How to Optimize Your Vitamin D Level
What you need to know to keep your vitamin D levels optimal
I routinely recommend using the Sperti D lamp to optimize vitamin D status. I explain why here:
I also use UV-B light (such as from the Sperti Vitamin D Lamp) to treat allergic and autoimmune skin conditions.
Optimizing vitamin D is vital to health. Levels that are too low are strongly linked to premature death and disease.
How do we optimize vitamin D levels? That is what we will tackle in this post.
Optimal Blood Levels
First, we want optimal blood levels of vitamin D. I check vitamin D levels in patients quarterly until they are optimal. My goal is between 35 and 80 ng/dl (I like it around 50, and increase the dose until we’re at least close to that).
How do we achieve these levels?
Sun Exposure
If you get intense sun exposure every single day, with significant UV light, then it is possible to have an optimal vitamin D level from sunlight alone.
Based on testing in my practice, even those of you with daily sun exposure habits (say 30 minutes of exposure in a shirt and shorts) have barely optimal vitamin D levels.
Why is this? Unless you work outside, you are likely indoors 98% of the time. The short sun breaks you take are not enough to compensate for this.
The Sperti Vitamin D Lamp allows us to optimize our vitamin D using light, rather than a supplement, and this is why I routinely recommend it to patients.
Food
Can we get enough vitamin D from food? I have yet to see a patient do this. Even if you eat a diet high in dairy fat (rich in vitamin D) and cold-water fish (also rich in vitamin D), you need significant quantities of both to hit adequate daily intakes. Most of you, based on results in my practice, are not eating adequate quantities.
I have also seen high levels of mercury in those seeking their vitamin D from fish alone. Some people will tell you to take cod liver oil for vitamin D. I have two problems with this. To achieve optimal vitamin D levels with cod liver oil, you will over-consume omega-3’s. This causes problems of its own.
I do not see patients optimizing their vitamin D levels with food alone. With food and UV light, you have a better chance.
Most of my patients optimize their vitamin D levels with supplements, whether it’s because they can’t get enough UV light, they won’t or can’t eat enough fish, or both.
Supplements
Only high-dose supplements (5,000 IU or more, typically) can push levels consistently to 50 ng/dl. For levels over 80, people generally need 10,000 IU daily, or 500 IU/10 pounds of body weight (i.e. a 200 pound man might easily need 10,000 IU, while a 100 pound ballerina might only need 5,000 IU).
For most of my patients, a supplement winds up being the fastest, most convenient way to optimize their vitamin D. This is what I have settled on myself (at least for now).
This is why we stock vitamin D in our online supplement store. Premium subscribers to this Substack get a unique discount code for 25% off.
If a patient is missing their gallbladder, I recommend digestive enzymes that contain ox bile (like the ones we are soon stocking in our online supplement store).
Until then, be well,
Dr. Stillman
really enjoy learning from you, makes total sense. The Sperti lamp, do you wear goggles? or do you let the light hit your eyes? thank you!
Wow! Another first class article! Dr. Stillman has the unusual ability to see things, including the pitfalls of any intervention, from a truly integrated meta perspective. I have developed an increasing interest in optimal wellness over the past decade or more but his work has such a fresh feel about it I have decided to work with him on my own health. Why live if one is not feeling as well as one can? How many people are just dragging around? If more people were feeling good and therefore able to tap into their creativity, the world might be a different place. (optimal will be different for different people)