Because no one wants rickets...

Poor little lonely blog, so neglected. Between being on the computer for work and wasting time on social media I don't often feel like writing here. I knew my posts would be sporadic but I'll try (and likely fail) to be more consistent. It was a cold winter here in Houston (well, cold for us) so I was mostly a homebody but I did squeeze in some good times, good travels, good food and good beer. Since we last spoke, I turned 30 (which feels exactly like 29) and, earlier this month, went to San Francisco with one of my favorite ladies. I could go on and on but just look at pics here - they pretty much tell the story for me! Not pictured is the fantastic Peking duck I had at R&G Lounge which is haunting my dreams and tastebuds but in a good way.

But speaking of cold, horrible, awful, godforsaken winter: even though it was longer and icier than normal it wasn't the miserable experience it usually is for me. The reason for this post is to share some info as to why I think that is. In researching why I normally feel blah from about December to April, I learned that the recommended daily allowance (RDA) for vitamin D is really low in the US as compared to other countries, and that people who work indoors and wear lots of sunscreen are frequently deficient, often severely so. In addition to feeling down, I had random aches and pains and a few other symptoms that may be attributable to D deficiency.

After consulting with my primary care physician, Dr. Google, I decided to up my intake to 2,000iu per day, which is a safe level and closer to what they recommend in other countries. The difference has been remarkable for me. My energy levels are better, I'm less achy and shitty feeling and I dodged the winter blues for the first time in my adult life. This is huge for me. I kept waiting for the blah feeling...and it never came. Of course, exercise, diet and booze moderation are important factors too, but D supplementation is the only new factor I introduced this year, plus to be honest I slacked in those other areas a bit.

Now, I'm not a doc (your best course of action is to see one and get your blood levels checked) and I'm not saying vitamin D is a cure for SAD, which it's important to note I've never been diagnosed with, but I highly recommend evaluating your D intake. This is probably a good idea regardless of whether you have symptoms or not, reason being that the RDA for the US is way low and it's hard to get a sufficient amount from diet alone. I'm considering upping my dose even more as the Vitamin D Council recommends 5000iu a day. Vitamin D is fat soluble and thus can be overdone, but it's unlikely any of us are close to the upper limit. As a matter of fact some people need a crazy high dose (under a doctor's guidance!) to get back on track. I still plan to get my levels checked at some point in case I'm one of those people. 

I am almost certain that additional studies will result in a substantial jump in the recommended daily allowance of vitamin D in the US in the coming years. I still feel most likely myself in late spring, summer and fall, but a winter without mild depression is a very welcome thing.