Best Ways to Get More Vitamin D

Are you not getting enough vitamin D in your daily activities? Maybe you spend all day inside due to work, or maybe it’s not easy for you to get out into the sun.

Whatever the case, you need to make sure you get enough vitamin D, especially if you have rheumatoid arthritis or at risk for developing it. Rheumatoid arthritis is an inflammatory type of arthritis that can be delayed or treated effectively with vitamin D.

Best Ways to Get More Vitamin D

Some Basic Information

First, let’s go over some of the vitamin D basics. Vitamin D has a lot of functions in regulating the immune system. That makes it very important in taking care of rheumatoid arthritis, as RA is a result of problems with the immune system. Low levels of vitamin D can lead to complications with RA and can even cause brittleness in the bones.

Generally speaking, adults should aim to get 600 IU of vitamin D per day. This amount should be increased for anyone with RA or with a vitamin D deficiency. The most dangerous thing about RA is that most prescription medication for it can cause further loss of vitamin D in patients who may already be deficient.

Getting the Habit of Getting More

It can be good to talk to your doctor about vitamin D. If you think you may have a deficiency, you should speak to your general physician. If they are able to help you determine that you do have a deficiency, you need to get into the habit of getting more sunlight into your life.

Your doctor may tell you a few of these methods for upping your vitamin D intake, but if you simply want to start increasing your intake on your own you can implement these lifestyle changes yourself.

Sunlight

The most direct was to get more vitamin D into your system is just by sitting in the sun. Try to spend between ten and fifteen minutes sitting in the sun every day. If you have darker skin, consider sitting outside for longer. Consider using sunscreen to reduce the risk of sunburn and wearing sunglasses so you don’t incur damage to your eyes. There are health risks included with UV exposure, including increased chance of skin cancer, though you can use sunscreen to try to reduce your risks.

Similar to sitting in direct sunlight, you could consider sitting near a large window in indirect sunlight. This is a great option for people in poorer health who might find it difficult to get outside. Make sure the window is open, though! Most window panes are designed to block the kinds of sunlight that help to produce vitamin D.

Sushi

A great way to keep a steady flow of vitamin D in your system is to eat fish that are high in the vitamin. Cod, salmon, tuna and sardines are all great sources of the vitamin in question. In fact, when they’re cooked they lose a bit of their natural vitamin content. That means that the best foods for vitamin D production are tuna and salmon sushi rolls! We can think of worse things to eat anyway, so take the excuse to dig into some tasty sushi!

Other Foods

If you’re not big on raw fish, no sweat. There are some other types of food you can consider incorporating more of into your diet to help your vitamin D intake. Namely, fortified orange juice and eggs for breakfast are great ways to up your intake. You could also consider adding more mushrooms to your diet as they are quite high in the vitamin. Fortified cereals are also good options for breakfast!

You can thus picture a pretty vitamin deficiency-friendly breakfast. A tall glass of fortified orange juice, a bowl of fortified cereal, a big cheese and mushroom omelet all while sitting in front of an open window. This is the ideal way to start your day to bring a ton of IUs of vitamin D into your system.

Supplements

The most straightforward thing a doctor can do for a patient deficient in  this vitamin is to simply prescribe them a supplement. These supplements are orally-ingested and simply deliver a burst of the vitamin in question into your body’s system. Generally speaking these supplements are taken with food, and should be taken in addition to spending more time outside and eating vitamin D-filled foods.

Remember, always talk to your doctor about changes in your lifestyle or diet. These changes might put you at risk for certain factors, so always talk to your doctor first.