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Most common reasons for vitamin d deficiency after supplements
What are the most common reasons for vitamin d deficiency even after taking supplements for 3 months?
Have your Vitamin D levels increased at all through supplementation? I don't know what part of the world you're in, but this time of the year in most of the US is the worst in a lot of areas, given the lack of sunlight.
If your levels haven't increased at all, my guess is that you have an absorption issue.
If your levels haven't increased at all, my guess is that you have an absorption issue.
Reasons could be due to inflammation, stress, certain drugs, malabsorption. I wrote up a list below you can read through. Right now my vitamin D levels have dropped due to toxic mould exposure (inflammation). I did have vitamin D resistance in the past from magnesium deficiency and taking high doses of vitamin D up to 10,000 IU a day only worsened existing magnesium deficiency.
Causes of vitamin D deficiency include:
* Lack of sunlight. To make vitamin D you need UV-B rays to come into direct contact with your skin. Of note: UV-B rays cannot penetrate glass. Pollution and clouds decrease the number of UV-B rays.
* Latitude - UV-B rays only penetrate the atmosphere when the sun is at certain angles. In places with a latitude above 37 degrees, UV-B rays usually do not reach the earth's surface during the winter months. Even during summer in these areas, UV-B rays only pass through between 10 am and 3 pm
* Dark or black skin needs up to 10 times the amount of sun than light skin to absorb vitamin D in their skin
* Wearing sunscreen - prevents absorption of UV-B rays
* Older adults - the skin converts less vitamin D from sunlight
* Inflammation of any type reduces the utilization of vitamin D
* Lack of vitamin D co-factors - magnesium (most important co factor), zinc, vitamin K2, boron, and a tiny amount of vitamin A
* Low cholesterol - cholesterol is the precursor to vitamin D. Vitamin D3 is made in the skin when 7-dehydrocholesterol absorbs UV-B ultraviolet light at wavelengths between 270 - 300 nm
* Kidney and liver disease - vitamin D is processed (metabolized) by the liver and kidneys into an active form of vitamin D
* Parathyroid conditions (parathyroid - glands in front of the thyroid). PTH (parathyroid hormone) regulates calcium in the blood. As the calcium level increases, the level of vitamin D decreases
* Malabsorption including coeliac disease, Crohn's disease, food allergies, dysbiosis (yeast or bacterial)
* Hypothyroidism - possible explanations: poor absorption of vitamin D from the intestine or the body may not activate vitamin D properly
* High cortisol levels (caused by stress, medications like steroids or medical conditions such as Cushing's Disease). When the body is in an active stress response, most of the cholesterol is used to make cortisol and not enough is left over for vitamin D production
* Medications including statins (cholesterol lowering drugs), acid lowering medications, anti-inflammatories, laxatives, prednisone, corticosteroids, anti-convulsants, replacement hormones, anticoagulants, blood thinners.
* Conditions that impair fat absorption such as Cystic Fibrosis, IBS, IBD, gall bladder, liver disease
* Very large or obese body as a larger body requires more vitamin D
* Gastric bypass surgery
* Very low fat diet - in order to absorb vitamin D the body needs to have fat (vitamin D is fat soluble)
* Lacking vitamin D in the diet or a strict vegetarian diet - natural food sources of vitamin D are animal based
* Pesticides: most are fat soluble and steroid hormone disruptors (vitamin D is a steroid hormone)
* Hereditary disorders
- Renal 1 alpha-hydroxylase deficiency (also called type I hereditary vitamin D-dependent rickets)
- Type II Hereditary Vitamin D-Dependent Rickets
- Type III hereditary vitamin D-dependent rickets
Causes of vitamin D deficiency include:
* Lack of sunlight. To make vitamin D you need UV-B rays to come into direct contact with your skin. Of note: UV-B rays cannot penetrate glass. Pollution and clouds decrease the number of UV-B rays.
* Latitude - UV-B rays only penetrate the atmosphere when the sun is at certain angles. In places with a latitude above 37 degrees, UV-B rays usually do not reach the earth's surface during the winter months. Even during summer in these areas, UV-B rays only pass through between 10 am and 3 pm
* Dark or black skin needs up to 10 times the amount of sun than light skin to absorb vitamin D in their skin
* Wearing sunscreen - prevents absorption of UV-B rays
* Older adults - the skin converts less vitamin D from sunlight
* Inflammation of any type reduces the utilization of vitamin D
* Lack of vitamin D co-factors - magnesium (most important co factor), zinc, vitamin K2, boron, and a tiny amount of vitamin A
* Low cholesterol - cholesterol is the precursor to vitamin D. Vitamin D3 is made in the skin when 7-dehydrocholesterol absorbs UV-B ultraviolet light at wavelengths between 270 - 300 nm
* Kidney and liver disease - vitamin D is processed (metabolized) by the liver and kidneys into an active form of vitamin D
* Parathyroid conditions (parathyroid - glands in front of the thyroid). PTH (parathyroid hormone) regulates calcium in the blood. As the calcium level increases, the level of vitamin D decreases
* Malabsorption including coeliac disease, Crohn's disease, food allergies, dysbiosis (yeast or bacterial)
* Hypothyroidism - possible explanations: poor absorption of vitamin D from the intestine or the body may not activate vitamin D properly
* High cortisol levels (caused by stress, medications like steroids or medical conditions such as Cushing's Disease). When the body is in an active stress response, most of the cholesterol is used to make cortisol and not enough is left over for vitamin D production
* Medications including statins (cholesterol lowering drugs), acid lowering medications, anti-inflammatories, laxatives, prednisone, corticosteroids, anti-convulsants, replacement hormones, anticoagulants, blood thinners.
* Conditions that impair fat absorption such as Cystic Fibrosis, IBS, IBD, gall bladder, liver disease
* Very large or obese body as a larger body requires more vitamin D
* Gastric bypass surgery
* Very low fat diet - in order to absorb vitamin D the body needs to have fat (vitamin D is fat soluble)
* Lacking vitamin D in the diet or a strict vegetarian diet - natural food sources of vitamin D are animal based
* Pesticides: most are fat soluble and steroid hormone disruptors (vitamin D is a steroid hormone)
* Hereditary disorders
- Renal 1 alpha-hydroxylase deficiency (also called type I hereditary vitamin D-dependent rickets)
- Type II Hereditary Vitamin D-Dependent Rickets
- Type III hereditary vitamin D-dependent rickets
1 Comments
I forgot to add, high cortisol also decreases expression of vitamin D receptor. Once vitamin D is synthesized (or consumed), it still needs to find a receptor to become active in the body.
Well, that's frustrating. Those are some of the reasons they say someone would have vit. D issues. What about sunlight? I know where I'm at, we've had one cloudy, yucky day after another so getting Vit d from the sun is a challenge. Did you find out you were low in vit d just from a routine blood work or were you having symptoms?
Hi there! So, you take supplements and had lab work done and are STILL deficient in vitamin D? That's perplexing. Some doctors do, however, feel that supplements are basically expensive urine and we pee them right out. Did you also make some dietary changes to get vit D that way? And what about sunlight? I have heard if you have darker skin, you can be more in need of Vitamin D. Also, have you had your sugar checked? You want to make sure you haven't developed diabetes which I guess is associated. Another thing that is associated with vit. d deficiency is being over weight. Any of those ring a bell?
I know there is a long list of issues that can develop from lacking vitamin D so it's awesome on top of this!
I know there is a long list of issues that can develop from lacking vitamin D so it's awesome on top of this!
1 Comments
I have had my blood checked and I don't have diabetes; I also am not even close to being overweight.
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