In my earlier post, I mentioned all the health benefits of making sure you get adequate vitamin D. Now, let’s get to the important, useful stuff. What can we do to get more vitamin D?
Many people know that you can actually synthesize Vitamin D in your skin with exposure to sunlight. However, several factors can limit a person’s production of vitamin D from sunlight. Living far from the equator, staying indoors a lot (like many of us do in the colder months), having darker skin, or wearing sunscreen can all reduce the amount of Vitamin D you synthesize. Even cloudy weather can prevent you from making enough vitamin D.
What foods provide vitamin D? Few natural sources exist, but some foods are fortified with D. Natural sources include: fish (salmon, mackerel, tuna, and sardines contain 200-500 IU per 3 oz.) and whole eggs (each egg yolk has 20 IU). All milk is fortified with 100 IU per 8 oz, but
many types of yogurts, ice cream, and cheese are not. Some breakfast cereals are also fortified. You can’t be sure unless you read labels, so use those skills, people!!! Yoplait Light and Breyer’s Light both are fortified with vitamin D, and 8th Continent Soymilk will also help you on your way to meeting your needs. Unfortunately, the Greek yogurts I so adore don’t have any vitamin D, which doesn’t make them a bad food choice (still more protein and less sugar than other yogurts) but not helpful for getting vitamin D.
Obviously, there’s the supplement aisle, with an ever-expanding array of options. Just be sure you don’t go overboard, as intakes of 2,000 IU or more can be toxic.
