Mental Health Benefits Of Vitamin D
Debbie Ozment, DDS
Full Transcript
Podcast Introduction 0:00
Design. We have to think about those those design elements first. It's so easy in our world to jump ahead to something expensive, to some kind of pill or some kind of procedure. Well, there's a lot of good things in that arena, but that's not foundational. Welcome to Doctor Talks, the podcast where every episode leads to a healthier you. Join us as we navigate the world of optimal health, uncovering groundbreaking strategies to conquer chronic disease. In each episode, we'll bring you the latest insights from leading health experts, medical innovators, and wellness warriors.
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Vitality Made Simple and the Role of Relationships 0:55
Welcome to Vitality Made Simple. This is the podcast that equips you to feel better, look better, and to enjoy better relationship. You know, life is all about relationships. And when we feel good, when we're mentally clear, we're rested. We're nourished. We're going to have more energy to invest in the important relationships in our lives. Well, I'm sitting here on a snowy day in Oklahoma, and I'm going to talk about the sunshine vitamin, vitamin D. Now, when I say vitamin D, I'm really going to be talking about the active form.
That's the 125 die hydroxy vitamin D. So we're going to be we're going to be discussing some of the research in my clinical practice. I've been disturbed lately by all of the people who are experiencing anxiety and depression. So I've started asking very routinely, what is your vitamin D level? And it's been very across the board that they're low. They might be low from the very baseline, but they also might be up low. So I wanted to talk about some of the amazing
Why Vitamin D Matters for Mental Health 2:06
benefits of vitamin D on mental health. It's so baseline folks. You know. And it's never one thing. It is a little kid you might hear if you're moping around on the couch, you'd hear, well, go outside and get some sunshine. Oh yeah. And you're going outside. You're getting sunshine. You're getting, you know, movement, exercise. You're, playing and having fun and laughing. You know, it's never just one thing, but. But the sunshine vitamin, vitamin D is certainly a big piece of that. And it's a piece that gets so overlooked in our busy society.
This came upon my radar probably about 30 years ago. In my clinical practice. I had a woman who was, very diligent about her, her home care, her, the care of her mouth. And. But it never looked healthy. She would do everything I said. And, when when she came in, every three months, she sat in the same chair. Every, you know, in the reception area. I mean, she was very, very methodical. And, she comes in and she looks good, and I'm like, what are you doing? Your gums look healthy. They look vibrant. And, she said nothing.
Nothing different. Doctor Debbie, I'm doing exactly what you tell me. And I said, well, I know you are, but there's something that's not just home care. Well, I said, when you think of it, let me know. So, sure enough, she paid her bill. She left, and here she comes back in and she said, well, I've been getting a vitamin D injection because my vitamin D was eight. Or maybe lower. I'm guessing eight. It's been about 25 years. And, she said, could that be making a difference, this vitamin D injection.
And I was like, well, I'm going to research it. So I started researching it, and that started this wonderful adventure into the amazing health benefits of vitamin D. Well, the the research is ramping up, folks. It is ramping up in. And there's so much excellent, excellent research, in this area. Now I'm going to actually add a lot to my research area,
Research, Testing, and Optimal Vitamin D Levels 4:10
the free area on my website. If you would like to read some of this, you're going to be encouraged. Just go to my website, look under the research tab. It's all free. And, I just have a big pile because I get down this hole of research because it's been studied globally. And of course, this makes sense because this is our design. When you think about, you know, what fits what what has historically been part of human health and vitality. Well, sunshine is certainly part of that. I think we always have to look like look at design.
We have to think about those those design elements first. It's so easy in our world to jump ahead to something expensive, to some kind of pill or some kind of procedure. Well, there's a lot of good things in that arena, but that's not foundational. Sunshine. Vitamin D is foundational. And of course, other things that are foundational, too. We have movement. We have nutrient dense food. And of course, I always talk about relationships. You know, good relationships are our foundational sleep. Good water, fresh air, all of those things work together.
It's never just one thing, but I've been finding that, vitamin D can easily be left at when we think about these very, very basic things. So what's been found in the research regarding mental health? Something that will, resonate with every single one of you is that, it helps with memory and learning. It actually has been shown with MRI technology to enhance the area of the brain, the hippocampus that is involved and is critical for memory and learning. Now they've also given vitamin D to populations of people who were who were hospitalized for, for, depression, for other mental illnesses such as schizophrenia.
And they they noticed that often they are very low in vitamin D when they give them vitamin D, of course, with other therapies they vary across the board improve. So I think this is an area that, it's important for us all just to remember, I wanted to bring it to light because it is winter time at the time of this podcast recording, and it's easy to stay in. It's easy to not be getting vitamin D, it's hard to get enough vitamin D even in the summer. Say, in Oklahoma, at our latitude, you have to be outside, you know, naked at noon, so you better have a big fence or it's not going to help the relationship.
It's at least in the neighborhood. But you, you often have to supplement. And there are a lot of good foods that are, vitamin D rich, such as salmon. I'm going to put some of those in the show notes for you a little list, but but you need to think about supplementation. And I don't often say, jump to supplementation. But the key here is to be tested. The key is to know exactly where your vitamin D level is. Your physician can do that. Hopefully your physician is on it. When you get a test, you're going to see that, the normal range is 30.
We don't want to be normal. We want to be optimal. We want it to be around 70, ten, 90. You know, remember what I say about normal? Normal is whatever is typical in a society at a certain time and normal. And our world is really not that great.
Supplementation, K2, and Closing Thoughts 7:50
You know, normal is dehydrated, irritated, constipated, frustrated, overscheduled, overstimulated, undernourished, under rested, and totally stressed out. Normal is low vitamin D, lower than optimal. So so get it checked out. If you don't have a physician who test for it, you can you can test, yourself. Now, I don't sell these test. I make no money on these tests. I have zero financial interest in this test, but this is the one I use as buy. Everly. Well, I'll put that in the show notes, too. It's a really simple test.
You just, you know, stick your finger out. Virtually painless. But, you do get a very accurate test. That lab is clear approved. That's checked out. You can trust its accuracy. Now, I when I recently got my vitamin D tested, I was at 60. And I would really like to be at, 80, 85. I'm now taking this myself. D3 k2, make sure you do need to be taking K2 along with your D3 so that it goes to the right places. Every cell in your body has a vitamin D receptor, including the brain. So I'll link this to I do have a portal where you can, order that if you want to.
And that helps support the podcast. So foundational know your vitamin D level. Know that it matters if you're feeling a little bit, depressed, anxious. And this is a good place to start. This is not the only place to start. This is not, you know, a silver bullet. But this is basic to design. And God designed our bodies to need sunshine, and we just don't get a lot. And there are a lot of, you know, different kinds of light that are said to be actually draining it from us. So know your vitamin D, you're going to have more vitality.
And when you have more vitality, you're going to have better relationships. So thank you all for joining me today for vitality. Main simple. Share this podcast with somebody who can benefit. This is a very simple and inexpensive way to feel your very best. Blessings. Until next time, thank you for tuning in to Doctor Talks. We hope today's episode has enlightened and inspired you on your path to optimal health. Each day is a new opportunity to make choices that empower your well-being. For more insights and strategies, subscribe to our podcast and visit our website w ww di doctor talks.com.
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