Our featured product this week is our Vitamin D effervescent tablet. These on-the-go tablets are an essential supplement, which simply needs a glass of water in order to release the Vitamin D inside and create a great tasting drink.

Why Vitamin D?

Vitamin D helps keep your bones strong and healthy, which can protect you from various conditions, including rickets and Osteomalacia. Rickets is a disorder that causes children to have bones that are weak and soft, which can easily be prevented when taking Vitamin D, so that calcium and phosphorus can be used to build bones. Later in life this can become Osteomalacia, a similar condition in adults.

Vitamin D, along with calcium, helps build bones and keep bones strong and healthy. Weak bones can lead to osteoporosis, the loss of bone density, which can lead to fractures. Vitamin D, once either taken orally or from sunshine exposure is then converted to an active form of the vitamin. It is that active form that promotes optimal absorption of calcium from your diet.

The parathyroid glands work minute to minute to balance the calcium in the blood by communicating with the kidneys, gut and skeleton. When there is enough calcium in the diet and sufficient active Vitamin D, dietary calcium is absorbed and put to good use throughout the body. If calcium intake is insufficient, or vitamin D is low, the parathyroid glands will ‘borrow’ calcium from the skeleton in order to keep the blood calcium in the normal range.

When should we supplement Vitamin D?

Usually Vitamin D is taken during the autumn and winter because the sun isn’t strong enough to emit its usual levels of ultraviolet B (UVB) rays which converts cholesterol into energy, allowing the synthesis of vitamin D to occur. Also, Vitamin D can be found in a variety of food sources however since it's difficult for people to get enough from food alone, everyone (including pregnant and breastfeeding women) should consider taking a daily supplement containing 10 micrograms of vitamin D during the autumn and winter.

This has been exacerbated by the recent outbreak of COVID-19 (Coronavirus) where most people are being forced to stay inside and only have the luxury of outside exercise a maximum of once a day.

“The Department of Health recommends that you take a daily supplement containing 10 micrograms of Vitamin D throughout the year if you:

  • Aren't often outdoors – for example, if you're frail or housebound
  • Are in an institution like a care home
  • Usually wear clothes that cover up most of your skin when outdoors
  • If you have dark skin – for example you have an African, African-Caribbean or south Asian background – you may also not get enough vitamin D from sunlight.

You should consider taking a daily supplement containing 10 micrograms of vitamin D throughout the year.” – NHS England

Why an Effervescent Tablet?

Effervescent tablets have become a very popular form of delivery for supplementation due to the fact they can be dissolved in either fruit juice or water, often with a specific flavour added, meaning that they can taste better than simply taking standard tablets. Also, Conventional tablets dissolve slowly in the stomach once swallowed and can sometimes only partially dissolve which, in some cases, can lead to irritation. The benefit of effervescent tablets is that they disperse entirely and evenly within the liquid before consumption meaning that intense concentrations of the active ingredient, Vitamin D, cannot occur.

Effervescent tablets not only provide the nutritional benefits intended, but also increase liquid intake. This can be particularly advantageous if you are dehydrated, ill or not ingesting as much fluid as is recommended on a daily basis. Effervescent tablets are a fantastic way of rehydrating whilst also gaining the specific active ingredients you desire, in this case – Vitamin D.

Sources:

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/vitamins-and-minerals/vitamin-d/

https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/15050-vitamin-d--vitamin-d-deficiency