A Look At Vitamin D Deficiency Symptoms

By Kerri Stout


Living in a fast paced society that has evolved over time many people find themselves in a position that can cause them to eat on the run or many times miss a meal completely. Eating on the run generally involves fast foods that may not contain the nutritional values necessary for a healthy body and skipping meals due to employment or family pressures carries consequences that speak for themselves. Knowing what the vitamin D deficiency symptoms are may help to prevent the problems associated with it.

Regarded as Sunshine Vitamins the average person can absorb them from exposure to direct natural sun light on a daily basis. There are also many foods that supply the necessary amounts of it for individuals. You can obtain over the counter supplements that are available at retail outlets that can help boost your levels of these vitamins.

There are natural factors that can put people at risk for this problem. They include limited exposure to natural sun light, darker complexions, obesity, and a number of chronic diseases that can affect the body's absorption of nutrients in a normal fashion. Many time it is difficult for doctors to diagnose this problem because the accepted levels necessary vary widely dependent on which study you look at. There are federal standards and the Institute of Medicine has schedules available that chart needs by age groupings.

The symptoms mentioned by doctors include bone pain and muscle weakness as the most common complaints by patients. These subtle issues are so vague they often go unnoticed or are over looked when a diagnosis is made. A specific request must be made by the doctor to test the D levels in blood tests and often the patient needs to suggest doing it to their physician.

Those who have endured this problem are able to give a more detailed description of the problems they had. Many of them say that their joints and especially their hips are very painful. The pain is so extreme that they have trouble standing up from a seated position. They also relate that they have suffered massive hair loss, cognitive problems that cause problems focusing and thinking and chronic fatigue that sometimes leaves them with no energy to move.

Loss of bone density and fractures are common with this condition and women are especially susceptible. Taking calcium tablets that are fortified with D vitamins is highly recommended for all women over forty years of age. Bone density scans are also recommended by most doctors. Many women who suffer from this condition are reported to have multiple falls risking hip fractures over very short periods of time.

Long term issues that can arise from this deficiency include cancer, heart disease, diabetes and liver and kidney problems. It can also cause serious asthma in children. Studies are being done to determine whether there is any effect on patients who have high blood pressure with very promising results. There are also studies that indicate a link between taking this supplement and decreasing the risk of precancerous polyps of the colon, reducing the risk of falling and development of multiple sclerosis in women.

Whether you have this problem or not it may be a wise decision to supplement your diet with multiple vitamins that contain ample dosages of D. Especially if you adhere to a strictly vegan diet because most natural sources of it are animal based such as egg yolks, fish and fish oils, cheese, milk or beef liver.




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