Our body’s own health protection system hasn’t ever seemed so important as now, has it? Fortunately our powerful friend VITAMIN D seems to have been in the research headlines recently and you may have heard about it too? Dr. John Campbell has also kindly put an easy-access video on YouTube to explain this vital vitamin’s key role in supporting our body’s natural immune/defence system …
As you watch this video you will see how Vitamin D levels in our blood influence some of the different units in our immune system: Either positively if there is enough Vitamin D or negatively if the level is inadequate. So just like a cosy house cannot be built without bricks and breeze blocks, so a well-functioning immune/defence system does not seem to be able function well without an adequate supply of this vital vitamin exerting its effects.
Nutrients were not designed to work alone however, so other co-factors and key substances are required by our body’s defence system such as proteins, other vitamins, minerals, polyphenols and essential fatty acids. Back to the house-building analogy to clarify this further, our cosy homes also require many co-factors as together with bricks/breeze blocks eg foundations, cement, electrics, plumbing, central heating, windows, meticulously-tiled roof, etc. This is teamwork and nutrition science is the same, every nutrient plays a vital role to keep the whole system going.
What this means for you
So this means that building and maintaining our health typically starts with eating nutritious, delicious, nutrient-rich real foods like those listed on Public Health Collaboration’s website (these booklets are also downloadable for free). Humans get Vitamin D from the diet and supplements, though the major source of Vitamin D however is sensible sun exposure(1); the UK’s geographical latitude however means that we only normally make Vitamin D here between the months of April-Sept approx. This is because the necessary light rays reaching our skin depends on the angle of the sun in the sky(1):
“Solar ultraviolet B radiation (wavelength, 290 to 315 nm) penetrates the skin and converts 7-dehydrocholesterol to previtamin D3, which is rapidly converted to vitamin D3.” (1)
This means that, as the days shorten significantly from the autumn until late spring, to keep my immune system well-nourished over winter, for the past few years I normally regularly check my blood Vitamin D levels via doctor-led laboratories VitaminDtest.org (NHS pathology lab) or Medichecks.
Either of these labs provide simple finger-stick sample collection kits to take in the comfort of my own home. Then the results help me to choose adequate supplementation(2). It is hoped that this information may help you to know more about getting Vitamin D levels right. For optimal health however, other nutrient levels may also need to be measured, evaluated and rebalanced.
References
- Holick MF. Vitamin D Deficiency. New England Journal of Medicine. 2007;357(3):266-81.
- Holick MF, Binkley NC, Bischoff-Ferrari HA, Gordon CM, Hanley DA, Heaney RP, et al. Guidelines for preventing and treating vitamin D deficiency and insufficiency revisited. The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism. 2012;97(4):1153-8.