Vitamins are important for humans, even essential for survival. There are a total of 13 vitamins, nine of which are water-soluble and four of which are fat-soluble. In this article we would like to focus on the water-soluble vitamin D3 – colloquially known as the “sunshine vitamin”.

Vitamin D3 is one of the few vitamins that our body can synthesize itself. Ironically, however, it is also the vitamin that most people are deficient in. Vitamin D deficiency is now even considered a widespread disease. We would like to explain how far-reaching the importance of vitamin D3 is for our body and for our quality of life in relation to the importance of the vitamin for our sleep. We would also like to show why it is particularly recommended to supplement vitamin D3.

What is Vitamin D3?

Vitamins are basically organic compounds that are essential substances. Our body needs these essential substances for vital processes. For the most part, our body cannot meet the need for most vitamins independently. Our human body can only synthesize two vitamins out of all 13: vitamin D3 and vitamin B3. In order to be able to synthesize these vitamins, however, other factors must be met or certain starting materials must already be present. More on this later.

In contrast to us, some plants and animals can produce the vitamins they need themselves. We humans, on the other hand, have to consume vitamins regularly with our food or expose ourselves to the sun in order to be able to produce and utilize all 13 vitamins in sufficient quantities - which brings us to the key word “sun”.

Vitamin D3 is popularly known as the “sunshine vitamin”. It has the chemical names “cholecalciferol” and “calcitriol” and is synthesized independently by our body when the skin comes into contact with UV light.

Why supplement D3 when your body can make it itself?

Now you may think that there is little point in taking vitamin D3 as a supplement when our body can produce it itself. In order for our body to produce the vitamin, our skin must come into sufficient contact with UV light. However, our body's own production of vitamin D3 is hindered by a variety of factors. Most people have to work during the day, which often takes place in closed offices. Clothing, dense cloud cover, too few hours of sunshine in general or sunscreen also hinder vitamin D3 synthesis. In order to produce enough vitamin D3, people need to spend between 20-45 minutes in the midday sun, depending on their skin type. Could you do this every day and does the sun even shine that long?

Doctors and specialists also confirm that vitamin D3 is in short supply in the blood of most people. In Europe, around 40% of all people suffer from a vitamin D deficiency. The Swiss Confederation and the Federal Office for Food Safety and Veterinary Affairs BLV Food and Nutrition state:

“Due to the geographical latitude of Switzerland and the associated insufficient sunlight, around 60% of the population has an insufficient vitamin D supply in the winter months.” ^[1]

Experts in Germany even assume that up to 90% of Germans suffer from a vitamin D3 deficiency.

Did you know that the distance of your home from the equator is also directly related to your vitamin D supply, headaches and sleep quality?

Indian scientists from the Department of Neurology at the Medical College, SSG Hospital, in Vadodara have found that the frequency of headaches increases with increasing distance from the equator.

“The assumption was obvious that there is a connection with the vitamin D supply. This was tested in the 6th Tromsø study, Denmark. Data from 11,614 people were evaluated: The study participants with the lowest vitamin D serum levels had headaches more often (OR = 1.20, i.e. 20 percent more often) than the participants with the highest vitamin D values. ^[2]

It is becoming obvious that it is difficult for us to meet an adequate supply of vitamin D3. A deficiency of vitamin D3 can negatively affect our health and have a limiting impact on our quality of life. To do this, we would like to take a closer look at the functions of vitamin D3.

Occurrence & function of vitamin D3

An adult should consume around 5 µg of vitamin D every day ^[3] . Vitamin D3 is found in foods, but only in small amounts. Vitamin D is particularly found in fatty fish. It is difficult to cover the daily need for vitamin D3 through a balanced diet. This is difficult to achieve, especially over the long term, and problematic for many people.

Vitamin D3 is important for people of all ages. It strengthens the bones and plays a key role in the metabolism of our bone skeleton. It also controls calcium and phosphate absorption in the small intestine, has a blood pressure lowering effect, regulates over 200 genes in our body and has a positive influence on our muscle strength. There are many other processes in which vitamin D3 is involved in the body. Some of these have not yet been sufficiently researched or fully understood. This also includes the importance of vitamin D3 for sleep. It is known that vitamin D3 is important for our bed rest and promotes healthy sleep.

Especially for people who suffer from sleep apnea or who snore heavily, it may be worth making sure you have enough vitamin D3.

We would like to briefly take a closer look at sleep apnea and snoring.

Sleep apnea and snoring

While many people snore and almost all of us have heard someone snoring (or perhaps snores ourselves), we have to draw a distinction from sleep apnea syndrome.

Snoring, known in medicine as rhonchopathy, is known as a widespread disease and is generally harmless. It is characterized by loud breathing noises when inhaling and exhaling, which occur in the upper respiratory tract. Snoring is caused by the muscles of the respiratory tract and palate relaxing during sleep, which is why the well-known, involuntary noises occur during sleep.

Sleep apnea syndrome, on the other hand, can limit your health and have far-reaching effects on the body. With sleep apnea, breathing stops completely five times within an hour for more than 10 seconds. This hinders the body's ability to absorb sufficient oxygen. Snoring is also part of sleep apnea and can sometimes be as loud as a jackhammer. In contrast to snoring, sleep apnea can damage your health and may even have serious consequences. If the brain and cardiovascular system are not supplied with enough oxygen during pauses in breathing, this can increase the risk of cardiovascular problems, strokes and depression.

Vitamin D3 and sleep

While it is not yet completely clear to what extent vitamin D is directly related to our sleep, there are now countless research results and studies that have found a correlation - both with regard to vitamin D3 deficiency and with regard to balanced sleep with sufficient vitamin D3 Care.

Various international studies have found a connection between vitamin D deficiency and sleep disorders. In a review paper, the scientist Qi Gao came to the conclusion that people who have a vitamin D deficiency suffer from sleep disorders more often than people without a vitamin D deficiency. The length of sleep and its quality are lower in people with vitamin D3 deficiency. This was also immediately apparent as the reason why these people suffered from fatigue and lack of motivation during the day.

Further studies have also shown that vitamin D3 supplementation has a positive effect on sleep. Subjects in a study by Majid and colleagues in 2017 slept better when they took vitamin D3 as a supplement. The control group, which only received a placebo, slept worse and for shorter periods of time.

People who snore can not only relieve symptoms with vitamin D3 supplementation, but may also be able to work on the causes of the sleep problems. Supplementing with vitamin D3, whereby attention must be paid to high quality , can improve sleep quality and relieve snoring. Sleep apnea should always be diagnosed and treated by a professional.

It is also important to mention that minerals and trace elements are also important for sleep and normal brain function. A supplement that contains a combination of all of these substances, such as our Vitamins Minerals Trace Elements , is therefore particularly recommended.

Sources:

^[1] Technical information on vitamin D: Federal Food Safety and Veterinary Office BLV

^[2] https://m.hevert.com/market-de/arzt/de/meine_praxis/medizin_aktuell/artikel/vitamin-d-bessert-kopfkäse- Schlaf-und-koerperliche-fitness

^[3] German Society for Nutrition (DGE) (conception and development: working group “Reference values ​​for nutrient intake”): DACH reference values ​​for nutrient intake. Umschau/Braus Verlag, 2000, ISBN 3-8295-7114-3