Because We Love You
Dr Andrew Weil is raising his recommended daily dose of vitamin D to 2,000 IU. In a recent article, he states:
In recent years, scientists have discovered that it may help to prevent several cancers, cardiovascular disease, autoimmune disorders, psoriasis, diabetes, psychosis, and respiratory infections including colds and flu.
To focus particularly on cancer prevention, two recent meta-analyses (in which data from multiple studies is combined) conducted by the Moores Cancer Center at the University of California at San Diego and colleagues suggested that raising blood levels of vitamin D could prevent one-half of the cases of breast cancer and two-thirds of the cases of colorectal cancer in the U.S.
Vitamin D is primarily created through exposure to sunshine. Many of us that live far from the equator do not receive enough sunshine on a daily basis and are vitamin D deficient. Studies suggest that many chronic diseases found in the Northern Hemisphere may be caused by vitamin D deficiency. The fact that these diseases are more commonly found in darker-skinned people (darker skin is less able to absorb sunlight) supports this claim.
