Metabolism

So far, we have covered some of the basics of vitamin D3 and one of the three primary areas it affects us is sleep. Another effect is on metabolism. As a hormone, when vitamin D3 is low it signals to the body that food is scarce and we need to take advantage, and consume, any we find. Compare it to summer when food is much more available, because it flourishes during that time of year. Think, a bear.

In summer a bear needs to be as fit as possible with no extra pounds to lug around, but in winter that is much less an issue as it will hibernate, not chase after prey or fight for territory. So, in winter, low vitamin D3 signals to our body this is the case. Our appetites increase particularly for calorie-dense foods. The denser the calories of the food, the more energy that can be taken in and the easier it can be converted to body fat, to be potentially stored for the body’s easy use while in hibernation.

Also, with low levels our metabolism slows 20-30% to reduce energy use. Finally, to optimize the food-energy, we find our absorption of the most calorie dense food-fats is maximized. You see, fat is our energy reserve for a period of decreased food or increased needs beyond available food. It is like an extra energy pack, an extra set of batteries that we carry around with us. That works great if we were living long ago in areas with scarce food in the winter, but with fast food restaurants and all-you-can-eat menus it is the opposite. We have too much food.

So, when your body with extremely low vitamin D3 levels is screaming, “we haven’t seen summer -abundant food!” all the time, is matched with food abundance like never seen before, we have a problem. This is the obesity epidemic we have. On top of that, with the other effects of suboptimal vitamin D3 levels such as poor sleep, with reduced energy resulting in less activity or no exercise, it makes obesity worse. In those that have taken optimal dosing I have seen some amazing changes.

Everyone responds differently, and often other factors are involved but in almost all cases people who moved to optimal dosing of vitamin D3 lost weight. In one case, a female patient lost 200Lbs over two years and I had at least three other male patients lose around 75 pounds in three months with no change other than taking vitamin D3 at optimal doses. Not that I recommend people go on crash diets but the thing was, they didn’t. It was all the vitamin D3 effects.

*The information posted above is for educational purposes only. Always check with your doctor before initiating any changes in your medical treatment. If you do not, then The Two-Minute Health Fact, Dr. Judson Somerville, nor The Optimal Dose is responsible!