Vitamin D Deficiency and Rickets

Disclaimer.  I am not a licensed health practitioner.  This is just another post on nutritional needs and deficiencies that you might wish make sure you have covered in your food storage supplies and plans.  No medication or supplement, including those available over the counter, should be taken without consulting a physician.  Information shared here is for educational and entertainment purposes only.  It is not medical advice nor a substitute for licensed medical care.  A qualified, licensed physician or other medical provider should be consulted before beginning any herbal or conventional treatment.
(This post first appeared 27 February 2019.) 

Vitamin D, the sunshine vitamin, is one of those lovely fat-soluble vitamins that can be stored in body.  Unfortunately, many of us fail to build up our stores.  A 2011 study showed that 42% of American adults are deficient in vitamin D.  This number goes up to 69% for Hispanics and 82% for blacks.  Which shows that vitamin D is clearly racist.  Someone should sue.

Or educate themselves.  (Yeah, crying and whining and suing are easier.)   Yes, we do get vitamin D from some foods (more on that later).  But our bodies synthesize most of our vitamin D from exposure to the sun.  Ten minutes in the sun can make up to 10000 IU, but this varies widely based on skin color and the amount of skin exposed.  While ten minutes will suffice for fair-skinned individuals, those with darker skin may need up to forty minutes per day.  And how do you determine if you're getting enough any particular day?  Well, in general, it's between the hours of 10AM and 3PM.  But that also varies widely by season of the year and latitude.  So go with this rule of thumb that works whenever and wherever:  If you are taller than your shadow is long, you're good.  If not, you're going to need to be in the sun a lot longer.

And that's why people want to tank up on vitamin D in the spring, summer, and fall.  No one wants to sunbathe when it is literally freezing outside.  And no, lying down for a nap in front of a sunny window won't work, either.  The UV-B radiation that you need to synthesize vitamin D doesn't actually penetrate through commercial window glass.  Bummer.  And a little FYI:  cloud cover reduces exposure by 50%.  And yes, using sunscreen also lessens your exposure.  But most people don't apply sunscreen well, and some sunshine still gets through.  Also, even though vitamin D is synthesized by and stored in the body, it's best to get your sun in small daily doses, rather than trying to do it once a week.  Sunburns are no fun.  Unfortunately, little research has been done on exactly how much sun is needed and how much of the body should be exposed.  Some researchers suggest that 5-30 minutes of sun twice a week to the face, arms, legs, and back will be sufficient.  Use your own judgment.

What happens when we don't have enough vitamin D?  Poor immune system function (people are especially susceptible to colds and other upper respiratory infections); bone pain and muscle weakness; chronic lower back pain; fatigue (one study showed that 89% of nurses were deficient in vitamin D--it's not something that just affects lower socioeconomic classes or the uneducated); depression (seasonal affective disorder is quite prevalent in the Pacific Northwest); dementia; irritable bowel disease; cardiovascular disease.

Rickets, a severe vitamin D deficiency, occurs only in children.  While it was probably noticed much earlier, cases were recorded in the 1600s in Great Britain.  In the early 20th century, 90% of children in New York and Boston had rickets.  And it is still found in the US today among the poorer classes particularly, but also in children whose caregivers are overzealous about using sunscreen and preventing exposure to the sun.  Symptoms include bowed legs, stunted growth, bone pain, enlarged forehead, and trouble sleeping.  Intellectual impairment, bone fractures, and muscle spasms signal more serious complications.  Also, younger children will exhibit thickened wrists and ankles; older children will have knock-knees.  Rickets usually begins in children between three and eighteen months of age.  Those at greatest risk are breast-fed infants whose mothers do not get enough sunlight; breast-fed infants that get little to no sunlight; any child whose diet lacks vitamin D; and adolescents, especially during growth spurts.

Risk factors for developing vitamin D deficiency include vegan diet; dark skin; limited sunlight exposure due to northern latitudes, indoor work, clothing covering most or all of the body, always being inside, always using sunscreen; old age; reduced kidney function; Crohn's disease; cystic fibrosis; celiac disease; obesity.

Again, sunlight is your best option for getting adequate vitamin D.  It's free, doesn't need to be rotated in your storage, and goes where you go, unless you go too far north (or south, as the case may be) during the winter.  But in case you want to add some to your diet, what are the best sources?  You can choose fortified foods like milk, yogurt, breakfast cereals, and orange juice.  With the exception of nonfat dry milk, the rest are going to be pretty hard to come by post-collapse.  So you also have fish, with wild being loads better than farmed, and fresh being better than canned (though canned is still good).  Small amounts are found in beef liver, butter, some mushrooms, and egg yolks.  Then there's the vitamin D powerhouse--everyone's favorite--cod liver oil.  Knock yourselves out with that.

Your last non-sunlight option is vitamin supplements.  The supplement should be vitamin D3, not D2 or D1, and should be taken with a meal containing fat for maximum absorption.  Vitamin D just isn't absorbed as well as it could be without fat, and which is also why if you're drinking nonfat milk fortified with vitamin D, you'd better also be eating something with fat to aid in that absorption.  Otherwise, most of it is wasted.

Links to related posts:
Dietary Deficiency and Consequences--Vitamin A
                                                                Vitamin B1
                                                                Vitamin B2
                                                                Vitamin B3
                                                                Vitamin B5, B6, B7
                                                                Vitamin B9
                                                                Vitamin B12
                                                                Vitamin C  
                                                                Vitamin D
                                                                Calcium  
                                                                Iodine  
                                                                Iron
                                                                Magnesium
                                                                Potassium  
                                                                Zinc

For further information:
https://www.medicinenet.com/vitamin_d_deficiency/article.htm (accessed on 16 January 2019)
https://medlineplus.gov/vitaminddeficiency.html (accessed on 16 January 2019)
https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/VitaminD-HealthProfessional/ (accessed on 16 January 2019)
https://draxe.com/vitamin-d-deficiency-symptoms/ (accessed on 16 January 2019)

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