Are vitamin D supplements needed if individuals are not exposed to sunlight due to lockdowns? Any Ideas?
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Are vitamin D supplements needed if individuals are not exposed to sunlight due to lockdowns? Any Ideas?
Get your doctor to test for levels and he/she will let you know.
I am on D supplements - the geriatrician in the ward tested staff after finding low level in the patients in the ward. :)
it would be pretty difficult to be stuck indoors enough to require vit D supplements, even with lockdowns.
It happens - and i was sailing a lot through the summer at the time... Obviously i was in the sunshine frequently - although i have sailed in the snow at times.
If you have osteopenia or osteoporosis your doctor would likely prescribe Vit D for you, probably as colecalciferol to assist with bone growth/slow down bone loss.
That's what I'm on John, plus another called Risedronate, also for bone density loss.
Ken
I haven't come across Risedronate Ken. I've been on colecalciferol for years, now delivered as a once monthly capsule like those old cod liver oil things of childhood! I'm several centimeters shorter than I used to be... I also get the annual aclaster infusion. As Mae West said - getting old is not for sissies.
And i don't have osteoporosis - i fall on the footpath often enough when out running and don't break any bones. I have been awkward all my life... I do now know where all the lumps on the street are now though. :)
As the saying goes John, someone has to do it! :)Quote:
Originally Posted by John H
RM. as for running, the nearest I get to that was when I dreamt I was trying to get fit and was out for a run. :) I woke up feeling absolutely buggered. However, I walk regularly each morning at 7am for a regular 2.5K circuit.
Ken
Risk factors
Having naturally very dark skin. This includes people from Africa, the Indian subcontinent and Middle East.
Your skin not being regularly exposed to sunlight, eg:
avoiding the sun because you have a high risk of skin cancer or are on photosensitising medications (these are medicines that make your skin more sensitive to the sun – your pharmacist or doctor will have advised you)
regularly wearing clothing that covers a lot of your skin (eg, veils or other clothing covering your legs, arms and face), or
not going outside.
If you live in the South Island (especially south of Nelson-Marlborough) and get little time outdoors in the middle of the day between May and August, you may be at risk of vitamin D deficiency in spring. You may wish to consider taking vitamin D tablets from May to August.
If you have liver or kidney disease, or are on certain medications that affect vitamin D levels, you may be at risk of vitamin D deficiency.
However.......see a GP. Overdose can cause nausea and vomiting, weakness, and frequent urination. Vitamin D toxicity might progress to bone pain and kidney problems, such as the formation of calcium stones.