Doctors agree that learning how to get more Vitamin D in your diet may be a preventative arthritis treatment. Scientists involved in the Iowa Women’s Health Study declare that women with more Vitamin D in their diets have less incidence of rheumatoid arthritis.
Studying more than 30,000 women over a period of 11 years, the study reveals women whose dietary intake of Vitamin D was less than 300 IUs (international units) per day were 33 percent more likely to develop rheumatoid arthritis than those whose intake was more.
The sun, the foods we eat, and both dry and liquid supplements provide the basis of Vitamin D consumption by humans. By spending just 15 to 30 minutes a day in the sun, the body absorbs enough of the vitamin to ward off a deficiency. The problem? Dermatologists warn that even this amount of sun exposure can lead to serious skin damage and even cancer.
People can eat foods rich in Vitamin D provided they are knowledgeable as to which foods contain it. Some of these foods include:
- milk
- egg yolks
- fortified orange juice
- herring
- sardines
- mackerel
- salmon
- and cod liver oil
Older women at risk for rheumatoid arthritis need to consume from 400 to 600 IUs of Vitamin D, according to the Institute of Medicines Food and Nutrition Board.
Complementing the diet with supplements can be hugely beneficial for those not wanting to expose themselves to the risk of sun damage, who may be allergic to Vitamin D-rich foods, or who balk at the possibility of consuming mercury-laden fish.
According to one expert, people receive 90 to 95 percent of their Vitamin D from sun exposure and if this is not possible, a dietary supplement to ward off rheumatoid arthritis would seem crucial to attaining sufficient amounts of the vitamin.
Researchers remain clear in stating that Vitamin D holds no cure for rheumatoid arthritis, nor is it an arthritis treatment. But as a possible preventative, Vitamin D holds great hope. So do what’s necessary in your life to make sure you get enough Vitamin D. It just might mean a life free from the misery of joint pain brought on by rheumatoid arthritis.
Last Updated on November 11, 2022