D3 1000 - 120 Tablets

This vitamin D3 100 supplement by Metagenics features high potency vitamin D3—the most bioactive form of supplemental vitamin D.

Supplies high levels of vitamin D, which is important for maintaining healthy bone strength and immune function. Available in easy-to-swallow microtablet delivery form.

The Importance of Vitamin D

Despite all of the medical advances we have made in this century, Vitamin D3 deficiency is a growing epidemic. It only takes about 15 minutes of sun exposure for the body to manufacture about 10,000 IU of vitamin D3 – but most people aren’t even getting this much exposure. Because of changes to the ozone layer, skin cancer has become a very real concern. Fear of melanoma has people staying out of the sun or covering up with sunscreen, which also blocks vitamin D3 production. Think about what would happen to your houseplant if you starved it of light: it would die. Much like plants, we depend on the sun’s rays to keep our bodies healthy. If that isn’t possible, we must supplement with vitamin D in order to stay healthy.

But this vitamin often plays double duty. It acts as an essential vitamin when it binds with calcium to aid absorption, but it also acts as a hormone.

Vitamin D Deficiency

Recently, there is a great deal of research being done on this “sunshine” vitamin. A deficiency of vitamin D3 has been implicated in such conditions as type 2 diabetes, obesity, depression, high blood pressure, chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia, psoriasis, kidney stones, osteoporosis and Alzheimer’s. Many researchers also believe that an extreme deficiency that is left unchecked may even lead to cancer of the prostate, breast or colon.

Vitamin D3 is also very involved in immune system function, which may be how it can reduce the risk of cancer and autoimmune diseases. It is also believed to improve mood, protect the brain from toxicity and increase neuromuscular function. If you don’t have enough vitamin D in your system, your body will not be able to absorb calcium and that can lead to various bone disorders, including osteoporosis.

Lack of sun exposure is the most common reason for a D3 deficiency in the United States today, but we are also lacking vitamin-D-rich foods in our diet, such as cold water fish like wild salmon, sardines and mackerel.

Other foods, such as cereal and milk, are supplemented with vitamin D, but this doesn’t have a substantial increase on blood vitamin D levels. This may be because the food manufacturers rely on a poorly absorbed form of vitamin D known as ergocalciferol (a form of vitamin D2). To keep your vitamin D3 levels adequate, you may supplement with vitamin D3, such as the D3 1000 found in these tablets by Metagenics.

Testing for a Vitamin D Deficiency

Visit your doctor for a blood test to check your vitamin D3 levels. The test to request is called 25(OH)D. Although some guidelines say you need 30 ng/ml of vitamin D in order to have sufficient levels, many recent studies indicate that 80 ng/ml is ideal for keeping your bones healthy and allowing vitamin D to perform its function throughout the body.