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Vitamin D and Why Sunshine Alone Falls Short
Summer feels like the season to stop thinking about vitamin D. The days are long, we spend more time outside and the “sunshine vitamin” seems to take care of itself. It’s a fair assumption but often incorrect. Even during the summer, vitamin D insufficiency remains stubbornly common for many, with research suggesting that around 42% of the U.S. population does not get enough.
As a company with health and wellness at its core, Amway pairs science-backed products with a simple goal, helping people live better lives. Much of that work centers on healthspan, which is the number of years you stay healthy and active. Vitamin D matters more than you might think, quietly helping the body stay strong over time.
One of the most important benefits of vitamin D is that it helps to keep our bones strong by absorbing the calcium that passes through our body. Without sufficient vitamin D, the body absorbs far less of the calcium you eat, closer to 10 to 15% than the 30 to 40% it manages when levels are healthy.
Additionally, sunlight is a less dependable source of the nutrient than it may seem. Sunscreen and ordinary window glass both block the ultraviolet B rays that prompt the skin to make vitamin D. Summers spent in air-conditioned rooms keep many of us indoors when the sun is strongest. In fact, the lack of exposure to sunlight is the most common cause of vitamin D deficiency.
People tend to act on their health only when something feels wrong. Amway’s Habits and Healthspan survey found that many adults adopt healthy habits only after a problem appears. Holiday Durham Zanetti, PhD, RD, Principal Research Scientist, Clinical Investigator and Technical Lead at Amway, describes many people as “not sick enough to be diagnosed with a deficiency, but not optimally nourished either.”
In addition to helping the body absorb calcium to support strong bones and a healthy immune system, vitamin D has shown signs of protection against biological aging.
Food alone rarely closes the gap. Reaching the recommended 600 international units of vitamin D a day is harder than it sounds, roughly one cup of mushrooms, five cups of fortified milk, or more than a dozen eggs.
A holistic approach therefore can often be the most effective. Lean on food first, get a reasonable amount of sun when you can and make a daily vitamin D supplement a small, consistent habit. If a test or your habits point to a vitamin D deficiency, a targeted supplement can help close that gap. Nutrilite™ Vitamin D, for example, offers a once-daily tablet made with vitamin D sourced from mushrooms which is one of the most concentrated sources, formulated to help support bone health and the immune system. That is the equivalent of 16 cups of fortified milk in one tablet. In line with how Amway builds its products, vitamin D supplements bring together the best of science and nature.
The summer sun is a fine place to start, but it is not the whole story. The years we stay active and well are built from small, deliberate choices, most of them made long before anything feels wrong. Getting enough vitamin D is a goal that requires small but consistent lifestyle choices and those are what add up to more active, healthy years.