Do You Need More Vitamin D?

Every few years, one vitamin or other will shove the reigning champion out of its throne and become the new Big Deal Vitamin. For a while, it was Vitamin E, but more recently, Vitamin D has been in the limelight.

Vitamin D is made in the body from sunlight (supposedly dietary cholesterol plays a role as well), and it also exists in fish and fortified milk. Among its "healing" properties, vitamin D is thought to help build strong bones, strengthen the immune system, and reduce the risks for conditions like diabetes and cancer.

According to a 2008 report in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, about half of adults and kids in our country are deficient.

A lot more doctors have begun to test patients' levels, and in the past year-and-a-half, and people are spending over five times on vitamin D supplements than they were several years ago. Should you join in?

It's still a little early to tell, and many doctors worry that taking too much could do more harm than good. In this New York Times article, Tara Parker-Pope details a few recent studies that show some possible benefit to making sure people get adequate levels of vitamin D. However, it's possible to do things that help you get more vitamin D, such as exercising outdoors or even just taking a walk around the block during the day. You can also drink milk. Remember when people used to drink that instead of soda?

Learning to Love Soy Milk

I've never been a huge fan of soy milk, but this morning, I tried using some of the Whole Foods 365 Organic Vanilla Soy Milk in my oatmeal instead of water. It actually came out all right. The consistency was a bit gluey for my taste, but overall, it added a nice mellow flavor and a natural sweetness. 

I don't know if I'd use it in oatmeal again, but the soy milk definitely has a lot of important vitamins and minerals. For example, one cup provides half the daily value of Vitamin B12, something that's hard to get if you don't eat much meat. The soy milk has also been fortified with Vitamins A, D, and E, among other things. It also has a lot of calcium. I'd much rather get that stuff from real food instead of supplements (albeit fortified real food).

I'll have to play around with it, see what it tastes good in to me. I'm planning to buy a blender soon so I can start making smoothies. I know I've been saying that for weeks now, but because of the warm weather lately, I've been craving this frozen blueberry/strawberry/banana/yogurt smoothie I used to make when I had a blender—or access to my mom's!