Vitamin D deficiency is more common in winter.
Tiredness, depression and weak muscles can all be signs of vitamin D deficiency.
Depression risk is raised by vitamin D deficiency, according to one study.
This may be because of the role that vitamin D plays in regulating serotonin.
Serotonin is a neurotransmitter important for mood.
Similarly, poor sleep and headaches can also be signs of the deficiency.
The current recommendations for vitamin D intake by the National Academy of Medicine are 600 IU per day for adults.
Foods that are rich in vitamin D include oily fish and eggs, but most people get their vitamin D from the action of sunlight on the skin.
Sufficient levels of vitamin D3 can help to restore the cardiovascular system, repairing damage done by diseases like hypertension and diabetes.
The conclusions come from a study that examined the impact of vitamin D3 on a vital component of the cardiovascular system, endothelial cells.
Professor Tadeusz Malinski, study co-author, said:
“Generally, Vitamin D3 is associated with the bones. However, in recent years, in clinical settings people recognize that many patients who have a heart attack will have a deficiency of D3.
It doesn’t mean that the deficiency caused the heart attack, but it increased the risk of heart attack.
We use nanosensors to see why Vitamin D3 can be beneficial, especially for the function and restoration of the cardiovascular system.”
The results showed that vitamin D3 can help to prevent blood clots and reduce oxidative stress in the cardiovascular system.
Getting sufficient levels of vitamin D could help to reduce the risk of heart attacks.
Professor Malinski said:
“There are not many, if any, known systems which can be used to restore cardiovascular endothelial cells which are already damaged, and Vitamin D3 can do it.
This is a very inexpensive solution to repair the cardiovascular system.
We don’t have to develop a new drug.
We already have it.”
The study was published in the International Journal of Nanomedicine (Khan et al., 2018).
