Vitamin D3 - Cholecalciferol
Welcome to the Vitamin D3 Consortium. As you probably know if you managed to find this community, Vitamin D3 is a natural form of Vitamin D that is most commonly obtained through the sun. The scientific name for Vitamin D3 is Cholecalciferol.
Vitamin D3 is more readily absorbed and more effectively used by the human body than is Vitamin D2, the other form of the nutrient that has been marketed commercially throughout the United States and the world. Technically there are three forms of Vitamin D3, but Cholecalciferol is the only one that is ingested either through food, supplements or by way of sun absorption.
The Three Forms of Vitamin D3:
Vitamin D3 Deficiency
Vitamin D3 Deficiency is a condition in which the blood-levels of Vitamin D3 (usually tested for in the 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 form) are chronically low for an extended period of time. The condition is alarmingly common. People who live in cold, northern, mountainous regions, and those with darker-than-average skin are among the most at-risk groups, although anyone can become deficient if sufficient sunlight is not absorbed and if the individual is not obtaining enough of the nutrient through foods and supplements.
Vitamin D3 Deficiency has been linked to an increases susceptibility to developing roughly 2-1/2 dozen diseases and illness including everything from Cancer to Osteoporosis to Rickets to Parkinson's Disease.
In addition, excessively low blood-levels of the nutrient have been shown to exacerbate existing conditions, including some for which no link has been found between the nutritional deficiency and one becoming stricken with the disease for the first time. Fibromyalgia, Multiple Sclerosis and HIV are examples of diseases, the symptoms of which and the disease progression are more severe in Vitamin D Deficient individuals.
Vitamin D3 Benefits
Vitamin D3 offers a number of different health benefits in addition to the helping stave off certain diseases. Cholecalciferol has been shown to help reduce inflammation, which helps to relieve pain. This is true of arthritis sufferers as well as other forms of chronic pain.
D3 has been shown to help alleviate symptoms of depression and chronic fatigue. It also helps to improve the overall health of the skin, hair and nails, and provides a much-needed boost for the immune system.
Vitamin D3 is more readily absorbed and more effectively used by the human body than is Vitamin D2, the other form of the nutrient that has been marketed commercially throughout the United States and the world. Technically there are three forms of Vitamin D3, but Cholecalciferol is the only one that is ingested either through food, supplements or by way of sun absorption.
The Three Forms of Vitamin D3:
- Cholecalciferol: The unhydroxylated form of vitamin D3. This is the form in which the nutrient exists when it is absorbed or ingested.
- Calcifediol: Also known as calcidiol, hydroxycholecalciferol, or 25-hydroxyvitamin D3, and is abbreviated 25OH-D.
- Calcitriol: Also reffered to as 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3, this is the active form of D3. This form of the nutrient is attained only following two separate chemical reactions designed to process the nutrient for use by the body.
Vitamin D3 Deficiency
Vitamin D3 Deficiency is a condition in which the blood-levels of Vitamin D3 (usually tested for in the 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 form) are chronically low for an extended period of time. The condition is alarmingly common. People who live in cold, northern, mountainous regions, and those with darker-than-average skin are among the most at-risk groups, although anyone can become deficient if sufficient sunlight is not absorbed and if the individual is not obtaining enough of the nutrient through foods and supplements.
Vitamin D3 Deficiency has been linked to an increases susceptibility to developing roughly 2-1/2 dozen diseases and illness including everything from Cancer to Osteoporosis to Rickets to Parkinson's Disease.
In addition, excessively low blood-levels of the nutrient have been shown to exacerbate existing conditions, including some for which no link has been found between the nutritional deficiency and one becoming stricken with the disease for the first time. Fibromyalgia, Multiple Sclerosis and HIV are examples of diseases, the symptoms of which and the disease progression are more severe in Vitamin D Deficient individuals.
Vitamin D3 Benefits
Vitamin D3 offers a number of different health benefits in addition to the helping stave off certain diseases. Cholecalciferol has been shown to help reduce inflammation, which helps to relieve pain. This is true of arthritis sufferers as well as other forms of chronic pain.
D3 has been shown to help alleviate symptoms of depression and chronic fatigue. It also helps to improve the overall health of the skin, hair and nails, and provides a much-needed boost for the immune system.
