Vitamin D
hideVitamin D is a group of fat-soluble prohormones, the two major forms of which are vitamin D2 (or ergocalciferol) and vitamin D3 (or cholecalciferol). The term vitamin D also refers to metabolites and other analogues of these substances. Vitamin D3 is produced in skin exposed to sunlight, specifically ultraviolet B radiation.
Vitamin D plays an important role in the maintenance of organ systems.
Vitamin D deficiency can result from inadequate intake coupled with inadequate sunlight exposure; disorders that limit its absorption; conditions that impair conversion of vitamin D into active metabolites, such as liver or kidney disorders; or, rarely, by a number of hereditary disorders. Deficiency results in impaired bone mineralization and leads to bone softening diseases rickets in children and osteomalacia in adults, and possibly contributes to osteoporosis. However, sunlight exposure, to avoid deficiency, carries other risks, including skin cancer; this risk is avoided with dietary absorption, either through diet or as a dietary supplement.
For more information about Vitamin D, read the full article at
Wikipedia.
This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.
News tagged with vitamin d
Vitamin D levels associated with survival in lymphoma patients
Dec 05, 2009 |
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A new study has found that the amount of vitamin D in patients being treated for diffuse large B-cell lymphoma was strongly associated with cancer progression and overall survival. The results will be presented at the annual ...
Heart failure linked to gene variant affecting vitamin D activation
Dec 01, 2009 |
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Previous studies have shown a link between low vitamin D status and heart disease. Now a new study shows that patients with high blood pressure who possess a gene variant that affects an enzyme critical to normal vitamin ...
Multiple health concerns surface as winter, vitamin D deficiences arrive
Nov 23, 2009 |
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A string of recent discoveries about the multiple health benefits of vitamin D has renewed interest in this multi-purpose nutrient, increased awareness of the huge numbers of people who are deficient in it, spurred research ...
New study links vitamin D deficiency to cardiovascular disease and death
Nov 16, 2009 |
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While mothers have known that feeding their kids milk builds strong bones, a new study by researchers at the Heart Institute at Intermountain Medical Center in Salt Lake City suggests that Vitamin D contributes to a strong ...
Physicians Explore Link Between Vitamin D Deficiency and Hypertension
Nov 25, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Drs. William White and Pooja Luthra at the University of Connecticut Health Center are investigating a possible link between vitamin D deficiency and high blood pressure.
Millions of US children low in vitamin D (w/ Video)
Aug 03, 2009 |
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Seven out of ten U.S. children have low levels of vitamin D, raising their risk of bone and heart disease, according to a study of over 6,000 children by researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University. ...
Heart and bone damage from low vitamin D tied to declines in sex hormones
Nov 15, 2009 |
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Researchers at Johns Hopkins are reporting what is believed to be the first conclusive evidence in men that the long-term ill effects of vitamin D deficiency are amplified by lower levels of the key sex hormone estrogen, ...
High fat diet increases inflammation in the mouse colon
Nov 12, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- In mice fed a diet high in fat and low in fiber, vitamin D and calcium -- the so-called Western diet -- expression of a series of genes collectively associated with immune and inflammatory responses was altered. ...
Children who often drink full-fat milk weigh less
Nov 03, 2009 |
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Eight-year-old children who drink full-fat milk every day have a lower BMI than those who seldom drink milk. This is not the case for children who often drink medium-fat or low-fat milk. This is one conclusion of a thesis ...
Research shows why low vitamin D raises heart disease risks in diabetics
Aug 22, 2009 |
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Low levels of vitamin D are known to nearly double the risk of cardiovascular disease in patients with diabetes, and researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis now think they know ...
Key feature of immune system survived in humans, other primates for 60 million years
Aug 18, 2009 |
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A new study has concluded that one key part of the immune system, the ability of vitamin D to regulate anti-bactericidal proteins, is so important that is has been conserved through almost 60 million years of evolution and ...
Vitamin D, curcumin may help clear amyloid plaques found in Alzheimer's disease
Jul 15, 2009 |
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UCLA scientists and colleagues from UC Riverside and the Human BioMolecular Research Institute have found that a form of vitamin D, together with a chemical found in turmeric spice called curcumin, may help stimulate the ...
Is vitamin D deficiency linked to Alzheimer's disease and vascular dementia?
May 26, 2009 |
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There are several risk factors for the development of Alzheimer's disease and vascular dementia. Based on an increasing number of studies linking these risk factors with Vitamin D deficiency, an article in the current issue ...
Big US study will test vitamin D, fish oil
Jun 22, 2009 |
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Two of the most popular and promising dietary supplements - vitamin D and fish oil - will be tested in a large, government-sponsored study to see whether either nutrient can lower a healthy person's risk of getting cancer, ...
How much vitamin D do I need?
Mar 26, 2009 |
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Vitamin D -- the so-called sunshine vitamin -- is the wonder nutrient of the moment. While the vitamin is best known for helping build strong bones and absorb calcium, a vitamin D deficiency can raise the risk of everything ...
