Vitamins And Sunshine - Do We Need More?

More research continues to be published regarding the benefits of Vitamin D, or at least what appears to be a link between a Vitamin D deficiency and cancer, particluarly colon cancer.  I'm willing to bet that this is the first in what will be a line of dominoes that will fall when it comes to our ailing health problems and deficiencies in vitamins and nutrients from a poor diet. We can no longer ignore the fact the health problems we experience in the US or any part of the world stem from a poor diet. We do advise those who don't get enough fruits and vegetables in their diet to add Juice Plus+® so that at least some added nutrients from those foods can be included each day. With regard to the news about Vitamin D, or what is commonly called 'the sunshine vitamin' because exposure to the sun increases the body's production of vitamin D, there is more evidence that indicates a higher deficiency than was ever known previously.  Here's more from WebMD.com --

Soaking in more sunlight and drinking more dairy may help you ward off colon cancer.

Researchers in Europe have found that people with abundant levels of vitamin D -- the so-called sunshine vitamin -- have a much lower risk of colon cancer. The findings add to a growing body of evidence that suggest vitamin D may have the power to help prevent colon cancer and possibly even improve survival in those who have the disease.

The body makes vitamin D after the skin absorbs some of the sun's rays. You can also get vitamin D by consuming certain foods and beverages, such as milk and cereal, which have been fortified with the vitamin, but few foods naturally contain it. (My comment: More reason that whole food nutrition is the answer! At least with Juice Plus+ you can get some nutrients from good foods!)

For the current study, researchers looked at the link between blood levels of vitamin D as well as dietary vitamin D and calcium, and who was at risk for colorectal cancer. They based their findings on information from the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer Study (EPIC), a study of more than 520,000 people from 10 Western European countries. The study participants gave blood samples and completed detailed diet and lifestyle questionnaires between 1992 and 1998.

During the follow-up period, 1,248 patients were diagnosed with colorectal cancer. Researchers compared their lifestyle and diet backgrounds to the same number of healthy patients. They discovered that those with the highest blood levels of vitamin D had a nearly 40% decrease in colorectal cancer risk than those with the lowest levels. 

However, the best way to boost your vitamin D level may be a matter of debate. As vitamin D's potential health benefits become more widely advertised, more people may advocate supplementation. (read more...)

Bottom Line: This is only the tip of the iceberg as far as the relationship between any illness, disease, or cancer. The rest of the iceberg is in the fact that we are missing the hundreds of nutrients that are in a variety of fruits and vegetables if we're not consuming enough of them each day (again, the biggest reason we recommend Juice Plus+®, to get added nutrients). One vitamin is not going to be a cure-all or a prevent-all. A few vitamins aren't either. Whole food fruits and vegetables that are vine-ripened, and eaten raw - cooking kills live nutrients that benefit the body (don't you think LIVE nutrients would best benefit a LIVE being?) - is the way to best prevent sickness and disease. Not just prevention, but how about improving the overall quality of life?! Shouldn't that be the goal? Not just to save someone who is dying from a preventable disease by making sure that there are plenty of drugs, procedures, and treatments available. No. The goal should be to get everyone off of the spiralling downward health path that is typical of a large majority of poeple and move toward a healthy diet that should be more common to all people.

The Health & Wellness Institute, PC
Official Juice Plus+® Distributor

Comments

This is a great post! Thanks for the advice.

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