Vitamin D and Bone Health
Uncategorized February 5th, 2010
Vitamin D is essential for bone health because it plays a role in calcium absorption in the stomach and digestive tract. Without enough vitamin D, your body will not be able to properly absorb calcium and therefore have weak bones. Vitamin D is pro-hormones that our body uses to transport calcium from the digestive tract through the blood to the bone, heart, brain, lungs and other organs that need it.
Source of Vitamin D
Vitamin D is a soluble vitamins in the fat that naturally is only available on very few types of food. Vitamin D2 (ergocalciferol) found in some plants and fungi. Several types of fatty fish, like cod, tuna and salmon, contain vitamin D2 because they are eating the algae processing of vitamin D with the help of sunlight.
Vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol) is produced when the body of ultraviolet light on our skin and stimulate its production. To get adequate vitamin D3, describe your skin in the sun for 10-15 minutes several times a week. Radiation that alter vitamin D in the skin has the same wavelength with the causes skin blackened, so the use of sunscreen will inhibit the production of vitamin D. With aging, the effectiveness of the skin to produce vitamin D decreased.
Vitamin D from food, supplements and sun exposure are biologically inactive and had to undergo two hydroxylation processes in the body to activate it. The first process occurs in the liver and alter vitamin D into 25-hidroksivitamin D [25 (OH) D], also known as calcidiol. Calcidiol most widely available in the body than other forms of vitamin D. The second process occurs mainly in the kidney and form the active substance-dihidroksivitamin D 1.25 [1.25 (OH) 2D], also known as calcitriol. This form of vitamin D which helps absorption of calcium.
Liver and kidneys of our very important role in changing the form of vitamin D to inactive become active. The main reason why alcohol worsen the condition of the bones are negative effects on the heart. Some kidney diseases are also a trigger of osteoporosis. Some research, for example, showed that patients suffering from urolithiasis (stone formation process in the kidney, bladder and urethra) have a bone mass lower than average.
Prevent Osteoporosis with Vitamin D
Osteoporosis can be prevented with daily intake of vitamin D for 200-400 units. Many multivitamins and calcium supplements also contain vitamin D. The average one multivitamin tablet contains 400 IU of vitamin D. Therefore, a multivitamin tablet every day is enough vitamin D to meet your needs.
Please note that in the process of conversion of calcidiol to calcitrol, parathyroid hormone (PTH) is that stimulate the kidneys to process. If you have too many calcidiol in the body, will be too much parathyroid hormone is released. Because these hormones also stimulate the formation of osteoclast (cells that dissolve bone), too much PTH will cause bone loss. Because of that, too much vitamin D is also not good for your bones.
