This is important to note because it gives us a glimpse into how stress, cortisol, inflammation, and lowered vitamin D levels can lead to obesity and obesity-linked metabolic diseases. You see, obesity is more than just “eating too much”. It is actually an immune response to fat cells that is fed by inflammation and lowered vitamin D levels.

When our bodies are stressed and produce cortisol, our bodies start to pack fat around our organs to protect them from the onslaught of stress chemicals. Our immune system then has the fat cells release macrophages into the adipose tissues to create defenses against cellular debris and pathogens in this dense area. This immune reaction stimulates inflammation to set in so that the macrophages will have the energy and conditions that it needs to attack.

When macrophages are set into action, lymphocytes and other immune cells also respond to the inflammation, which creates even more inflammation, which in turn attracts more lymphocytes, and so on. This chain reaction of inflammation-causing immune responses is what makes obesity so dangerous. To make the situation more confusing, young fat cells can release extra macrophages and immune cells can be transformed into fat cells and some fat cells into immune cells.

All of these cells are intimately connected and they all create and react to hormones in our bodies. Fat is actually thought of as part of the immune system. When too much fat is present, the immune system goes to work trying to protect and manage itself. By doing so, it produces a vast amount of inflammatory chemicals which interfere with the use of insulin. The inflammation spreads through your body, causing muscle to deteriorate. It also causes your body to become resistant to the hormones that normally regulate weight, mood, appetite, digestion, and more.

Vitamin D has been found to prevent severe inflammatory reactions that lead to destruction all over the body. It is this same inflammation that is associated with metabolic disease, which shows us that there is a clear link between metabolism and the immune system. This is why illnesses like influenza are seen more prevalent in the winter months. It’s not that the flu isn’t around all year, it’s that people aren’t out in the sun during the winter months and aren’t producing enough vitamin D to have a healthy immune system.

Vitamin D increases production of antimicrobial peptides and prevents the immune system from releasing too many inflammatory cells. When enough vitamin D is produced, our immune system works more efficiently and correctly. It activates T-cells to fight off infections, invaders, viruses, and pathogens. These cells cannot do their jobs if not activated by vitamin D, and so the immune system will use macrophages and other types of less effective immune cells instead. This overproduction of ineffective immune cells contributes to the constant state of inflammation that obese people experience.

Vitamin D levels can be easily checked by your doctor. In general, people need more and more vitamin D as they get closer to obese. Once the threshold is crossed over and vitamin D is no longer produced, inflammation and obesity can be very hard to combat.

About the Author: Phil Le Breton is owner at Wholesale Nutrition. He has a strong interest in helping people achieve greater brain and body health with vitamins and supplements, with an emphasis on vitamin C powder. Wholesale Nutrition has provided the world with the best vitamin C and wholesale vitamins since 1970. Visit http://www.nutri.com to buy high-quality discount vitamins today!

Sources:

http://www.life-with-confidence.com/benefit-of-vitamin-d.html

http://www.nature.com/nri/focus/metabolism/index.html

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/7379094/Vitamin-D-triggers-and-arms-the-immune-system.html

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/51913.php

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Vitamin E studies suggest that it protects neurons in the brain from damage, especially after a stroke. It has also been shown to reduce cholesterol levels. However, patients taking blood thinners or statin cholesterol medications should not increase their intake of vitamin E, unless advised to do so by a physician. Vitamin E can interfere with these medications because it is a natural anti-coagulant.

Vitamin K aids in blood coagulation, calcium absorption and calcium bonding. It is used as an osteoporosis treatment in Japan, but the long-term effects are still unknown. Studies have shown that vitamin K can actually inhibit nerve cell death caused by oxidative stress, so further studies are being conducted to determine if vitamin K would be beneficial in treating neurological diseases, like Alzheimer’s disease. Studies have also revealed benefits in protecting people from developing liver and prostate cancers. Vitamin K is currently used topically to treat bruises, rosacea, dark circles under the eyes, and spider veins.

Vitamin K is found in leafy green vegetables, such as spinach, and some fruits, such as kiwi and avocado. It is relatively easy to get vitamin K from these sources, if they are consumed in conjunction with fats. Fats allow the intestines to absorb vitamin K, but good flora bacteria are also necessary for absorption.

