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Vitamin D is present in the body in several forms; the two major ones being vitamin D2 (or ergocalciferol) and vitamin D3 (or cholecalciferol). Vitamin D3 is produced in skin exposed to sunlight, specifically ultraviolet B radiation.
Vitamin D plays an important role in the maintenance of organ systems.
What does Vitamin D do?- Vitamin D regulates the calcium and phosphorus levels in the blood by promoting their absorption from food in the intestines, and by promoting re-absorption of calcium in the kidneys.
- It promotes bone formation and mineralization and is essential in the development of an intact and strong skeleton.
- It inhibits parathyroid hormone secretion from the parathyroid gland.
- Vitamin D affects the immune system by promoting immunosuppression, phagocytosis, and anti-tumor activity.
Vitamin D deficiency can result from inadequate intake coupled with inadequate sunlight exposure, disorders that limit its absorption, conditions that impair conversion of vitamin D into active metabolites, such as liver or kidney disorders, or, rarely, by a number of hereditary disorders.
Vitamin D and OsteoporosisDeficiency results in impaired bone mineralization, and leads to bone softening diseases, rickets in children and osteomalacia in adults, and possibly contributes to osteoporosis.
Vitamin D deficiency may also be linked to many forms of cancer.
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