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One common vitamin shortage that affects your bones and muscles is vitamin D insufficiency. The majority of those affected are above 65 and have darker skin tones. It is treatable and avoidable.
Summary
What is a deficiency in vitamin D?
A vitamin D deficit is an insufficient amount of vitamin D in the body. Your muscles and bones are the main things that are affected.
Your body needs vitamin D to maintain and create healthy bones. It is an essential nutrient. Your immunological, musculoskeletal, and neurological systems are all impacted by vitamin D.
Vitamin D can be obtained in a number of ways, including:
- Sun exposure on your skin (however older adults and those with darker skin tones could not receive enough vitamin D from sunshine). It's also possible that your geographic location limits your ability to get enough vitamin D from sunshine.
- via the food you consume.
- via means of dietary supplements.
Why is vitamin D such a big deal?
One of the numerous vitamins your body needs to keep healthy is vitamin D. It is essential for both the development and maintenance of bones as well as the balance of calcium in your blood and bones.
More precisely, your body needs vitamin D in order to utilize calcium and phosphorus for the development of healthy tissues and bones.
Hypocalcemia (low calcium levels in the blood) is caused by a decrease in calcium and phosphorus absorption by the intestines in individuals with chronic and/or severe vitamin D insufficiency. Secondary hyperparathyroidism results from this (overactive parathyroid glands trying to maintain normal blood calcium levels).
If severe, both hyperparathyroidism and hypocalcemia can result in symptoms like depression, exhaustion, and cramping in the muscles.
Your body draws calcium out of your bones in an attempt to try and balance the levels of calcium in your blood (via secondary hyperparathyroidism). This causes accelerated bone demineralization, which is the process by which a bone breaks down more quickly than it can regenerate.
Additionally, this may cause rickets in youngsters and osteomalacia (soft bones) in adults.
Breaking bones is more likely if you have osteoporosis or osteomalacia. Similar to osteomalacia, rickets only affects youngsters. Demineralization results in bowed or bent bones since a child's bones are still growing.
Who is affected by a vitamin D deficiency?
A vitamin D shortage can affect anyone, including adults, children, and newborns.
People who wear clothing that covers a large portion of their skin and have darker skin, or those with higher skin melanin content, may be more likely to suffer from vitamin D insufficiency, especially in Middle Eastern nations.
How prevalent is a lack of vitamin D?
Lack of vitamin D is a widespread problem in the world. Half of the world's population suffers from vitamin D insufficiency, and around 1 billion people are vitamin D deficient.
In the US, over 35% of adult individuals are vitamin D deficient.
Symptoms and Causes
Rickets is brought on by a severe vitamin D deficiency in youngsters. Rickets symptoms include:
- abnormal growth patterns brought on by bent or bowed bones.
- weakening of the muscles.
- bone aches.
- abnormalities in the joints.
- This is quite uncommon. Children with modest vitamin deficiencies may only experience pain, soreness, and/or weakness in their muscles.
- Weary.
- bone aches.
- pains, cramps, or weakening in the muscles.
- shifts in mood, such as depression.
Generally speaking, there are two primary reasons of vitamin D deficiency:
- inadequate intake of vitamin D from food and/or sunlight.
- Vitamin D is not being adequately absorbed or used by your body.
- certain health issues.
- surgery for weight loss.
- certain drugs.
- Age and the amount of melanin (pigment) in your skin are two other biological and environmental factors that can increase your chance of getting vitamin D deficiency.
Vitamin D insufficiency can be brought on by the following medical conditions:
- Conditions including cystic fibrosis, Crohn's disease, and celiac disease can make it difficult for your intestines to absorb enough vitamin D from supplements, particularly if the illness is left untreated.
- Obesity: Lower vitamin D levels are linked to a body mass index of more than thirty. Vitamin D is stored in fat cells to prevent release. It's common for obese people to need higher dosages of vitamin D supplements in order to achieve and sustain normal levels.
- Kidney disease and liver disease: These conditions lower the levels of specific enzymes that your body requires to convert vitamin D into a form that it can use—hepatic enzyme 25–hydroxylase from your liver and 1-alpha-hydroxylase from your kidneys.
