Vitamin D is more than just the sunshine vitamin--it's also brain food, and a new study shows how it can help seniors stay sharp and smart.
Researchers tested the D levels of 1,000 seniors between the ages of 66 and 99 and split them into three groups: deficient, insufficient, or sufficient. If you've been reading House Calls, you know where most people ended up-- 65 percent fell into either the "deficient" or "insufficient" categories.
Their loss, because the study found that the seniors who had the highest levels of D did the best on tests that measured executive function--that's the ability to think, reason and make decisions.
The seniors with sufficient D were also able to think quicker, according to the study published in the Journals of Gerontology, Series A, Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences.
Stronger executive function and better thinking skills add up to a lower risk for dementia and other mental disorders, so if you're not doubling up on D, what are you waiting for?
Of course, seniors aren't the only ones who should be watching their D levels. Everyone needs this crucial hormone--but some of us need it more than others.
Like diabetics--because another new study finds that low levels of D can cause the disease to spiral out of control.
Researchers measured the D levels of 124 diabetics, and broke them down into four groups: normal, mildly deficient, moderately deficient, or severely deficient.
Once again, "normal" was not the norm. In fact, 91 percent fell into one of the three levels of deficiency--and more than a third were severely deficient in D. And according to the study presented at a recent Endocrine Society meeting, those with the worst deficiencies also had the least control over their diabetes.
D deficiencies aren't limited to seniors and diabetics-- most Americans in every category are also missing out. Big mistake, because as I've told you before, vitamin D can help strengthen your bones, boost your immune system and fight major diseases, including diabetes, heart disease and some cancers.
Vitamin D can even help you live longer.
The only question now is, how should you get it?
Glad you asked--because another new study says you should take a supplement, since millions of Americans live in areas where it's impossible to make enough D from sunlight.
Researchers designed a computer program to calculate the sun exposure needed for the body to create vitamin D in Miami and Boston during four points in the year: January, April, July, and October.
They found that Bostonians could get 400 IU of D in summer by exposing 25 percent of the body to the sun for between three and eight minutes a day. But in winter, these hardy New Englanders could sit naked in the snow all day long and never get even that tiny amount of D, according to the study in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology.
Of course, that wasn't a problem in Miami--where the sun is always shining and the skin is usually exposed, and not always tastefully. The researchers said Miamians can get those 400 IUs of D in just a few minutes a day, any time of year.
But let's face it--400 IUs is barely the beginning. You need much more than that, and you need it consistently and reliably all year long, no matter what you live.
The only way to do that is with a safe, natural vitamin D3 supplement. And now, even the supplement-hating mainstream can agree with that.
On a mission for your health,
Ed Martin
Editor, House Calls
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