Five (more) Surprising Benefits Of Vitamin D 

We recently published an article that explored 5 surprising benefits of vitamin D. Given that vitamin D is an essential nutrient that we all require to function normally, it was no surprise that it quickly became very popular. However, a lot of people did mention that they were left wanting more, as we consistently mentioned just how many beneficial effects vitamin D could produce but only covered 5. Well, if you found yourself in that group, today is your lucky day, as we are going to cover some more. In the following article, we will explore 5 more surprising benefits of vitamin D, detailing exactly what they are and how they are produced. That should hopefully be able to give even the most dedicated scholars among you all of the information you could ever want on this vital nutrient.

A Quick Recap

Vitamin D is an essential vitamin also known as cholecalciferol and “the sunshine vitamin”. It is required for numerous functions in the human body to take place, and people need to consume a minimum of 10 to 20 mcg per day. To make the most of the benefits that it can offer, people should ideally take 50 to 100 mcg per day, with the latter being the optimal dose. Among the health benefits that we have already established vitamin D can offer are an ability to boost testosterone production and levels, improve bone health and density, enhance male sexual health and functions, keep the heart healthy, and support the immune system (1).

Five (more) Surprising Benefits Of Vitamin D

Improves Brain Health & Functions

Perhaps the top benefit of vitamin D we left out of our previous article was its ability to boost the health and functions of the brain, which it achieves through a range of different mechanisms. For starters, it is well known to possess neuroprotective properties. This means keeping your vitamin d levels up helps to protect the brain from any damage, which it can do by reducing inflammation and oxidative stress in the brain, both of which are linked to mental conditions and neurodegenerative diseases such as dementia and Alzheimer’s or Parkinson's disease. It then also stimulates a process known as neurogenesis, which means it promotes the growth of new neurons in certain parts of the brain, such as the hippocampus. This is very important for things like memory and learning and helps repair any damage that may have already occurred. When both of these effects are combined, maintaining adequate vitamin D levels also enables you to enjoy generally better cognitive function. This comes with a host of different mental health benefits, including improved memory, attention, and problem-solving skills. Speaking of which, the effect that vitamin D has on your mood occurs as it influences the release of certain neurotransmitters like serotonin. Not letting your vitamin D levels drop is therefore a great way to reduce the risk of depression and certain other mood disorders. Finally, as we saw previously, vitamin D helps to regulate the immune system and may reduce the risk of certain autoimmune diseases. This includes autoimmune diseases that harm the health and functions of the brain, such as multiple sclerosis (2).

Keeps The Muscles Strong & Healthy

Another of the most popular benefits of vitamin D that we left out of the previous article is its ability to help keep the muscles strong, healthy and functional. It helps to boost muscle strength as, as we already saw, vitamin D regulates calcium levels in the blood and muscles. This is essential for muscle contractions to occur, so ensuring that adequate vitamin D levels are present will help to maintain a proper calcium balance and enable your muscles to produce strong, powerful contractions. There are then also vitamin D receptors present in most muscle tissue, and vitamin d directly influences the synthesis of proteins that help the muscles to function properly. It is heavily involved in muscle fibre development and repair, which in turn helps with maintaining and building muscle mass and enhancing muscular performance. Conversely, a deficiency in vitamin D can lead to significant muscle weakness and pain, and in extreme cases even medical conditions such as myopathy (muscle weakness) and osteomalacia (a softening of the bones, which can also affect the muscles). Speaking of which, the improvements in bone health that vitamin D provides can also be very beneficial for muscle health as well. This is because strong bones provide a solid framework for muscle attachment and leverage, which greatly enhances muscle function. Finally, vitamin D also supports the ability of the muscles to help you balance. Doing so will not only make your day-to-day life much easier, and your muscle functions improved, but it will also help to prevent the kind of falls which could cause injuries to the muscles and other parts of your body, keeping you out of the gym and leading to further muscle deterioration (3).

Combats Depression

We briefly touched on the effect that vitamin D can have on your mood earlier in this article, yet its ability to combat depression is such an important selling point that we felt the need to examine the mechanisms through which this occurs in much greater depth here. Vitamin D primarily helps with depression by influencing brain function and mood-regulating chemicals: It plays a vital role in the synthesis and release of serotonin, a neurotransmitter that helps to regulate mood, sleep, and appetite. Low levels of serotonin are commonly associated with depression, so supporting serotonin production through vitamin D supplementation may help to improve mood and reduce the risk of depression or combat a bout that has already developed. It is then also involved in the regulation of other chemicals in the brain, such as dopamine, which is important for motivation and pleasure. Low dopamine levels are often linked with feelings of apathy and lack of interest, symptoms which are commonly seen in depression, so keeping your dopamine levels high will help to combat depression in a similar way to serotonin. Beyond its effect on the neurotransmitters, the effect that vitamin D has on brain health and functions will directly help to combat depression as well. The vitamin D receptors in various regions of the brain help with mood regulation, while promoting better brain health, cognitive function, and emotional well-being can also help to protect against neurodegeneration, which may be linked to many mental health issues. Chronic inflammation is thought of as another common contributor to mood disorders like depression. As we have already seen, vitamin D has anti-inflammatory properties that help to reduce inflammation in the brain and body, which can both prevent or alleviate the causes and symptoms of depression. Similarly, as vitamin D helps to modulate the immune system, it can prevent an overactive immune response, which can contribute to the development of depression. Finally, vitamin D is especially useful for combatting seasonal affective disorder (SAD), a type of depression that occurs mainly during the winter months when there is less sunlight. As vitamin D is primarily produced by the skin in response to sunlight, lower levels of sunlight can result in much lower vitamin D levels and cause depression, so supplementing with vitamin D during the winter months may help to prevent or alleviate the symptoms of SAD (4).

Helps Regulate Blood Sugar Levels

Vitamin D plays an important role in the regulation of blood sugar, as it stimulates numerous mechanisms that impact how your body processes glucose. For starters, it enhances the sensitivity of insulin, the hormone that is responsible for regulating blood sugar. Insulin resistance is a key factor in the development of type 2 diabetes, so improved insulin sensitivity helps the body better use insulin to manage blood sugar. It then also directly influences some of the genes that are involved in glucose metabolism. By acting on these genes, it may help to improve the way the body processes glucose, enabling you to have much more balanced, healthier blood sugar levels. Vitamin D then has an impact on the production and function of pancreatic beta cells, which are responsible for producing insulin. Adequate vitamin D levels can support the function and health of these cells, helping to maintain normal insulin production and regulate blood sugar levels in the process. Yet again, the anti-inflammatory properties of vitamin D are beneficial here too, as chronic inflammation is linked to insulin resistance. By reducing inflammation and improving insulin function simultaneously, vitamin D can reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes and keep your blood sugar levels in check. Finally, the ability of vitamin D to aid calcium absorption and regulation that we saw earlier also influences insulin secretion, further optimising your blood sugar levels (5).

Reduces The Risk Of Multiple Chronic Health Issues

The final benefit of vitamin D that we briefly need to touch on is the sheer quantity of chronic health conditions that it can help to either prevent or treat. In addition to the various health conditions that we have already touched on across these two articles, vitamin D supplements can also greatly reduce the risk of developing multiple sclerosis (MS), certain types of cancer, fibromyalgia, hypertension, and asthma, as well as various issues that women may experience during either pregnancy or the menopause.

References

<1> https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/VitaminD-HealthProfessional/ <2> https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6132681/ <3> https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34405916/ <4> https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27750060/ <5> https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4499086/