Vitamin D3 vegan 4000 IU- Information

In the Nordic countries, vitamin D is in short supply

Vitamin D is formed in the skin when exposed to sunlight during the spring and summer months in Sweden. Between May and September, absorption through the skin is at its best, provided you don't use sunscreen or full-coverage clothing. During the summer months, the sun is the primary source of vitamin D, but from late autumn until spring, you can't really count on any significant synthesis in the body, because the UV-B radiation is filtered out in the atmosphere when the sun is low. Until just a few years ago, many people took it for granted that the synthesized amount of vitamin D that is formed in the body during the summer should also cover the need during the winter months, because vitamin D is fat-soluble and can therefore be stored in the body. However, it is now known that the synthesized amount is often not sufficient, but that it is only certain people who have produced the amount required to cover a larger part of the need even during the winter months. Many therefore risk having too low levels of vitamin D during large parts of the year.

Sunscreen protects – but also blocks vitamin D synthesis

The use of sunscreen creams has an important task, namely to protect the skin against the harmful effects of the sun's rays. At the same time, the process in which the sun's rays synthesize and create our natural stores of vitamin D in the skin is also blocked. What skin color you have also plays a role in how effective the absorption is. The darker the skin color, the less vitamin D is absorbed. Northerners with very light skin like to put on a little extra to avoid the risk of getting red and burnt, which is absolutely right, but then we also miss out on vitamin D. Many choose instead to protect themselves with full-covering clothing or lie in the shade, which also means that we miss out on vitamin D from the sun.

Vitamin D in the diet

Unfortunately, vitamin D is not found in large amounts in the diet, and especially not in vegan foods. Some dairy products are therefore enriched with vitamin D, including plant-based alternatives, as a way to increase the levels in foods we eat often. Fatty fish, eggs and meat are examples of foods that contain vitamin D, but in vegetables there are actually only smaller amounts in certain mushrooms and the form of vitamin D found in, for example, chanterelles is in a less active form. Vegans therefore belong to a group that needs to review their vitamin D intake a little extra.

Affects important systems in the body

Vitamin D has the ability to influence several of the body's cell functions, which in turn affects our health in a number of different ways. Vitamin D has an important role in the absorption and utilization of calcium and phosphorus, for the nervous system and muscles to function normally, and it also contributes to a normally functioning immune system. Other parts of the body are also dependent on vitamin D such as the skeleton, teeth and it is needed for the cell division process.