Do athletes really require more vitamin D than normal people? ( Answered)

The short answer is yes, the longer answer is below.

Do you know that every 7 of out 10 people in South Asia is deficient in vitamin d and nearly 1 billion people worldwide are thought to be deficient in the sunshine vitamin.

Since Vitamin d deficiency is one of the most underdiagnosed and untreated deficiencies not only in India but it is prevalent throughout the world and athletes who want to perform at their best should take it very seriously as low vitamin D could negatively impact the health and training efficiency of athletes. Research to date suggests that certain athletes are at risk for suboptimal vitamin D status, which may increase risks for stress fractures, acute illness, and suboptimal muscle function.

Now what most people in India who get tested for vitamin d think if this is close to or over 20 then they are good but this is not the case. Vitamin D deficiency is often defined as <20 ng/mL (50 nmol/L), and insufficiency defined as 20-30 ng/mL(50-80 nmol/L) and optimal levels are greater than >30 and even in some studies they are even >40 ng/mL (100 nmol/L).

A study on finnish military recruits found that Vitamin d levels below 30 ng/ml increases the risks of stress fractures and as athletes are more active physically then the general population the risk of injury increases further.

Furthermore, it has been suggested that vitain D supplementation in individuals with low vitamin D status may improve muscle strength. This is believed to be due to an increase in the size and amount of type II (fast twitch) muscle fibers associated with vitamin D supplementation. So optimal levels of vitamin d enables a persom to get that explosive burst of energy that is required in sprinting, weight lifting, rugby or other any sport where explosive energy is needed.

Another 2011 study found that people who took close to 3300 IU of vitamin d had a positive impact on their testosterone levels when compared to people who were given a placebo pill. We all know how testosterone can increase athletic performance. So there is enough evidence that maintaining optimal levels of this vitamin d can enable a person to perform better but also decrease chances of injury.

Now Inadequate levels of vitamin D play a major role for the development of diseases like rickets, colon cancer, breast cancer, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes mellitus, multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, Parkinson’s disease, tuberculosis and even higher risk of developing severe illness in covid if people are deficient in the sunshine vitamin.

Some study reports suggest that worldwide 1 billion people have vitamin d deficiency and close to 50 percent of the population have insufficient levels of vitamin d. And the main factors for this is , age, socioeconomic status, clothing practices, skin complexion, geolocation etc.

Now a question arises that we Indians get enough sunlight throughout the year so why are we facing this problem in India

The main reasons for this are

1. High levels of pollution, now if you live in delhi like me you know exactly what I am talking about in the month of November here the air was unbearable and people were being advised to stay indoor which is also a contributing factor in this deficiency.

2. If you don’t got out in the sun too much and are a vegetarian or a vegan than the chances are high that you could be deficient in vitamin d.

3. Some other reasons are dark skin with and application of sunscreen which can all contribute to having low vitamin d levels.

Now this deficiency can be countered easily by doing the following things

1.Get enough Sunlight.

2. Supplement with a vitamin d supplement if levels are too low.

3. Eat foods fortified with vitamin d.

Since athletes use their body physically more than an average person it’s a good idea to check your vitamin d levels and make sure they are in mid 30’s or even close to 40 it would be better and general people could should aim for higher 20’ or close to 30.