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Showing posts from November, 2016

Vitamin D - the Holy Grail of Vitamins?

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As the dark nights draw in some start to crave sunshine while experiencing symptoms of feeling tired all the time, aches and feeling low in mood and motivation.  Some of these symptoms can be attributed to low circulating levels of Vitamin D, of which 90% is gained through exposure to sunshine and 10% can be absorbed from dietary sources.  In Equatorial areas of the globe a fair skinned person exposing face and arms to the sun at noon for 30 minutes may synthesize about 2,000 IU of Vitamin D in the skin, although ironically we now advise avoiding the midday sun due to risk of skin damage and cancer.  Unfortunately in Northern climes (above the latitude of Newbury in the UK) the wavelength of sunlight is inadequate year round and deficient in winter, leaving many at risk of vitamin D insufficiency and causing consequent symptoms or complications if deficiency is left untreated. All living above Newbury in the UK should consider supplementation. Groups most at