{"id":13275,"date":"2024-11-18T12:03:00","date_gmt":"2024-11-18T11:03:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sciencepharma.com\/blog\/whats-the-deal-with-vitamin-d\/"},"modified":"2024-11-22T14:14:07","modified_gmt":"2024-11-22T13:14:07","slug":"whats-the-deal-with-vitamin-d","status":"publish","type":"blog","link":"https:\/\/www.sciencepharma.com\/pl\/blog\/whats-the-deal-with-vitamin-d\/","title":{"rendered":"What’s the deal with vitamin D?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

What is vitamin D?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n

Vitamin D<\/strong> is a series of organic chemical compounds, the most important of which are cholecalciferol<\/strong> (vitamin D3) and ergocalciferol<\/strong> (vitamin D2). They differ chemically only in their side-chain structures, but both play the same role in the body. Both vitamin D3 and D2 are inactive, and only in the body are they transformed into biologically active forms: calcitriol<\/strong> and ercalcitriol<\/strong> [6,9,23].<\/p>\n

The biologically active form is a hormone that affects most of the physiological processes in the human body and mainly controls the body’s calcium and phosphate metabolism.<\/p>\n

Vitamin D promotes calcium<\/strong> absorption<\/strong> in the gut and maintains adequate serum calcium and phosphate concentrations to enable normal bone mineralization and prevent hypocalcemic tetany (involuntary muscle contractions leading to cramps and spasms). It is also needed for bone growth and remodeling by osteoblasts and osteoclasts. Bones can become thin, brittle, and misshapen without sufficient vitamin D. Vitamin D sufficiency prevents rickets in children and osteomalacia in adults. Together with calcium, vitamin D also helps protect older adults from osteoporosis<\/strong> [22,24].<\/span><\/p>\n

In addition to the most well-known ones described above, vitamin D also has several other functions, including reduction of inflammation as well as modulation of cell growth, neuromuscular and immune function, and glucose metabolism. Many genes encoding proteins that regulate cell proliferation, differentiation, and apoptosis are modulated in part by vitamin D. Furthermore, vitamin D is an important factor in muscle protein synthesis. This vitamin, due to its antioxidant<\/strong> and anti-inflammatory<\/strong> properties and activity in brain tissue, is essential for mood disorders preventions or treatments, such as depression<\/strong> and anxiety<\/strong>. There are also reports that vitamin D has anti-cancer<\/strong> properties regarding some types of cancer. Such a diverse functionality of vitamin D results from the fact that there are receptors for this vitamin in the cells of many tissues [2,4,18].<\/p>\n\n\n

<\/div>\n\n\n\n

How much vitamin D do we need for proper functioning?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n

Given that vitamin D is involved in many processes in the body, and its need depends on many factors, it is difficult to provide a precise and universal recommendation for a daily dose. Organizations issuing clinical guidelines, however,<\/span> make some estimates, although it should be noted that these often differ from one another.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Panel on Dietetic Products, Nutrition, and Allergies (EFSA 2016) defined an adequate vitamin D intake of 600 IU per day for healthy individuals over one year of age, including pregnant and lactating women. The dietary reference values for healthy infants aged 7-11 months have been set at 400 IU per day.<\/p>\n

In turn, the upper safe limit of vitamin D is 4000 IU \/day for adults (including pregnant and lactating women) and adolescents aged 11\u201317\u2009. For children aged 1\u201310\u2009, the upper safe limit is 2000 IU.<\/span><\/p>\n

The extensive range between the appropriate intake and the maximum safe dose may be because vitamin D is relatively safe. Also, the demand for this vitamin varies, depending on many factors, which <\/span>will be discussed<\/span> later.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n

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Sources of vitamin D<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

FOOD<\/h3>\n\n\n

Food products rich in vitamin D are primarily:<\/span><\/p>\n