Off and on, I’ve been exploring the fact that most of us need more vitamin D, especially at this time of year when our ability to get it from sunlight is limited by cold weather.
There are tons of reasons to keep your vitamin D at optimal levels, and now several new scientific studies confirm that.
These studies show that keeping your D levels high not only prevents both Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes and its multitude of terrible complications, it can also help improve blood sugar control in people who already have Type 2 diabetes and reduce those dreaded side effects.
What’s more, it also in people with Type 1 (usually childhood onset) diabetes, by keeping those vitamin D levels at least 50 ng/ml. You can easily determine these levels with a simple blood test.
FYI
Type 1 diabetes also known as childhood onset diabetes or insulin dependent diabetes, most often is diagnosed in young people under the age of 30. It is caused by the failure of the pancreas to produce enough insulin to balance out the sugars in foods. Type 1 diabetes can only be treated with insulin.
Type 2 diabetes, once known as adult onset diabetes, begins when the body is no longer to using the insulin the pancreas produces for a variety of reasons. Obesity is the primary cause of Type 2 diabetes, with about 90% of people with the disease being significantly overweight. It was once known as adult onset diabetes, but with the epidemics of obess children, Type 2 diabetes has become commonplace among teenagers. Type 2 diabetes can be controlled with a number of oral medications. Insulin is often required as the disease progresses.
This is why vitamin D becomes an important tool in the arsenal against both types of diabetes. Yes, those with Type 2 diabetes can keep their weight under control, but even that may not be enough, according to one study that says good vitamin D status even trumps the increased risk of diabetes in overweight people.
In an exciting British study, researchers found that infants who received vitamin D supplements had a 39% lower risk of developing Type 1 diabetes later in life than whose who did not receive the supplements.
Sunshine vitamin
Vitamin D is not really a vitamin; it’s a hormone that affects every single cell in the human body.
Our bodies cannot manufacture vitamin D, but we can derive it from exposure to direct sunlight. Our bodies can store vitamin D for about three months, and, since, we need a continuous source of this essential nutrient, many people tend to become deficient in the winter months.
For this reason, supplementation with vitamin D3 is essential for most people who live in northern latitudes and can’t get daily exposure to the sun. Dark-skinned people are at greater risk of vitamin D deficiency because their skins block the vital sun’s rays and interferes with the manufacture of vitamin D.
It’s important to know your vitamin D levels through a blood test called 25 Hydroxy-D. The best levels are between 50 and 70 ng/ml. If you are low, consider supplementation with up to 10,000 IU a day as long as you don’t go over 70 ng/ml.
In the coming warm months, get as much sun exposure as possible, baring as much skin as possible (and legal). Fair-skinned people who absorb the sun’s rays more easily won’t burn with three 20 minutes sunbaths a week. Darker skinned people may need as much as ten times more exposure or they’ll need to supplement year-round.
Because vitamin D is really a hormone, it’s important to check your levels and be sure they do not go over that upper mark of 70 ng/ml.
KATHLEEN’S ITALIAN BREAD RECIPE (As promised)
(no kneading necessary)
Make the biga (starter):
In a large bowl, mix together:
1 packet yeast (2 tsp.)
¾ cup King Arthur organic bread flour*
4 T King Arthur organic rye flour
1 c lukewarm water
Allow the mixture to sit overnight. It will be bubbly.
Stir in:
4 cups King Arthur organic bread flour
1 1/2 cups King Arthur organic whole grain flour
2 tsp unrefined sea salt
2 cups lukewarm water
Cover and let rise for 45 minutes.
Turn over the dough several times. Do not knead.
Let it rise a second time.
Turn over the dough again and cut the mass in half with scissors. Flatten each loaf on a floured bread board and fold it burrito-like and place in ungreased bread pan. Make diagonal slashed across the tops of loaves with a sharp knife. Let rise 45 more minutes.
Preheat oven to 500 degrees F
Put bread pans in oven and reduce heat to 400 degrees.
Bake for 40 minutes until loaves are light brown on top.
Cool on a wire rack.
Enjoy!
* I call for organic King Arthur flour for two reasons: This is the only brand that is unbrominated and wheat used in organic flours is not dried by applying RoundUp.