It becomes more difficult for your body to absorb enough of some nutrients, vitamins, and minerals after weight-loss procedures like gastric bypass surgery, which involves shrinking the size of your stomach and/or bypassing a portion of your small intestines.
It's crucial to visit your doctor on a frequent basis if you've had weight-loss surgery so they can check your vitamin D and other essential levels. Throughout your life, you'll probably need to take supplements, including vitamin D.
Vitamin D levels can be lowered by a few drugs, such as:
- laxatives.
- steroids (prednisone, for example).
- medications that decrease cholesterol (cholestyramine, colestipol, etc.).
- medications that prevent seizures (such phenytoin and phenobarbital).
- Rifampin, a medicine for tuberculosis.
- Orlistat (drug used to lose weight).
- Inform your healthcare practitioner about all of your prescription drugs, over-the-counter vitamins, and herbal remedies.
How is a deficiency in vitamin D identified?
Although routine measurements of vitamin D are not typically ordered by healthcare professionals, they may be required if you have specific medical diseases, risk factors, or symptoms associated with vitamin D insufficiency.
A blood test to determine your vitamin D levels can be ordered by your healthcare professional. They may request one of two types of tests, but the most popular one is the 25(OH)D, or 25-hydroxyvitamin D.
Handling and Medical Interventions
How is a deficit in vitamin D treated?
Achieving and maintaining a sufficient amount of vitamin D in your body is the aim of both vitamin D deficiency prevention and treatment.
Avoidance
Who is most vulnerable to a lack of vitamin D?
In addition to illnesses that can cause vitamin D shortage, the following biological and environmental factors can raise an individual's risk of vitamin D deficiency:
- Age: People over 65 years of age are more vulnerable to vitamin D insufficiency since their skin's capacity to produce vitamin D diminishes with age. Another worry is that babies won't get enough vitamin D. This is particularly true for babies who are exclusively breastfed because breast milk has very little vitamin D in it.
- Skin tone: Individuals with darker skin tones are more susceptible to vitamin D insufficiency because their skin has a harder time producing vitamin D from sunshine than does skin with lighter tones.
- Mobility: Sun exposure cannot be used as a source of vitamin D by those who are homebound or seldom leave the house (such as residents of nursing homes and other facilities). They thus have an increased chance of developing a vitamin D deficiency.
Getting adequate vitamin D from your diet and/or from sun exposure is the best strategy to avoid vitamin D deficiency. However, use caution while spending too much time outside without sunscreen. Overexposure to the sun raises your risk of developing skin cancer.
- fatty fish, including sardines, mackerel, tuna, and salmon.
- trout rainbow.
- liver of cattle (cows).
- Specifically, mushrooms.
- yolks of eggs.
- Oil from cod liver.
- Almond, soy, oat, and cow's milk.
- cereals for breakfast.
- Juice from oranges.
- more dairy items, like yogurt.
- Many multivitamins contain vitamin D. Supplements with vitamin D are also available.
What consequences could a vitamin D deficit cause?
The following are the most dangerous effects of vitamin D deficiency:
- Low calcium levels in the blood (hypocalcemia).
- Hypophosphatemia is the low blood phosphate level.
- rickets (childhood-onset weakening of the bones).
- Osteomalacia (adult-onset bone softening).
Speak with your healthcare practitioner if you have questions about whether your body is utilizing vitamin D correctly or if you're not receiving enough of it.
Your healthcare practitioner might advise routinely monitoring your vitamin D levels to make sure they are within a safe range if you have any risk factors for vitamin D deficiency.
Other Frequently Asked Questions
Is it possible to consume too much vitamin D?
Indeed. If you take too many supplements, you may consume too much vitamin D. It's interesting to note that sunlight is a great source of vitamin D. Although it is uncommon, vitamin D poisoning can cause hypercalcemia. Among the symptoms are:
- nausea.
- increased urination and thirst.
- Poor appetite.
- diarrhea.
- Weakness.
- Doubt.
- Impaired coordination or balance is known as ataxia.
- speech impairment (dysarthria).
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