Apparently, more than half of the entire world's population is deficient in vitamin D.
This is worrying - particularly when you consider that a lack of vitamin D has been linked to the increasing epidemic of sleep disorders.
This deficiency is perhaps unsurprising when you consider an average day in the lives of many - we live and work indoors, we commute 'indoors' (car, train, bus, etc) and we love to wear sunscreen and sunglasses (and clothes!).
So how can you boost your vitamin D intake?
It's quite simple.
Increase your exposure to the sun and avoid sunscreen whenever possible (but move out of the sun if your skin begins to burn).
I prefer this method to vitamin D supplements since over-supplementation can actually harm sleep - and it's hard to predict just how much of the vitamin your body will absorb in supplement form.
Vitamin D comes with a number of additional benefits. In addition to improving your sleep, it has been found to reduce pain and may even help regulate the immune system and protect against cancer and heart disease.
The best thing about vitamin D?
It's absolutely free and it's absolutely unlimited (except, perhaps, here on the Oregon coast).
Go outside and get some!
Source: The Bulletproof Executive
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Last updated: February 28, 2013
Vitamin D is also essential in combatting a number of things such as acne and depression. Think of all those women in full burqa or not permitted outside the home, which may not have a courtyard or atrium within, for the women to get sun without non-family male eyes.
Often, a mere 15 minutes, and not all at once, is enough to help. Wear a hat to protect face, neck and shoulders if you want–but leave some part of your skin exposed. Sit under a tree, even. Those of us taking some life-long medications are more likely to get sunburnt, so take that into consideration.
While it may not give you vitamin D, the use of full-spectrum bulbs, or 10K lumen “happy lites” help relieve SAD, and can aid, if used at the same time each day, help melatonin production.
Do not, however, use them, or FS desklamps (OTT and the like) when staying up late–they will really screw with what passes for asleep cycle, as I learned to my detriment in 2011, while recovering from heel surgery.