Can Vitamin D Improve Memory?
Vitamin D, or the sunshine vitamin, plays a vital role in bone health and calcium absorption. It also has a profound effect on cognitive health. Scientists and researchers have studied the connection between memory and cognitive function and low vitamin D deficiency in the past few years. While more studies are necessary, there's growing evidence that vitamin D supplementation can improve memory performance for some men and women.
How vitamin D works?
While called a vitamin, it's a steroid hormone. (1) Our bodies don't naturally produce vitamin D, but rather soak up the nutrient through sun exposure. We receive about 90% of our daily vitamin D intake from sunlight and 10% from enriched foods.
Once vitamin D enters the bloodstream, it travels to the liver and kidneys. The organs convert vitamin D into the active hormone called calcitriol. The active hormone helps with different bodily functions, including aiding calcium absorption in the gut from eaten food. It also prevents calcium loss in the kidneys. All of which help form new bones in children and adults.
Vitamin D deficiency and poor cognition
Yet vitamin D has other critical functions, outside of preventing osteoporosis and improving bone health. As you grow older, you become at risk for slower cognition and memory decline. Recent studies have shown that brain tissue contains vitamin D receptors and may improve cognitive decline in older adults. (2) The exact reason is still elusive, and different studies show many results, but the emerging evidence reveals it's worth exploring further.
Low vitamin D levels and Alzheimer’s Disease and dementia
In a double-blind, randomized study with obese, postmenopausal women, the participants achieved higher learning and memory test scores after supplementing with 2,000 IU of vitamin D. The results also showed that individuals taking 4,000 IU performed worse than the 600 IU dose group. It seems that taking vitamin D can improve cognitive function, but it depends on the dose. (3)
The Mayo Clinic mentions another study published in Neurology showing that men and women with an extreme vitamin D deficiency had more than two times the chance of developing dementia or Alzheimer’s disease than individuals with average vitamin D levels. (4)
The researchers stated an insufficiency in vitamin D is connected to poor executive function and episodic memory performance. The study contributes to the growing pile of evidence that a low vitamin D level can put you at a higher risk for Alzheimer's and dementia. (4)
Increasing vitamin D levels lowers dementia risk
Researchers conducted a meta-analysis looking at 16 different studies. The results given stated there's a strong association between low vitamin D levels and dementia and Alzheimer's Disease. For those with severe vitamin D insufficiency, supplementing with vitamin D lowers the risk. (5)
What are the symptoms of a vitamin D deficiency?
Vitamin D is a critical vitamin needed in your daily diet. If you have a deficiency in vitamin D, you can experience one or more of the following:
- become sicker more often
- experience tiredness and fatigue
- constant bone and back pain
- sadness or depression
- wounds heal slowly
- bone loss
- muscle pain
-
cognitive decline
The International Journal of Health Sciences published an article that claims vitamin D deficiency is a worldwide health issue. (6) Globally, around 1 billion people suffer from low vitamin D levels, which makes it possible for you to be too. (7)
How can you boost your vitamin D levels naturally?
While vitamin D deficiency is more common than people know, some treatments help alleviate the symptoms. The easiest way is to supplement with a high-quality vitamin D cream.
Vitamin D cream
Using vitamin D cream is fast and easy. You apply the cream directly to your skin as if it's sunshine, for quick absorption. The vitamin enters your bloodstream and circulates throughout your body, performing the correct bodily functions. The BioLabs Pro Vitamin D3 cream has 10,000 IU per pump. Infused in the cream are other natural ingredients that boost skin suppleness, including:
- coconut oil
- olive oil
- shea butter
- aloe vera leaf gel
When you use BioLabs Pro Vitamin D3 cream, you’re guaranteed to get all the sunshine vitamin you need and improve the softness of your skin.
Sun exposure
Exposing your skin to the sun is the most natural way to improve vitamin D levels. In a few minutes per day, you can soak up some of the active hormones. One solution is to sit on a bench outside while you have your lunch.
However, if you have sensitive skin or running short on time, soaking up the sun may not be the best solution. If you wear a moisturizer with sunscreen, soaking up the beneficial rays is harder. You may also be worried about skin damage or skin cancer. If you possess any of these concerns, you can supplement with a vitamin D cream. You won't need to worry about sun damage or to take the time to get some rays.
Vitamin D packed foods
As mentioned, you get about 10% of your daily intake of vitamin D through a healthy diet. Stock up on foods high in vitamin D and calcium, including:
- fatty fish (mackerel, sardines, salmon)
- egg yolks
- beef liver
- cheese
- fortified products (dairy products, cereals, orange juice, soy milk)
The question of whether vitamin D can improve memory is a good one. Something that health researchers are trying to answer. Evidence does show there's a link between low vitamin D levels and reduced cognitive function. Boosting your vitamin D levels with a high-quality cream helps you build healthy bones and makes it easier to remember all the good things in life.
- https://www.yourhormones.info/hormones/vitamin-d/#:~:text=Vitamin%20D%20is%20actually%20a,of%20a%20healthy%20balanced%20diet.
- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22536767/
- https://academic.oup.com/biomedgerontology/article-abstract/75/5/835/5320009?redirectedFrom=fulltext
- https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/alzheimers-disease/expert-answers/vitamin-d-alzheimers/faq-20111272#:~:text=Research%20suggests%20that%20people%20with,and%20other%20forms%20of%20dementia.
- https://www.alzheimers.net/8-27-14-vitamin-d-and-dementia/
- https://bmcneurol.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12883-019-1500-6
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3068797/
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4143492/
