Vitamin D Can Benefit Mental Health

Vitamin D has been found to be very important on many fronts… and, indeed, there is an almost universal deficiency of this vitamin because people have been told to stay out of the sun. Since exposure to sunlight causes the skin to produce Vitamin D, this has become a big health issue. Now, a study has shown yet another benefit from Vitamin D… mental health acuity!

Vitamin D ‘is mental health aid’

“Vitamin D, found in fish and produced by sun exposure, can help stave off the mental decline that can affect people in old age, a study has suggested. UK and US researchers looked at 2,000 people aged 65 and over. They found that compared to those with the highest vitamin D levels, those with the lowest were more than twice as likely to have impaired understanding. Alzheimer’s charities said the research was interesting, but more work was needed to understand vitamin D’s role. Vitamin D is important in maintaining bone health, in the absorption of calcium and phosphorus, and in helping the immune system. The body makes vitamin D when it is exposed to the sun, or it can be obtained from foods such as oily fish, and those fortified with vitamin D, such as milk, cereals, and soya drinks. But older people’s skin is less able to absorb vitamin D from sunlight so they are more reliant on obtaining it from other sources.”

If you are considering supplementing Vitamin D, be sure that you get the form that your body can readily use, which is called “D3,” or cholecalciferol. A lot of synthetic Vitamin D supplements contain D2. Be careful to get the right kind!