THIS SECTION'S GOING TO BE COVERING VITAMIN D. WE'RE GOING

TO START WITH THE FUNCTIONS OR THE ROLES OF VITAMIN D.

AND THE MAIN FUNCTIONS ARE REGULATION OF BLOOD CALCIUM.

OUR BODY KEEPS CALCIUM

WITHIN THE BLOODSTREAM AT A VERY TIGHT LEVEL.

AND WHAT VITAMIN D IS IT HELPS REGULATE IT,

BUT MOSTLY WE THINK OF IT AS HELPING IN THE ABSORPTION

OF CALCIUM FROM THE INTESTINES INTO THE BLOODSTREAM.

ALSO HELPS US REGULATION OF PHOSPHORUS AND,

AND I JUST MENTIONED, RAISING BLOOD CALCIUM LEVELS,

DOING THIS BY INCREASING THE ABSORPTION.

THE MAIN CONDITION

IN VITAMIN D DEFICIENCY HAPPENS IN CHILDREN.

AND IT'S A SOFTENING OF BONES.

AND YOU CAN SEE IN THIS IMAGE HERE HOW THE LEGS ARE--

THESE BONES ARE BONY.

THEY'RE NOT FRACTURING OR BREAKING, THEY'RE SOFTENING.

THEY'RE SO SOFT THEY CAN'T HOLD THE SUPPORT,

THE WEIGHT OF THE PERSON,

IN THIS CASE A CHILD THAT'S TO BE SUPPORT.

SO THIS IS A SOFTENING OF THE BONES AND IT'S CALLED RICKETS.

THIS OCCURS IN CHILDREN.

MOSTLY IT'S GOING TO OCCUR IN CHILDREN

DO NOT RECEIVE ANY SUNLIGHT.

SO THEY'RE GOING TO BE IN THE VERY,

VERY NORTHERN AREAS IN SAY ALASKA OR

SOME OF THE SCANDINAVIAN COUNTRIES.

AND THEY CAN BE SUSCEPTIBLE TO RICKETS.

IN ADULTS THIS CONDITION IS CALLED OSTEOMALACIA,

BUT IT'S NOT NEARLY AS COMMON.

SO RICKETS IS GOING TO BE IN CHILDREN,

OSTEOMALACIA IN ADULTS.

ONE THING I WANT TO POINT OUT IS IN RECENT YEARS--

MEAN IT STARTED DECADES AGO BUT IN THE MORE

RECENT YEARS AS WE COME MORE WELL KNOWN

AND MORE MAINSTREAMED THAT VITAMIN HAS MANY,

MANY MORE ROLES THAN JUST CALCIUM REGULATION.

AND THESE ARE JUST A PARTIAL LIST,

AN INCOMPLETE LIST OF ALL THE CONDITIONS THAT

A VITAMIN D DEFICIENCY OR INSUFFICIENCY MAYBE

IS NOT TOO SEVERE THAT CAN RESULT IN.

SO CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE, CANCER,

COGNITIVE DISORDERS, ASTHMA, DIABETES,

MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS, HYPERTENSION,

JUST A PARTIAL LIST.

AND ONE OF THE REASONS IS THAT VITAMIN D WILL BIND

TO SMALL AREAS OF DNA AND IT INITIATES THIS CASCADE

MOLECULAR INTERACTIONS, AND THIS IMPACTS GENES.

AND OF COURSE GENES DRIVE EVERYTHING AND

THEY'VE FOUND OUT THAT ARE MORE THAN 50 GENES

AND TISSUES THROUGHOUT THE BODY THAT ARE KNOWN TO BE

REGULATED BY THE ACTIVE FORM OF VITAMIN D. IN ADDITION,

VITAMIN D HAS A ROLE INTO WHICH THE DEGREE

IN WHICH CELLS WILL ACTUALLY CHANGE FROM

A LESS SPECIFIC CELLS TO MORE SPECIFIC CELLS.

