By Angela Feng, UC Davis Healthy Aggie
What is the “Sunshine Vitamin” you may ask? It’s your friend vitamin D! You might be thinking, “Oh, now they are going to educate me on foods high in vitamin D.” Actually…not quite. The best way to get vitamin D is from the sun! By being exposed to the sun, our skin can make its own Vitamin D. How crazy is that?
Your body needs vitamin D to absorb calcium from the intestines. Vitamin D deficiency is widespread. Not enough vitamin D can result in poor bone mineralization, which is also known as, osteomalacia.
Foods that are high in vitamin D include salmon, tuna, mackerel, beef liver, and egg yolks. There are also many foods that are vitamin D fortified such as milk, cereal, and orange juice.
Make sure to still use protection against UV rays, like sunscreen, while in the sunshine. Now that summer is here, enjoy the outdoors and get some vitamin D.
What is your favorite way to spend some time in the sunshine?
Healthy Aggies at UC Davis 