elderly, needs to know that they could be at risk of vitamin D deficiency.

For instance, the majority of U.S. kids, about 70 percent in all, have low levels of vitamin D, according to data collected on more than 6,000 children ages 1-21.

The elderly are also especially at risk of deficiency because of:

• Limited time spent in the sun (even people living in warm, sunny climates are often vitamin-D deficient because they either spend much of their time indoors, wear sunscreen when in the sun (this blocks vitamin D production) or they are only outside during non-peak hours when the sun’s vitamin-D-producing rays are not as strong.

• A reduced ability to make vitamin D, which occurs as we age

• Inability to absorb vitamin D in supplements and from the sun. Vitamin D is an oil-soluble steroid hormone and, according to Dr. Joseph Mercola, it can take 48 hours for the vitamin D that forms on your skin after sun exposure to become absorbed by your body. If you shower with soap and water before this time, you’ll wash much of the vitamin D away.

To avoid this, you can avoid using soap on all but the crucial areas of your body for up to two days after sun exposure (avoid soaping the larger areas of your body and just use soap under your arms and your groin area, etc.).

• Further, because vitamin D is oil-soluble it is difficult to absorb in supplement form as well. So if you take a vitamin D3 supplement you will want to take it in an oil-based form, and also make sure you use AbsorbAid Platinum from NutritionsFinest.com, a vegetable-based digestive enzyme, as a transfer agent, as it will aid in the breakdown and absorption of vitamin D (both from supplements and from foods).

The risks of vitamin D deficiency are steep.

For instance, older adults with insufficient levels of vitamin D are more likely to die from heart disease and other causes than those with adequate levels. Those with low vitamin D levels were three times more likely to die from heart disease -- and 2.5 times more likely to die from any cause -- than those with optimal vitamin D.

Further, the following conditions have all been associated with vitamin D deficiency, among others:

• Osteoporosis

• Heart disease

• Hypertension

• Autoimmune diseases

• Certain cancers

• Depression

• Chronic fatigue

• Chronic pain

How do you know what your levels are?

A blood test from your doctor, called the 25-hydroxyvitamin D, can determine whether your vitamin D levels are high enough, but you should know that typical laboratory reference ranges may indicate a lower level of vitamin D as “healthy,” when newer research has shown the minimal acceptable level for vitamin D to be 50 ng/ml.

What is the Best Way to Increase Your Vitamin D Levels?

Safe sun exposure can give you plenty of vitamin D, for free. In about 20-30 minutes of sun exposure, your skin will produce at least 10,000 IU of vitamin D, which is about 50 times more than the U.S. government’s recommended daily IU.

(The Recommended Daily Allowance for vitamin D is 200 IU a day for adults up to 50, 400 IU for those 51-70, and 600 IU for those 71 and over. However, many health experts say that amount is far too low.)

The amount of vitamin D your skin produces during sun exposure depends on a number of factors, including your location, your skin color (darker skinned people need more sun exposure to produce vitamin D than lighter skinned people), cloudiness, the time of year and how much of your skin is exposed. In order to maintain healthy vitamin D levels, you will need to regularly expose the majority of your skin to mid-day sun in the spring, summer and early fall (without wearing sunscreen).

"Standing outside 15 minutes a day three times a week lets the skin produce enough vitamin D most of the year," says Dr. Michael Holick of Boston University.

While letting your skin soak up the sun, it’s important to remember NOT to get burned. Sunburn causes damage to your skin that may increase your risk of skin cancer, so you want to stay out long enough to absorb the sunlight without getting burned.

Then, monitor your levels via blood tests to confirm that you’re getting enough vitamin D.

If you find your levels are low, you may need to take a vitamin D3 supplement. According to the Vitamin D Council:

“If well adults and adolescents regularly avoid sunlight exposure, research indicates a necessity to supplement with at least 5,000 units (IU) of vitamin D daily. To obtain this amount from milk one would need to consume 50 glasses. With a multivitamin more than 10 tablets would be necessary. Neither is advisable.”

Certain foods, such as milk and orange juice, are fortified with vitamin D, and foods that are naturally rich in vitamin D are fatty fish like salmon and, to a lesser degree, mushrooms, organ meets and egg yolks. However, the amounts are not very high, so even if you eat these foods regularly it is difficult to get enough vitamin D from diet alone.

This is why many people will need to take a vitamin D3 supplement if they do not have access to regular sun exposure.

The problem with supplementation is that it is possible to overdose, whereas you cannot overdose on vitamin D from sun exposure. However, it’s thought that vitamin D toxicity from supplementation is relatively uncommon, and occurs from taking high levels (40,000 IU a day or more) for several years. Again, you can be sure your levels are staying in the appropriate range by having your blood tested.

It’s also worth noting that vitamin D is an oil-soluble vitamin that is not well absorbed. So you will want to take it in an oil-based form, and also make sure you use AbsorbAid Platinum from NutritionsFinest.com, a vegetable-based digestive enzyme, as a transfer agent. AbsorbAid Platinum will aid the breakdown and absorption of vitamin D present in foods such as fortified cereals, milk, juices, and oily fish, as well as the vitamin D in supplement form.

And remember, if you want your skin to produce beneficial vitamin D, you cannot wear sunscreen or sunblock, as this will hinder the production. If you’re going to be outdoors for long periods, you can first soak up some sun to produce vitamin D, then apply a natural sunscreen after 15-30 minutes, depending on your skin tone and location. If you want to avoid putting sunscreen chemicals on your skin at all, put on long sleeves, pants and a wide-brimmed hat to cover up from the sun … again, after you’ve had adequate time to produce your vitamin D.

Recommended Reading

Lack of Vitamin D in U.S. Kids “Shocking”

Low Vitamin D Levels Pose “Large Threat to Health” … Are You Absorbing Enough?

Sources

ABC News February 22, 2010

Maturitas. 2010 Mar;65(3):225-36.

EurekAlert February 16, 2010

ScientificAmerican.com March 23, 2009

VitaminDCouncil.org

Mercola.com May 12, 2009