AND WHAT I MEAN IS THERE CAN BE A GENERALIZE CELL THAT COULD

HAVE ANY NUMBER OF FUNCTIONS BUT WHAT'S CALLED DIFFERENTIATION,

AND YOU DON'T NEED TO KNOW THAT TERM,

BUT YOU SHOULD KNOW THAT IT REALLY HELPS IN THAT SPECIFICITY

OR THAT ONE GENERAL CELL BECOMING A VERY SPECIFIC CELL.

AND THAT'S VERY IMPORTANT FOR ALL CELLS THROUGHOUT THE BODY.

VITAMIN D TOXICITY IS NOT AS

COMMON AS WE USED TO THINK IT WAS,

AS I MENTIONED IN THE LAST LECTURE.

BUT IT STILL CAN OCCUR, AND I'LL ACTUALLY GET INTO IT

WHEN WE START TALKING ABOUT VITAMIN K THAT HOW THESE

TWO VITAMINS INTERACT AND CAN RESULT IN SOME OF THE TOXICITY

THAT WE SEE WITH VITAMIN D. WHAT IT USUALLY RESULTS IN IF

YOU THINK ABOUT THE FUNCTION OF VITAMIN D WHICH IS TO--

I MEAN IT REGULATES BLOOD CALCIUM BUT IT

REALLY ENHANCES THE ABSORPTION OF CALCIUM

FROM THE INTESTINES INTO THE BLOODSTREAM,

JUST BRINGING CALCIUM INTO THE BLOODSTREAM.

BUT IF YOU HAVE TOO MUCH VITAMIN D

THEN YOU CAN GET TOO MUCH CALCIUM.

IN ADDITION, IT'S NOT GOING TO

NECESSARILY BE IN THE RIGHT SPOT.

AND WE'D LOVE TO HAVE MORE CALCIUM IN THE BONES, RIGHT.

WELL, IF YOU GET TOO MUCH CALCIUM AND IT DOESN'T KNOW

WHERE TO GO IT'S GOING TO DEPOSIT IN OTHER AREAS,

USUALLY IT'S SOFT TISSUE CALCIFICATION.

HERE THIS IS A BONE, AND THIS IS A BONE HERE,

THIS IS IN THE SHOULDER, THE HUMERUS, AND THE CLAVICLE.

WHEN WE LOOK INTO THE TENDON AREAS OR WITHIN

THE LIGAMENTS YOU CAN GET THESE CALCIFICATIONS,

CALCIUM ACTUALLY DEPOSITING IN THOSE AREAS.

NOW, THIS IS JUST AN ARTERY HERE AND CALCIUM CAN DEPOSIT

IN THE ARTERIES THAT CONTRIBUTES TO SOMETHING

CALLED ARTERIOSCLEROSIS, WHICH WE'LL LEARN ABOUT.

AND THEN IN THE HEART, SO THIS IS AORTIC STENOSIS.

YOU DON'T NEED TO KNOW THAT TERM BUT IN THE HEART,

THE VALVES IN THE HEART CAN BECOME CALCIFIED,

AND THERE ARE NOT [INAUDIBLE] FUNCTION AS PROPERLY.

SO THESE ARE THE PROBLEMS THAT COULD

HAPPEN WITH VITAMIN D TOXICITY.

BUT DO KEEP IN MIND THAT IT'S NOT THAT COMMON AND

VITAMIN A TOXICITY IS ACTUALLY MORE COMMON JUST BECAUSE OF

THE FORTIFICATION AND SUPPLEMENTATION COMBINATION.

IT ALL RHYMES FOR SOME STRANGE REASON.

SO WHERE DO WE GET VITAMIN D?

WELL, SUNSHINE IS THE BEST SOURCE.

THE PROBLEM IS THAT MOST PEOPLE LIVE IN AN AREA WHERE YOU'RE

NOT GOING TO GET ENOUGH SUN NO MATTER HOW MUCH YOU'RE OUTSIDE.

DOESN'T MATTER IF YOU'RE RUNNING NECKED ALL DAY,

YOU ARE NOT GOING TO GET ENOUGH

SUN JUST BECAUSE OF THE SUN ANGLE.

