Vitamin D and Menopause: The sunshine vitamin
Why Vitamin D in menopause is the sunshine vitamin of choice!
So what’s the big deal about Vitamin D and menopause? Vitamin D is our favourite menopause vitamin as it’s not only beneficial for bone health and boosting our moods during menopause, but it’s been found to be helpful for fighting cancer too.
Vitamin D is important for everyone, but women over 40 should ensure they are getting the necessary dose. It really is the number one vitamin for menopausal women’s wellbeing.
Why is vitamin D important for menopause?
When sunlight hits the skin, the body makes Vitamin D through synthesis. As with other hormones, vitamin D is involved in a host of bodily processes including muscle and movement; it carries messages on a return journey from the brain to the rest of our body. It also helps to fight off bacteria and viruses and it plays a role in reducing inflammation.
Crucially, vitamin D helps us maintain strong bones by absorbing calcium, vital in helping to prevent osteoporosis - a big post-menopause health concern.
Get the sunshine back in your life!
We don’t get enough vitamin D in the foods we eat, so we have to get the majority we require by absorbing natural sunlight, hence it being named the “sunshine vitamin”.
When sunlight hits our skin, it manufactures vitamin D. However our skin during menopause starts thinning and it becomes more difficult to produce the amounts of vitamin D we require.
We tend to spend much of our life indoors. And when outside, in the sunny months, we wear sunscreen, generally to protect skin from ageing and skin cancer. Our digestion also slows down, so it’s more difficult for our digestive system to get vitamin D from the foods that we eat.
What menopause symptoms does vitamin D support?
Vitamin D plays a role in moderating several perimenopause symptoms and your health post-menopause.
Osteoporosis
The thinning and weakening of our bones is dangerous: as muscles weaken and our sense of balance is less reliable, we fall more often, and if bones are fragile or less dense from osteoporosis, that can result in a break.
Calcium is required for maintaining bone strength, but we can’t absorb calcium if we don’t have enough vitamin D. It’s important to take both to ensure the calcium is actually doing your body good.
One in two women over 50 experience a fracture caused by osteoporosis in their lifetime post-menopause. Therefore, it’s vital that women do whatever they can to strengthen bones and reduce that risk. Physical activity combined with a healthy diet and vitamin D supplements are the best way to maintain bone density post-menopause.
Depression
Depression and anxiety are common and serious mental health problems among women entering perimenopause, and inadequate amounts of vitamin D may contribute to the problem. If you have a fuzzy brain, are forgetful, and poor concentration, vitamin D may help you to feel sharper and more focused.
It’s particularly important to get more D between October to April, when exposure to sunlight is less frequent, the sun is at the wrong angle to give you the benefits and you are generally wrapped up with warm hoods, hats, gloves (less surface area to hit the skin).
Cardiovascular disease and hypertension
Approximately 10 years post-menopause, women’s risk of heart disease catches up with men of an equal age. Yet, many women still see heart disease as a male health risk. For many women who lead a sedentary life and do little physical activity, their risk of a heart attack increases. It’s vital that women post-menopause become proactive in preventing heart problems.
Vitamin D deficiency can contribute to the development of congestive heart failure. More research needs to be done to determine if increasing vitamin D actually protects against heart disease, but it’s certainly worth taking supplements to decrease the risk to improve your heart health post-menopause.
Diabetes
As hormone levels diminish the risk of diabetes increases post-menopause. Why this happens is not entirely clear, however the risk is very real. It appears that women become more insulin resistant post-menopause, resulting in less control over blood sugar levels.
Research shows that vitamin D helps your body utilise insulin more effectively.
Cancer
Research published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology , says that vitamin D supplements could help in primary prevention of cancer. This American study found taking vitamin D supplements for a minimum of three years could help cancer patients live longer.
In multiple studies they randomly compared the use of vitamin D to a placebo over a period of at least three years and found that taking a supplement over this time was associated with a 13 per cent drop in mortality from all cancers.
Tarek Haykal, a lead author on the study said “We know it carries benefits with minimal side effects…Vitamin D had a significant effect on lowering the risk of death among those with cancer, but unfortunately it didn’t show any proof that it could protect against getting cancer.”
We say if there’s very little risk and huge benefits, it’s yet another endorsement for being the supplement to take.
Chronic fatigue
Fatigue is a common menopause complaint, especially from women experiencing surgically induced menopause. In research low levels of vitamin D have been associated with fatigue in cancer patients. Building up vitamin D levels to a normal recommended amount improves fatigue. Whether low vitamin D plays a role in fatigue in medically stable patients is not known.
What is the recommended dose of vitamin D for menopause?
The Royal Osteoporosis Society recommend you should consider taking a daily 10 microgram (sometimes called 400 units) vitamin D supplement from the end of September to the beginning of April as the body can’t make enough vitamin D from the winter sun.
The NHS advise that no more than 100 micrograms (4,000 IU) of vitamin D per day should be taken, as it could be harmful.
What’s the best vitamin D supplement?
Vitamin D supplements are the easiest way to absorb your daily dose taken in a capsule, or via a spray. We love the spray as it’s quickly absorbed through the lining of the mouth and tongue. It’s important to do your research to ensure you are only using quality product. We’d suggest you purchase at a specialist health store or pharmacist, rather than a supermarket own brand.
Getting your healthy dose of sunshine
When the sun’s rays fall on your body, they react with your skin to make vitamin D. In the UK, your skin can only get vitamin D from sunlight between March and September. During this time, it's recommended you expose your skin to direct sunlight for around 10 minutes, once or twice per day.
Give your skin short periods in the sun, without sunscreen, while you're doing short outdoor tasks such as:
hanging your washing outside
gardening
walking outdoors and to the shops
Remember:
If the weather is cloudy, it takes longer to produce the same amount of vitamin D as on a sunny day.
Glass blocks the sun’s rays, so go outside or open your window.
Darker skin produces vitamin D at a slower rate.
Sunblock and high factor sunscreen stop the sun's rays reaching your skin. This reduces the amount of vitamin D your body makes.
Sunburn and menopause skin damage
If exposing your skin to sun for over 10 minutes, always use sunscreen. Avoid exposing skin to direct sunlight in the mid-day when the sun it at its strongest. Don't be tempted to not wear sunscreen for long periods to increase your vitamin D levels – you may do more damage to your skin than good for your bones!
What foods contain Vitamin D?
There's a small amount of vitamin D in some foods, but it's difficult to get enough vitamin D from food alone. Foods containing vitamin D include:
oily fish, such as herring, salmon and mackerel
eggs
some pork products
lamb's liver
fortified bread
fortified yoghurts
specially processed mushrooms.
Common menopause signs of D-ficiency
Most perimenopausal women are low in their D levels.
Feeling fatigued.
Depression.
frequent illness.
Joint pains in your back, legs, ribs, joints, and/or muscles.
Slow healing.
If experiencing any of the above or even if you simply suspect you’re not getting enough vitamin D, ensure you get outside and take a supplement with the recommended dosage, if symptoms continue, talk to your doctor.
Looking for inspirational ideas to add oily fish into your diet? Search our Diet & Recipe page.