Vitamin D Levels And Postmenopausal Women

Vitamin D has gotten more and more attention in the health industry and for good reason. Vitamin D is a fat soluble vitamin that is responsible for regulating calcium amounts in the blood, plays a role in growth and remodeling of bone, reduces cardiovascular disease, improve your immune system, reduces your risk of certain cancer, improve skin complexion, prevents muscle tension, and aid with weight loss just to name of few benefits.

More people are realizing that they actually have a Vitamin D deficiency. Vitamin D can be found in foods such as milk, fish, mushrooms, and eggs or taken as a supplement. Vitamin D is also produced in the skin when you are exposed to UV rays from the sun or from an artificial source. You may become deficient if you:

1. Don't consume the recommended levels through food or supplementation.
2. Do not have enough exposure to sunlight.
3. Do not have dark skin complexion.
4. Have kidney problems and cannot convert Vitamin D to its active form.
5. Cannot adequately absorb Vitamin D through your digestive tract.
6. Are Obese.

Even if you do not fit in any of these categories it is still a good idea to regularly have your blood tested to determine your Vitamin D levels. I actually had mine tested and found that my levels were on the low side.

A recent study looking at overweight postmenopausal women found so very exciting news on the vitamin. The study took a group of women and divided them into 4 groups. A diet only group, an exercise only group, a diet and exercise group, and a control group. The study found that no matter how you did it (exercise, diet, or both) those that lost weight saw an increase in Vitamin D levels. In fact, women who lost <5%, 5–9.9%, 10–14.9%, or ≥15% of baseline weight had mean increases in Vitamin D levels of 2.1, 2.7, 3.3, and 7.7 ng/mL, respectively.

So if you have never check your levels I highly recommend looking into it. If they are low there are plenty of things you can do to increase them. Start with a diet high in Vitamin D and exercising in the sunshine. Catch this problem before you experience any of the symptoms of Vitamin D deficiency.

You Stay Healthy San Diego,

Mike Deibler MS, CSCS
San Diego Premier Training