Vitamin D deficiency: signs, symptoms

Vitamin D deficiency: signs, symptoms
Foods rich in vitamin D on a wooden table

vitamin D is a very important hormone. It has various functions including a very important part to play in your mitochondria. Mitochondria is the powerhouse of your cells. Vitamin D helps in making you energetic. It also has an important role to play in your immune system and keeping your calcium levels balanced. Thus, symptoms of its deficiency will include increased thyroids, bone pain, fractures, tiredness, insulin resistance and hair loss. The deficiency can be corrected by taking supplements and vitamins which are easily available. 

Today we will talk about vitamin D. we will also discuss the signs and symptoms of diabetes. Later we will also discuss the benefits of vitamin D and what can you do if you are deficient in vitamin D. 

Let’s first talk about why you would be vitamin D deficient in the first place. Now, vitamin D is essential if you have type 2 diabetes. Vitamin D is actually a hormone and has so many functions. If you are an indoor person and do not go out in the sun, then you will get vitamin D deficiency. Saying that doesn’t mean you should get sunburned as the sun also causes some problems. 

So what are the signs and symptoms of vitamin D deficiency? Now you may be getting sick a lot as vitamin D has been proven to induce macrophages which are defenders of your body. If you are very deficient being less than 10 then it is a problem. But having levels around 20 to 30 is okay and the desired amount is around 30 to 50. Also, you do not want to get too much vitamin D that is above 100 as studies show that it can lead to mortality. The ideal balance is very important. 

Secondly, you may feel very tired and worn down. Vitamin D has a major function in your mitochondria which is the energy powerhouse of your cells. Thus people with less vitamin D may end up being tired or weak. The main function of vitamin D is to get calcium from your intestinal system and to keep the levels of calcium balanced. Balanced calcium is very important as too much of it can lead to coma and too little may affect your rhythm. When you do not have enough vitamin D, the thyroid hormone comes in to get the calcium levels fixed. As a result, many people who are deficient in vitamin D have high thyroid hormones. This has effects on your bones. If you have bone pain, muscle pain and fractures then this can be a sign too.

Thus, if your calcium is normal and your thyroid is high then you may be vitamin D deficient. The next symptom is insulin resistance. If the vitamin D deficiency does go away, it will definitely help your insulin resistance. The next is depression. Vitamin D is also associated with depression. Will taking more vitamin D to eliminate depression? Studies do not necessarily prove this. The next symptom is impaired wound healing. When your body is not able to heal your wounds, it means there is something wrong with your immune system and vitamin D is a part of the system. 

Now how do you get vitamin D? It can be obtained through supplements if you are deficient. Bottom line is that vitamin D is very important and the correct balance is also very important. 

The importance of vitamin d in the human body

Vitamin d has a very important role in our body, lack of vitamin d can cause many problems in the human body. It is directly connected to the immune system when there is a lack of vitamin d in the Human body the body exhaust very soon. Our body feels dizzy and we lose our concentration power.
Vitamin d helps regulate the amount of calcium and phosphate in the body. Vitamin d is responsible for producing and balancing calcium in the body which is required to keep bones, muscles and teeth healthy. If there is a lack of vitamin d in the body can lead to bone deformities and may feel bone pain called osteomalacia in adults.
It is advised to take vitamin d in winter because in winter our bodies do not get enough sunlight which can lead to a deficiency of vitamin d in the body. women with newborn babies, pregnant women and breastfeeding women and people with vitamin d deficiency are advised to take vitamin d.

What is the main source of vitamin D?

The Sun is considered to be the best and main source of vitamin d but nowadays our environment and behaviour are changing and we are excluding outdoor activities and adopting indoor activities, so the body is not receiving direct sunlight from the sun which bis why there is a lack of vitamin d.
The body creates vitamin d direct from the sunlight on the skin when outside, but when there is winter season our body does not get enough sunlight to produce vitamin d itself.
Vitamin d is found in few foods only
Non-veg source of vitamin D-
Fish like tuna, Sardines and salmon
Red Meat
Egg
liver
Veg Source of vitamin D-
Vitamin D is also found in dairy products like
Paneer
Cheese
Butter

How much vitamin d does our body need per day?

Most of the time our body produces vitamin d direct from the sunlight, but in some cases, the body is not able to produce vitamin d. if we talk about the summer season then there is an abundant amount of sunlight to produce vitamin d, but in the winter season, our bodies do not get enough sunlight due to which there can be a deficiency of vitamin d.
The average human body needs 10 micrograms of vitamin d per day. It includes adults, children of 1 year age, pregnant and breastfeeding women and people with vitamin d deficiency. A microgram is 1000 times smaller than milligrams.

Who should take vitamin d supplements?

People with vitamin d deficiency or pregnant and breastfeeding women can take vitamin d supplements after consulting with their physician. According to Government policies, pregnant and breastfeeding women are provided with calcium and vitamins to fulfil their requirements.
As we already have discussed that our body can make vitamin d directly from the sunlight, but people with vitamin d deficiency should once consult with their physician to fulfil the requirement of vitamin d.