Should You Still Take Vitamin D Supplements in the Summer? Here’s What Experts Say

With the booming summer, you enjoy the sunlight producing vitamin D only in previous months. But you have enough to put your daily diet in vitamin D waiting for the summer?

Most experts say no –You should always continue to take “sun vitamin”.

There are several reasons why you may not get enough vitamin D despite the sunny time. These include living in a region, more from the north of the country, using a sunscreen, working in most of the day, over 65 and having darker skin.

Your body naturally produces vitamin D when exposed to the direct sun, but it may not be enough to compensate for the deficit of winter months, Hedva Barenholtz Levy, Pharmd, a pharmacist specializing in geriatrics, said Health.

The factors that affect the amount of vitamin D that your skin can synthesize the sun alone includes:

• Skin pigmentation
• Age
• Hour of the day you are outside
• A low or missing diet of Vitamins D.
• Drugs that decrease your vitamin D production

The only way to know definitively if you need a vitamin D supplement in summer is by a blood test.

To obtain enough vitamin D, You need about 10 to 30 minutes of direct sunlight on your face, arms or legs several times a weekAccording to Brynna Connor, MD, a family medical medicine certified to the committee specializing in anti-aging and regenerative medicine.

If you are in the climates of the north and / or you have darker skin, you may need more time in full sun.

“However, prolonged exposure to the sun has health risks, such as sunburn and increased risk of skin cancer,” added Connor.

UV (UV-B) light is transformed into the skin into vitamin D3, the active form of vitamin D. Sun exposure several times a week could potentially provide around 80% of vitamin D your body needssaid Levy.

However, if you are over 65, have darker skin or use sunscreen, your ability to produce vitamin D is naturally reduced.

According to Jen Hernandez, RDN, dietitian and founder of plants with plants, the recommended food allowance (RDA) for vitamin D is:

• 15 micrograms (600 international units (IU)) per day for adults from 19 to 70 years old
• 20 micrograms (800 IU) per day for people over the age of 70,

A health care provider must adjust the dose and the frequency of your vitamin D supplements according to your vitamin D levels from the blood test results.

Few food naturally contains vitamin D.

Some fatty fish, such as trout and salmon, have vitamin D, as well as mushrooms treated with UV. Foods enriched like milk, juices and cereals ready to eat can also contain vitamin D.

Here are some foods to consider:

• Cod oil
• Trout
• Salmon
• Mushrooms (UV treated)
• Milk
• Soy, almond and fortified oats
• Ready -to -use cereals
• Sardines
• Eggs
• Beef liver
• Tuna (canned in water)
• Cheddar cheese

It is possible to take too much vitamin D thanks to supplements. Although rare, Vitamin D toxicity Can happen because your body stores it rather than getting rid of any excess.

According to Hernandez, too much vitamin D in your blood can cause problems such as high levels of calcium, renal failure, cardiac arrhythmias and even death.

The toxicity of vitamin D is generally accompanied by:

• Loss of appetite
• Nausea
• Vomiting
• Muscular weakness
• Pain
• Dehydration
• Kidney stones
• Mood disorders

Your body can produce enough vitamin D of the sun during the hottest months, but you can often enter the deficient season, especially if you are over 65, you have darker skin, live in a northern climate and practice good sun protection.

To determine the amount of vitamin D you should take during the summer, talk to a health care provider. They can check your vitamin D levels and make recommendations on the amount you need to make daily.