SO IF YOU LIVE IN FLORIDA,

YOU LIVE IN THE BAHAMAS, YOU'RE ON THE CARIBBEAN,

LIVE IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA YOU HAVE A CHANCE OF GETTING

ENOUGH VITAMIN D. IF YOU LIVE IN HUMBOLDT COUNTY YOUR CHANCES

OF GETTING VITAMIN D FROM THE SUN ARE REALLY SMALL.

IN ADDITION TO THE SUN ANGLE,

ESPECIALLY DURING THE WINTER MONTHS,

YOU ALSO HAVE TO FIGHT WITH FOG, RIGHT.

AND IN SOME AREAS, SAY IN L.A.,

THEY MIGHT HAVE SO MUCH SMOG

THAT IT ACTUALLY CAN BE A PROBLEM.

BUT THE GENERAL RULE OF SAYING ABOUT 15-20 MINUTES

OUTSIDE PER DAY ON AVERAGE ESPECIALLY IN THE SUMMER

IN USUALLY IN THE 10:00-2:00 RANGE,

MAYBE 10:00-4:00 IN SHORTS AND T-SHIRT.

NOW, OF COURSE YOU'RE NOT GOING TO DO THAT IN MANY PLACES,

LET'S SAY BOSTON OR CHICAGO IN THE WINTER TIME,

AND EVEN THEN THE SUN ANGLE'S TOO LOW.

SO IN THAT CASE YOU REALLY HAVE TO GET IT FROM FOOD SOURCES

WHICH IS DIFFICULT OR YOU MAY ACTUALLY HAVE TO SUPPLEMENT.

AND REMEMBER I HAVE BEEN A VERY STRONG

ADVOCATE OF GETTING ALL OF YOUR VITAMIN MINERAL,

VITAMIN NUTRIENTS, ALL OF YOUR NUTRIENTS FROM FOOD.

THIS IS ONE CASE THAT IF VITAMIN D DEFICIENCY

AND INSUFFICIENCY HAS BECOME VERY COMMON,

AND YOU MIGHT GET SOMETHING YOU HAVE TO SUPPLEMENT.

NOW, WHAT ARE THE FOOD SOURCES?

COULD YOU GET IT FROM FOOD?

WELL, YEAH, SEAFOOD SALMON IS A GOOD SOURCE.

NOT EVERYONE HAS ACCESS TO FISH OR CAN AFFORD FISH,

YOU KNOW, A FEW TIMES A WEEK.

FORTIFIED MILK,

SO WE HAVE VITAMIN A AND D ARE USUALLY FORTIFIED IN MILK.

SO THAT'S WHERE A LOT OF PEOPLE GET THEIR VITAMIN D. EGG YOLK

IS ALSO A SOURCE OF VITAMIN D. AND THEN A RADIATED MUSHROOM,

AND THAT SOUNDS HORRIBLE.

WHAT'S IN IT THAT RADIATED?

BUT REALLY THEY'RE PUTTING MUSHROOMS AND THEY GET UV LIGHT,

AND SO THEY'RE PRODUCING THEIR OWN FORM OF VITAMIN D. IT'S

SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT FROM THE FORM WE HAVE BUT WE CAN CONVERT IT.

INDEED THERE ARE SOME FOOD SOURCES,

AGAIN, NOT A LOT OF OPTIONS.

THERE AREN'T A LOT OF OPTIONS OUT THERE SO

IT'S VERY DIFFICULT TO GET VITAMIN D FROM FOOD.

IF YOU'RE LIVING IN THE RIGHT AREA YOU CAN EASILY

GET ENOUGH VITAMIN D FROM THE SUN AND FROM FOOD.

BUT KEEP IN MIND IN HUMBOLDT COUNTY

IT'S UNLIKELY YOU'LL GET ENOUGH.

I DON'T RECOMMEND JUST SUPPLEMENTING.

I WOULD RECOMMEND TALKING TO YOUR

DOCTOR ABOUT A VITAMIN D TEST FIRST.

THEN YOU ONLY WANT TO SUPPLEMENT WHEN THERE'S DEFICIENCY.

AND THIS IS A SHORT VIDEO BUT THIS IS

THE END OF THE SECTION ON VITAMIN D.