Like vitamin E, vitamin K can also interfere with the actions of blood thinners and statin medications. Signs of deficiency include anemia, bruising, heavy menstrual bleeding, bleeding gums, or bleeding nose.

Therefore, vitamin K deficiency is mainly seen in people that have been on antibiotics, have recently had a virus or infection that affected the intestine, people who have been on long-term aspirin therapy, and people who have had intestinal surgery.

Remember to ask your doctor about supplementing with vitamins before you start to avoid drug interactions. If you do take vitamins and supplements, you can buy vitamins, wholesale vitamins, or discount vitamins online to reduce the cost of supplementing.

About the Author: Phil Le Breton is owner at Wholesale Nutrition. He has a strong interest in helping people achieve greater brain and body health with vitamins and supplements. Wholesale Nutrition has provided the world with discount vitamins and the best vitamin C since 1970. Visit http://www.nutri.com to buy high-quality, low-cost wholesale vitamins today!

Vitamins A, D, E and K make up the fat soluble vitamin group. These vitamins are not easily destroyed by food preparation, cooking, or storage like water soluble vitamins. Because of this and the fact that the body stores excesses in the liver and fatty tissues of the body, deficiencies are rare in the US.

Vitamin A is a nutrient necessary for proper bone, eye and tooth development. It is also responsible for many other bodily processes, including night vision and keeping the mucous membranes in the lungs, sinuses, mouth, nose and throat moist. Vitamin A is found mainly in fish, liver and dairy products. Deficiency can cause night blindness, blindness, and severely dry eyes and skin.

The human body can convert beta-carotene into vitamin A. So, other sources for getting your vitamin A include yellow and orange fruits, like mangoes and apricots. Vegetable sources include carrots, pumpkins, and dark green leafy vegetables. Because toxicity is more of a concern than deficiency, many dieticians recommend getting vitamin A from beta-carotene sources. You can check the label of your multi-vitamin to see if the vitamin A is in the form of beta-carotene.

If too much beta-carotene is stored in the liver, it can prevent the liver from storing other fat soluble vitamins. Also, once it is stored there, it cannot be converted into vitamin A. Therefore, you should be careful about how much you take if you are supplementing. Always work with your doctor when you’re on a vitamins and supplements regimen.

Vitamin D is necessary for the body to absorb and use calcium. Vitamin D is crucial in the development, restructuring, and healing of bones. Vitamin D is usually added to dairy products, but can also be obtained from sun exposure or oily fish, like cod, salmon and sardines.

Deficiency is more common with vitamin D than any of the other fat soluble vitamins. Our need for vitamin D increases as we age and our absorption of it decreases. Many people have trouble absorbing it or have difficulty maintaining adequate levels of vitamin D, so they are advised by their physician to take it in the form of vitamin D-3 instead. This is the form of vitamin D that is normally produced in the skin with sun exposure.

Insufficient levels of vitamin D have been associated with an increased risk of autoimmune disease, high blood pressure, depression, and even cancer. When you visit your doctor, have them test your vitamin D levels and advise you on whether or not you should supplement.

Part 2 in the series “Fat Soluble Vitamins” will review the vitamins E and K. Remember to ask your doctor about supplementing with vitamins before you start to avoid drug interactions. If you do take vitamins and supplements, you can buy vitamins, wholesale vitamins, or discount vitamins online to reduce the cost of supplementing.

About the Author: Phil Le Breton is owner at Wholesale Nutrition. He has a strong interest in helping people achieve greater brain and body health with vitamins and supplements. Wholesale Nutrition has provided the world with discount vitamins and the best vitamin C since 1970. Visit http://www.nutri.com to buy high-quality, low-cost wholesale vitamins today!

Mild depression is often characterized by anxiety, obsessive thoughts or actions, lack of interest in activities that the person used to enjoy, mood swings, and a general blue mood. Changes in your lifestyle, diet, relaxation practices, a regular amount of sleep, and supplementing with certain vitamins and minerals can improve the symptoms of mild depression and help you get your life back. Do some research about your specific symptoms and talk to your doctor before you buy vitamins and supplements.

It is important to keep in mind that vitamins and exercise may not solve all of your problems. Some neurological symptoms may be genetic and therapy and/or medication may be necessary to find relief. However, many vitamins work directly on the neurotransmitters that are affected by these genetic abnormalities and can still be an effective form of treatment. Work with your doctor or therapist because you should not try to combat depression alone. With that said, let’s take a look at which vitamins may be able to help you and why.

