Vitamin D

Vitamin D Facts:

Vitamin D helps the body absorb the mineral calcium, which maintains strong bones and teeth. Like all vitamins, D has no calories and is a micronutrient vital for our health. But unlike other vitamins which the body cannot synthesize, we don’t need to get D from our diets. D is different in that your body can produce it from sunlight! It’s often called the sunshine vitamin. The oils in our skin work with the sun to make vitamin D. Couch potatoes and people who live in northern latitudes may not get enough sun and therefore, should make sure to eat a vitamin D rich diet.

We need D in order to absorb calcium, crucial for normal bone formation. That’s why D deficiency can cause rickets in kids or soft bones in adults. D in milk is a synthetic addition. These days most milk is fortified with D, but for years kids took cod liver oil to prevent rickets. Unless you often munch on tuna, salmon or mackerel, some sunlight and milk should be your ticket to vitamin D delight.