Everyone Needs Vitamin D – But How Much?

Published on November 27, 2020

This one-page infographic has all the basic information anyone needs to get started with vitamin D – share it today!

Have you ever felt like you wanted to tell someone about vitamin D but didn’t know where to start? Or what information to give them that was most important?

GrassrootsHealth, along with some of the top vitamin D researchers in the world, have put together the infographic below to present an easy-to-comprehend visual handout to get anyone started on vitamin D.

Click to Enlarge & Download

What is so important about this information?

One of the most important messages conveyed with this graphic is that simply taking a vitamin D supplement may not be providing enough vitamin D, especially when the current medical recommendations are too low for almost all people.

Recommended intakes for vitamin D are 400-800 IU/d from government agencies in US, Canada and UK, but to reach a target level of 40-60 ng/ml may take up to ten times as much and taking 4000 IU a day is considered safe for every adult.

An intake of 400 to 800 IU of vitamin D per day, especially during the winter when many people are stuck indoors, is certainly not enough vitamin D to support the levels needed for maintaining your health! Obvious consequences of such low recommendations are the current average vitamin D levels among the general population, such as a level of 26 ng/ml for the United States. Vitamin D scientists recommend maintaining a vitamin D level of 40-60 ng/ml (100-150 nmol/L) however, the amount needed for one person to achieve such levels may be much different than the amount needed for others.

Who May Need More Vitamin D and When?

people with dark skin
higher body weight (overweight and obese)
indoor and night-shift workers
cover body with clothing when outdoors
live north of 44°N latitude (north of Kansas)
during winter months

What Causes The Difference?

how much time you spend in the summer sun
genetics and age
digestion problems (such as irritable bowel syndrome)
medication (such as prednisone)
lack of co-factors such as magnesium, vitamin K2, calcium and vitamin C
taking supplements without a meal

How to Know You’re Getting Enough Vitamin D

The only way to make sure that your target level of vitamin D has been reached is to measure the amount of vitamin D [as 25(OH)D] in your blood. If your resulting level is below your target, using the vitamin D calculator to help determine a new supplementation amount along with information provided on how to support and maintain a healthy vitamin D level (such as with co-nutrients, sun exposure, and food). Re-testing after 3 to 6 months allows you to ensure your target has been reached, or gives you the opportunity to adjust your routine as needed.

Don’t Allow a Vitamin D Deficiency to Bring Your Health Down!

Correcting a vitamin D deficiency prior to getting sick may decrease disease severity and improve outcomes! Test your vitamin D level today, learn what steps to take to improve your level, and take action to achieve and maintain a vitamin D level of 40-60 ng/ml (100-150 nmol/L).

Using the GrassrootsHealth Custom Kit Builder, you can create a test kit that measures your status of vitamin D and other important nutrients (such as omega-3s, zinc and magnesium), as well as your CRP level to measure inflammation. Click here to build and order your test kit today – measure your status and take the steps necessary to improve them if needed; make an impact on your health today and for your future! When you know what your levels are, you can determine next steps to take and how much supplementation may be needed if you are not at your target levels.

How Can You Use this Information for YOUR Health?

Having and maintaining healthy vitamin D and other nutrient levels can help improve your health now and for your future. Measuring is the only way to make sure you are getting enough!

STEP 1 Order your at-home blood spot test kit to measure vitamin D and other nutrients of concern to you, such as omega-3s, magnesium, essential and toxic elements (zinc, copper, selenium, lead, cadmium, mercury); include hsCRP as a marker of inflammation or HbA1c for blood sugar health

STEP 2 Answer the online questionnaire as part of the GrassrootsHealth study

STEP 3 Using our educational materials and tools (such as our dose calculators), assess your results to determine if you are in your desired target range or if actions should be taken to get there

STEP 4 After 3-6 months of implementing your changes, re-test to see if you have achieved your target level(s)

Enroll in D*action and Build Your Custom Test Kit!