The Vitamin D Cure

For starters, vitamin D is not a vitamin; it is a hormone from the same family of steroid hormones as estrogen, progesterone, testosterone, and cortisol. This means that, like these other hormones, vitamin D regulates gene expression in the nucleus of a cell. It doesn’t just have a seat on the front row in regulating our biochemistry, it is conducting the orchestra!

Our genes are just a compilation of notes. Geneticists will tell you that we are all 99.999 percent identical. It is not our genes or notes that make the music of our life it is how the notes are put together and played. And, vitamin D and our diet are writing the music from the moment of conception in the womb.

Dr. David Barker from Southampton, UK has published numerous ground breaking articles in journals like Lancet and the New England Journal of Medicine. What his studies show is that deprivation of nutrients in the womb during fetal development increases our risk of obesity, hypertension, diabetes, heart disease and bone disease as adults. Data from other researchers show that inadequate vitamin D and protein lead to smaller infants.

The National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey III conducted by the CDC shows a relationship between vitamin D deficiency and obesity, hypertension and diabetes in adults (See Chapter 9 References). Vitamin D deficiency early in development has also been associated with a 200 percent increase in the incidence of type I diabetes (childhood) and multiple sclerosis, both autoimmune diseases. And numerous studies show roughly half the risk for cancer with greater UV light exposure or higher vitamin D intake.

We have long known that vitamin D is important for calcium absorption and strong bones and teeth (See Chapter 13 References). We now know that it also slows cell growth, preventing the assembly line mistakes that lead to malignant transformation in cells (See Chapter 12 References). It regulates activation of our immune system during fetal development, ensuring that our immune system establishes tolerant recognition of our own normal cells (See Chapter 11 References). This early education of the immune system combined with normal blood levels enhances our ability to recognize and fight cancer cells and infections throughout our life.

In the womb vitamin D directs brain development in conjunction with omega 3 fatty acids and other dietary constituents (See Chapter 10 References). Lack of vitamin D during early development increases the risk of schizophrenia in males and Parkinson’s disease later in life. It is the cause of seasonal affective disorder and dramatically increases the likelihood of depression in Alzheimer’s patients. More recent data suggest it may also lead to more rapid loss of cognitive function in Alzheimer’s disease.

Just last month an analysis of numerous vitamin D studies suggested you may live longer if you take vitamin D. For more detailed explanations and examples of how vitamin D works in health and disease get The Vitamin D Cure (buy it now).