Vitamins, such as vitamin D, have proven very useful in combating depression. Vitamin D3 is the more active form of vitamin D and has proven to be helpful in treating mood disorders. Vitamin D is often called the “sunshine vitamin” because our bodies normally produce it when exposed to the sun. However, a lot of things can hinder our production of vitamin D and more people than ever are deficient, despite their sun exposure.

Inadequate levels of B vitamins can cause the nervous system to malfunction, causing many depression symptoms to worsen. B vitamin deficiencies also hinder red blood cell production and the delivery of oxygen to the brain, leading to depression and fatigue. Serotonin production is also hindered by low B vitamin levels. B vitamin deficiencies are most common in patients with severe psychiatric problems. The nervous system and serotonin levels are also hindered by a lack of thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, iron, selenium, vitamin C, and folate.

Many vitamins and minerals have a role in maintaining a healthy mental state, but none so much as vitamin C. Vitamin C facilitates the production of acetylcholine, which has a calming effect on all of the body’s processes. It is also necessary for your body to make serotonin, which is used in regulating anxiety levels, as well as making it possible for you to get recuperative sleep. Vitamin C clears out toxins that affect neurological transmitters and that cause mass inflammation and oxidative stress. It protects all of your cells from damage and invasion, but particularly your brain tissues.

Discuss your symptoms with your doctor before you buy vitamins. A supplement regimen should start with the best vitamin C so that your body can properly synthesize the other vitamins and supplements that your doctor recommends.

About the Author: Phil Le Breton, the owner at Wholesale Nutrition, has a strong interest in helping people achieve greater brain and body health with vitamins and supplements. Wholesale Nutrition has the best vitamin C powder on the market (C-Salts). Visit http://www.nutri.com to buy vitamins or buy supplements of the highest quality.

The current FDA recommended daily allowance of vitamin D is 400 units of vitamin D per day for adults, 200 units per day for adolescents. For a healthy adult to get a minimum daily recommended amount, they would need to drink four 8-ounce glasses of milk every day. You can also get vitamin D from the sun. For 400 units, that would be about thirty minutes of peak hour sun, four days per week. But there are many factors that can affect how much vitamin D you actually get and use from these sources.

Relying on the sun or milk for vitamin D may not be feasible. Taking vitamins and supplements is usually necessary. People with hyperparathyroidism, kidney disease or liver disease should not necessarily take vitamin D supplements because of their inability to convert it to an active hormone form, so speak with your endocrinologist if your child has any of these conditions. Furthermore, you should be aware that the darker your skin is and the higher body fat percentage you have, the less vitamin D you will absorb from the sun. Also, if your child eats a diet low in monounsaturated fats or if they have a condition that causes a reduction in fat absorption, they will also have a hindered ability to absorb vitamin D and may need to supplement.

Complications with diabetes are often brought on by stress. Stress levels in general are kept in check by vitamin D. Additionally, blood sugar levels affect mood and cognition. Mood swings and lack of cognition brought on by blood sugar fluctuations can be lessened and even eliminated by maintaining adequate levels of vitamin D in the body in some cases. This is because vitamin D increases the serotonin levels in the brain. Serotonin is the neurotransmitter that controls moods in the brain.

Adequate vitamin D translates into adequate serotonin. Serotonin regulates stress, anger, depression, aggression, appetite, behavior and more. Since stress aggravates and worsens diabetes symptoms and risks, controlling the serotonin levels in a juvenile diabetic, type 1 or type 2, may help reduce health risks. These risks include psychosis as a result of sleep deprivation, depression, long-term high or low blood glucose levels, high blood pressure, heart disease and stroke.

Have your child’s vitamin D levels checked by their doctor. If levels are low or deficient, try to work in food sources of vitamin D, such as shrimp, salmon, cod liver oil and vitamin D fortified milk. You may want to ask your doctor about the use of vitamins and supplements to increase vitamin D levels. Have levels regularly checked to monitor absorption and proper dosage for your child.

About the Author: Phil Le Breton is owner at Wholesale Nutrition. He has a strong interest in helping people achieve greater brain and body health. For more information about C-Salts, otherwise known as the best Vitamin C, or about other Vitamin C powder products, visit http://www.nutri.com where you can buy Vitamins and Supplements of the highest quality.