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Why Your Vitamin D Levels Drop in Winter — And What to Do About It
As the days grow shorter, the sun hides behind the clouds, and the winter coats go on, something happens that can affect our health. Our vitamin D levels begin to drop.
It’s a common problem you see a lot in clinical practice, and it isn’t just inconvenient. Vitamin D deficiency can sneak up on you and cause subtle symptoms like feeling tired. It can also manifest as an increased susceptibility to respiratory infections.
Far from being uncommon, a low or borderline low vitamin D levels is a significant health concern. It affects millions of people, particularly those living in northern latitudes where the sun is weaker, and people spend more time indoors in the winter.
But why do vitamin D levels drop, and more importantly, what can you do about it?
The Sunshine Vitamin: Understanding the Basics
You may have heard people refer to vitamin D as the “sunshine vitamin.” There’s a good reason for that! Exposing your skin to sunlight is the number one source of this essential vitamin.
Yes, you can get some vitamin D through diet but there aren’t a lot of foods that contain substantial quantities of vitamin D. Therefore, diet is an unreliable source. Our bodies make most this…
