Scientifically Proven! This Multitasking Vitamin Reduces Your Risk Of Falling And Builds Your Bones

Vivian Goldschmidt, MA Nutrition

Evidence-Based
5 min Read
falling osteoporosis

Today’s post contains some very good news about a well-known vitamin. Research has shown that there are some extraordinary benefits of Vitamin D that go far beyond what we already know about this crucial nutrient.

Vitamin D: a Multitasking Foundation Supplement

“Savers” are familiar with the bone-building benefits of Vitamin D; the Save Our Bones™ Program includes a comprehensive list of Foundation Supplements, nutrients that are absolutely crucial for building healthy bone. Included among them is Vitamin D, which is a truly amazing nutrient that plays many roles.

For example, Vitamin D acts as both a vitamin and a hormone in the body. Your liver manufacturers a precursor to Vitamin D, which is released into the bloodstream. When your skin is exposed to sunlight, this precursor reacts to the UVB and gets changed to Vitamin D3. The D3 is then changed again in the liver and kidneys into a hormone-like substance.

What Vitamin D Does for Your Bones

Vitamin D regulates calcium and phosphorous, and aids in the absorption of calcium as well. Its role in bone remodeling and fracture prevention is well-documented, and its many effects on other body systems is still being discovered.

One such discovery comes to us from a remarkable new meta-analysis that explores various studies on Vitamin D. This time, researchers focused not on the prevention of fractures, but on the prevention of falls.

The Amazing Effect of Vitamin D on Fall Prevention

Preventing falls is fundamental to reducing the incidence of fracture. That is why the Save Our Bones™ lifestyle includes exercises that improve balance. And as it turns out, Vitamin D plays a more active role in this process than we have ever realized.

Researchers at Harvard Medical School reviewed a number of studies that explored Vitamin D’s contribution to fall prevention which revealed amazing findings. “Vitamin D supplementation appears to reduce the risk of falls among ambulatory or institutionalized older individuals with stable health by more than 20%1,” the study concludes.

How Does Vitamin D Reduce Falls?

The mechanism by which Vitamin D does this has to do with how it’s metabolized in the body. One of the byproducts of Vitamin D’s breakdown, called 1,25-hydroxyvitamin D, actually enters muscle cells and affects the nucleus. Once there, 1,25-hydroxyvitamin D enhances the cell’s contraction ability.

Muscles work by contraction and relaxation. A muscle’s ability to contract is essential to its strength and response to outside forces. Vitamin D, then, makes muscles stronger in a very direct way.

What Kind of Vitamin D and How Much

When it comes to Vitamin D supplements, the Recommended Daily Allowance is 600 IUs for adults. But remember that this is the minimum and you can build up on that, depending on your serum levels. Also, it’s important that you use supplements that are in the form of Vitamin D3, which is more bioavailable.

My recommendation is to get as much Vitamin D as you can from sunlight. It’s impossible to overdose on Vitamin D obtained from the sun. If you live in an area with little sunshine, you need to use supplements to make sure you have adequate levels of this crucial

Already Taking Vitamin D? Here Are Other Easy Ways to Prevent Falls

What this meta-analysis also shows is the importance of strong muscles in decreasing your chance of falling. Vitamin D clearly helps with muscle strengthening, but so does exercise.

Core-strengthening exercises are particularly helpful in fall prevention, because the abdominal muscles help hold you steady and upright. In fact, core muscles affect nearly every movement. No matter what activity you’re doing, your motions originate from and/or move through your core. Even sitting up straight engages these central muscles, as do standing, turning, and twisting. Weakened core muscles can result in back pain and poor balance that can lead to falls.

Given the importance of core muscle groups, I want to share a simple, effective exercise to firm and tone your core.

Figure 8’s

Be sure to warm up before beginning.

Repeat this exercise as many times per side as you feel comfortable. A good place to begin is with 5 to 10 reps on each side.

First, you’ll need an exercise mat. Next:

  1. Sit down and bend your knees with your feet flat on the floor, hip-width apart.
  2. Lean back at about a 45-degree angle. You will feel your abdominal muscles tighten as you hold this position. Keep them engaged for the duration of the exercise.
  3. Clasp your hands together and hold them straight out in front of you at shoulder height.
  4. Draw an “8” in the air with your arms, directly in front of your chest.
  5. Do 5 to 10 repetitions, and then switch directions.

If You Liked This Exercise, You’ll Love…

Densercise™, which includes many other exercises that strengthen core muscles to improve balance. It also gives you, along with step-by-step illustrations, all the bone-strengthening and balance-enhancing exercises you need to increase your bone density and prevent falls. And all it takes is just 15 minutes a day three times a week.

When you get the Densercise™ e-Book System you’ll also receive the Densercise™ Manual as well as access to the exclusive Densercise™ Online Video Collection that shows you exactly how to do each exercise.

Plus, you’ll also get the Densercise™ Eating Guide, packed with healthy eating tips for before and after you practice the Densercise™ moves, to help you build your bones and your muscles even faster.

And Densercise™ is backed by a 60-day, no-questions-asked money-back guarantee, so there’s no risk.

Please click here to find out more about the Densercise™ e-Book System →

Till next time,

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References

1 Bischoff-Ferrari, H.A., et al. “Effect of Vitamin D on falls: a meta-analysis.” The Journal of the American Medical Association. 2004 April 28;291(16):1999-2006. Web. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15113819