Sunlight Vitamin D Synthesis

Food sources of vitamin d.

Sunlight vitamin d synthesis.

Solar source of vitamin d. Vitamin d is a group of fat soluble secosteroids responsible for increasing intestinal absorption of calcium magnesium and phosphate and multiple other biological effects. When it s exposed to sunlight our skin makes vitamin d. According to the national institutes of health s office of dietary supplements ultraviolet uv b radiation with a wavelength of 290 315 nanometers penetrates uncovered skin and converts cutaneous 7 dehydrocholesterol to previtamin d3 which in turn becomes vitamin d3.

The sun s ultraviolet b uvb rays hit cholesterol in the skin cells providing the energy for vitamin d synthesis to occur. The epidermal layer of human skin synthesizes vitamin d when exposed to uv radiation. Specific sunlight kicks off the vitamin d synthesis process. In the presence of sunlight a form of vitamin d 3 called cholecalciferol is synthesized from a derivative of the steroid cholesterol in the skin.

One study showed that doing outdoor activities such as gardening in the summer did indeed reduce cholesterol levels in the blood. In humans the most important compounds in this group are vitamin d 3 also known as cholecalciferol and vitamin d 2 ergocalciferol. In the midst of summer there s plenty of daily sunlight to boost vitamin d levels in your body. Personal factors physiological skin pigmentation.

It is also produced endogenously when ultraviolet uv rays from sunlight strike the skin and trigger vitamin d synthesis. Melanin is a broad uv visible radiation absorber melanin competes with the chromophore 7 dhc for absorption of uvb thus making less available to 7 dhc. The best food sources of vitamin d are wild not farmed oily fish like salmon mackerel and sardines and cod liver oil. One theory is that because cholesterol is used in vitamin d synthesis levels of cholesterol will reduce as more vitamin d is made.

Darker skin reported to have same capacity for vitamin d synthesis but. Vitamin d has many roles in the body and is essential for optimal. The challenge lies is balancing skin protection from sun overexposure while reaping vitamin d s. Vitamin d from sunlight is more effective in health maintenance and stays in the body about twice as long as vitamin d from food and supplements.

The major natural source of the vitamin is synthesis of cholecalciferol in the lower. That s the good stuff the active form. The first hydroxylation which occurs in the liver converts vitamin d to 25. When the sun s ultraviolet rays touch the skin they convert the precursor to a molecule called vitamin d 3 which then follows a metabolic pathway through the liver and finally to the kidneys where it s converted into a molecule called calcitriol.