Between a Rock and a Hard Place
I just had another skin cancer lesion removed from my leg.The dermatologist says stay out of the sun or use heavy sunscreen. Skin cancer is caused by exposure to ultraviolet rays.
My internist, trying to get to the root of what is causing my extreme fatigue, muscle aches and weakness ordered a battery of tests. Results – I’m low in Vitamin D and need more exposure to sunlight.
Nutritionists tell us we need exposure to the sun to get the required amount of Vitamin D for a healthy body as well as a diet of fish, fish oil, egg yolks, cheese and milk. Lack of Vitamin D can cause muscle and joint pain in adults.
Dietitians tell us to limit our intake of dairy products and eggs.
Vitamin D plays a role in the prevention and treatment of several diseases – hypertension, Diabetes Type 2, osteoporosis, MS, depression, and cognitive impairment, to name a few.
Who knew?
What causes the deficiency ?
1)Those of us who live in northern climates are most likely to be deficient due to a lack of sunlight. People with dark skin can also be deficient because melanin, the chemical in our body that produces skin pigmentation, decreases the body’s ability to make vitamin D in response to sunlight even though they may have exposure.
2)As we age our kidneys don’t convert Vitamin D from our diet into an active form our bodies can use. 3) While Vitamin D can be taken as a supplement some of us it may not be effectively metabolizing it.. For instance, absorption is poor in people with gastrointestinal problems, Crohn’s disease, irritable bowel syndrome. 4) Vitamin D is stored in fat cells so people with a body mass index over 30 may not be able to use the Vitamin D they take in.
What’s a body to do? According to Medscape and WebMD we have two choices – limited unprotected sun exposure and vitamin D supplements. Sunlight exposure that provides a light pinkness to the skin, 15-30 minutes, will give an equivalent to 10,000-25,000 units. Vitamin D supplements should be taken in 1000-2000 units daily. You can see that sunlight provides much more Vitamin D than what we can take in by supplement.
Check your diet. Do you eat fish at least once a week? Salmon is a great choice. Eggs, cheese and milk added in moderate amounts can also increase your vitamin D level.
Lose weight if your body mass index is over 30. Get rid of those Vitamin D storing fat cells and reduce your chances of diabetes at the same time.
With the sunlight exposure, after 15-30 min., apply sunscreen if you are remaining outdoors, to protect yourself from overexposure to ultraviolet radiation.
As with all vitamin therapy check with your physician before starting on a supplement. Some supplements can interfere with other medications, especially anti-coagulants. Ultra high levels of vitamins in the body can be as harmful as a lack of vitamins so know your levels before adding a supplement. People with a history of skin cancer need to check with their dermatologist before undertaking sun therapy to increase Vitamin D.
Another day, another conundrum.
Think about it.