With More “D”s, You Get More “A”s
British Study Links Vitamin D to Mental Sharpness
Exposure to natural sunlight is the best source of Vitamin D.
Writing a book about health is a lot like buying a laptop, iPod, or any other piece of advanced technology: Before you know it, your top-of-the-line machinery has been replaced by something new and more advanced.
I often feel this way when writing books. For instance, I’m in the process of putting my e-book, “The Mind Killer Defense,” into paperback. While the information is still relevant with respect to how to keep one’s mind operating at its peak, the latest and greatest info on preventing age-related mental decline continues to unfold, and I have yet to figure out how to mentally transmute that information into my book.
Ah, well. I suppose that’s what this blog is for – to keep you updated on the latest and greatest developments in the health world.
And speaking of the latest and greatest developments, I bring to you this latest ‘D’-velopment: Supplementing with vitamin D helps prevent age-related mental decline, according to research from the University of Manchester in England.
Vitamin D has been on the frontlines and front pages of health news on what seems like a continual basis, for when in short supply, it’s implicated in physical flameouts like childhood obesity, cardiovascular disease, improper bone development, and tuberculosis. This latest evidence shows how vitamin D deficiency plays a role in mental flameouts as well.
Coming to this conclusion required the assistance of 3,000 European men between the ages of 40 and 79, all of whom were considered deficient in vitamin D. Potential factors that could play into the results of the study were all accounted for, like education level, mental health (i.e. depression) and how physically active they were (See that? More evidence suggesting exercise factors into mental health).
When the 3,000 men were given a battery of tests that measured how keen they were in mental agility tasks, the researchers found that, uniformly, those who had the lowest vitamin D levels at the study’s outset performed the worst in testing. Even after the researchers adjusted their results for contributing factors – like the ones aforementioned – the results were the same!
The study is published in the Journal of Neurology Neurosurgery and Psychology .
The link between vitamin D and mental health has been investigated in the past, but this study is the largest of its kind, which tends to give more credibility to its findings.
As I write this piece, the sun is shining and the mercury is rising. In the “bad news” media, on days like these, we tend to hear how dangerous the sun is and to make sure and wear long sleeves when outdoors.
I’m taking the opposite tact. Consider this piece to be a reminder of the importance of direct sunlight. I’m not talking three to four hours on the beach shirtless without sunscreen, but exposing yourself to direct sunlight for at least 20 to 30 minutes per day is the ideal way to get those vitamin D levels churned up.
So go ahead and ‘d’light in the sunshine today for a bright and sustainable mind tomorrow!
Source:
msnbc.msn.com
Related Posts
- Benefits of Vitamin D for Heart Disease
- Heart Disease Death Risk Lowered by One-Third Through Vitamin D, Study Says
- Vitamin E and your Physical Decline
- Vitamin D Significantly Lowers Cancer Risk, Researchers Conclude
- Good Health & the Sunshine Vitamin
 
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Posted: May 23rd, 2009 under Vitamin D.
Tags: mental health, Sunlight, sunlight vitamin d, vitamin d benefits, vitamin d deficiency
