Vitamin D for Depression
College of DuPage Nursing Student Kristin Reutter wrote for Healthy Lombard that Dr. Mark Loafman of Family and Community Medicine at Cook County Health says limited sunlight can be damaging to the body and that Sunlight is known to elevate our mood, improve sleep, strengthen our immune system and promote bone growth.
Some people buy sunlamps while others take Vitamin D supplements. Here in Chicago right now, we are experiencing the longest streak of gloomy weather with no peak of sunlight which will, in turn, affect the way people feel who suffer from depression and other mental disorders.
Vitamin D is a steroid hormone that we can take in from our diet or the sun. Vitamin D receptors are widely expressed in the central nervous system which plays a role in controlling emotions, behavior, and memory, which is why on a warm and sunny day people tend to be in a better mood.
On a day the sun is shining, we can walk outside and instantly feel our mood lifted but if the sun isn’t shining, it is important to get your source of vitamin D from your diet which may include things such as white bread, orange juice, almond milk or mushrooms.
If the food isn’t doing it for you and the sun isn’t shining, you may want to consider a tropical vacation to somewhere more like Florida or the Bahamas but don’t forget your SPF!
References
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.3109/01612840903437657
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