Crash Course - Vitamin D Absorption

This is the time of the year when we are so excited about sun but our bodies just forgot how to handle it. 

It is early summer and we have exhausted our vitamin D reserves a while ago already. Any type of Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) around this time is most likely related to the fact that we are deficient in vitamin D if we are not supplementing considerable doses (at least 4000 IU per day). 

But supplementing the proper dose or lying in the sun for extended periods of time does not mean that our body will actually get the proper vitamin D it needs. 

If absorbed properly during summer, vitamin D can be stored in the liver for up to 3 months, which means we benefit from real natural vitamin D longer, rather than supplementing it. 

In colder regions (like Canada) there will definitely be a period of supplementation, but in warmer regions vitamin D from the sun is more than enough all year long following some best practices: 

1. Make sure your liver and gallbladder are in good shape

Vitamin D is a fat soluble vitamin. This means that, when supplemented, it is only properly absorbed in the presence of dietary fat and good quality bile (well concentrated in a healthy gallbladder). 

If you do not have a gallbladder you MUST supplement bile in order to absorb any fat soluble vitamin (A, D, E, K) read my article about gallbladder removal here. 

Then, it will be processed in the liver if either supplemented or formed on skin from the sun. Keep your liver clean (liver support herbs, healthy lifestyle, weight loss, etc …) and have a regular good intake of healthy fats to keep the gallbladder working. 

2. Saturated fats are crucial 

Yes saturated fats are extremely important to maintain a healthy life! 

Not only saturated fats are essential for making hormones (including sex hormones), they are also crucial to ensure a proper absorption of vitamin D from the sun. Saturated fats (butter, ghee, lard, cream, cheese, etc…) help our body to make cholesterol. 

And yes again! Critical to healthy functions of the human body! 

Since vitamin D is fat soluble when we sun-bath the Ultra Violate Ray B (UVB) needs to bond with fats/cholesterol under our skin. It will stay there for 24 hours while it is gradually being processed by the liver. 

So if you are on low fat diet or taking statins, you are at greater risk of vitamin D deficiency even if you sit in the sun regularly. 

3. Do not shower with soap after a sun bath

Because vitamin D is a fat soluble vitamin it takes a long processing time so when we sun-bath it sits on bonded with the fat in our skin for long hours while the liver processes small amount bit by bit. 

If we shower with soap/shower gel after a sun bath we literally wash off all the “potential” vitamin D that could have been stored in our body. 

So unfortunately (same for me at some point), all the times we have roasted in the sun and went on and had a thorough shower with our favourite shower gel are not counted as a proper vitamin D dose. 

Instead, wash thoroughly the areas that have been exposed to the sun with running water and keep the soap for the intimate parts (they don’t have any potential vitamin D anyway!). 

4. A sun stroke is technically an overdose of vitamin D! 

Sitting in the sun longer than what your body needs will lead to accumulation of UV rays under the skin. And the liver will not be able to process this dose fast enough that is why we get the sun stroke symptoms. 

5. Sunscreen is a scam 

Not only sunscreens contain dangerous and toxic chemicals, it is also fat based, which makes it highly absorbable and the body takes longer to detox those chemicals. 

The accumulation of those chemicals in the body are way faster than the capacity of the body to detox it. 

The second issue with sunscreen is that it blocks the one type of ultra violet (UV) ray that is absorbed from the superficial layer of the skin and used to make vitamin D (Ultra Violet B UVB type). 

However, it does not block the type of UV that penetrates to the deeper layers of skin (Ultra Violet A UVA type). 

UVB is the ray that will cause symptoms of burn like redness, heat, blisters, etc… The way your body reacts to UVB is supposed to let you know that it is about time to move away from the sun. While UVA burns the deeper layers in silence, the body does not react to it. 

So, while sunscreens block the UV that will help send a signal of burn (UVB), it lets in the one that does not show any symptoms (UVA). Basically, it helps burn the deeper layers of the skin without noticing it because the alarm system (UVB) is disabled! More about this here. 

6. Sun does not cause cancer 

The body can only absorb a limited amount of vitamin D at a time. Spending extra time in the sun won't increase vitamin D levels, but will increase your risk of skin cancer. Most of the chemicals in commercial sunscreens are proven carcinogenic. 

7. Living in a hot region does mean that vitamin D levels are balanced by default

Ironically, people living in hot country are at high risk of vitamin D deficiency because they tend to hide from the sun for too long! 

Usually, the higher the social level the longer the individuals spend indoors with A/C on. If you live in a hot region but spend your day indoors, I suggest supplementing vitamin D all year long. 

Always remember, vitamin D is formed ONLY from direct exposure of bare skin to Ultra Violet ray. So feeling hot or sweating from heat or even being exposed to the sun while totally covered with clothes does not mean you are getting your vitamin D. 

8. Skin color determines the needed duration of exposure to the sun 

The darker the skin color is the longer time of exposure is needed to absorb enough vitamin per day. Studies showed that African Americans have the highest levels of deficiency in vitamin D among other Americans. 

Luckily this does not seem to affect their bone density due to other genetic adaptations but places a higher risk on other disease caused by deficiency of vitamin D (cardiovascular disease, diabetes, obesity etc...) 

Download the table below that shows the approximate amount of sun time needed daily for different shades of skin colour.

9.More important than we could ever imagine

Many of us think that the importance of vitamin D is due to its role in having healthy bones. But as mentioned above some of us have stronger bones with lower levels of vitamin D. 

Vitamin D is critical to healthy living not only because it gives us healthy bones, but because it is involved in hundreds of vital functions that affects our daily health positively or negatively. 

It is involved in the health of multiple organs such as muscles, heart, kidneys, lungs as well as weight loss, cognitive functions, mood regulation and immunity. 

Always remember that balance is key! 

Our ancestors did not lie down for 4 hours in the sun to get tanned. They did not do so because they had the instinctive knowledge that this is harmful and they listened to it. 

There is a fine line between the sun being your best friend and being your worse enemy. 

So make a healthy choice! 

Wishing you a happy healthy summer!