Increasing Evidence Vitamin D Helps Prevent Depression
There is more and more a mountain of evidence that vitamin D is so crucial to so many body functions as well as defense against disease and sickness. I can tell you from personal experience that since starting my 2,000 IU morning and 2,000 IU evening regimen of vitamin D capsules, I have not had hardly any issues with getting the flu or colds.
I think it has greatly boosted my immunity for one thing. Along with the purported cancer prevention benefits, that’s something I’ll gladly take, especially knowing what an inexpensive vitamin this is to take – and how enjoyable it is to get it naturally out in the sunlight.
There is also evidence that is becoming pretty convincing that vitamin D plays an important role in the prevention of depression and the maintenance of generally happy, “up” moods, or at least stabilized moods.
Even though there are several other vitamins that play crucial roles in the synthesis of feel good hormones like dopamine, serotonin, endorphins and other hormones that play an important role in regulating the mood.
What you don’t want is moods that swing from one extreme to another. Optimal vitamin D levels seem to help stabilize that. They may help to synthesize these hormones and keep them stable. Also, the simple act of getting sunlight elevates mood. It’s the light therapy combined with the vitamin D absorption that gives us a double whammy of healthy, therapeutic benefit.
Optimal vitamin D levels can prove hard to achieve, especially for those of us that live in cooler, less sunny climates in the winter time. SAD, which is Seasonal Affective Disorder, often sets in when the winter time goes in full swing. Not surprisingly, we also get sicker in the winter months.
It used to be assumed this was because people were more “closed in” and exposed to germs since it was cold outside, but really it is now thought to be a combination of lack of vitamin D and plummeting levels of this important nutrient.
So vitamin D plays an important role in several things that make our lives much better – cancer prevention, mood and immunity. And there are likely even more reasons than that. So what’s stopping you from getting your daily dose!?