The RAMB e-Health and Fitness newsletter is back by popular demand (thank you readers for all of your favorable comments). For 2009 it will be published quarterly and we hope you will find this edition is jam packed with useful information for your overall wellness.
 
We are leading with several articles on what may just be the most important substance in the health and wellness arsenal. Vitamin D3, Cholecalciferol, is so important that every person who reads this newsletter should make a point of educating themselves about D3 and then spreading the word to family and friends.
 
Technically, D3 is not a vitamin. It is a hormone that has repair and maintenance functions related to over 2000 genes (about 10% of the human genome) in the body. Set up a Google keyword search on Vitamin D and you will get more articles than you will have time to read, with new information coming through from various medical sources daily.  And yet, traditional medicine by and large is not well informed or even in complete agreement as to the importance of testing D3 levels or the optimal dosage for supplementation.
 
Research indicates that potentially 85% of the population is D3 deficient and the deficiency plays a role in at least 17 types of cancer, diabetes, asthma, autism, osteoporosis, depression, cardiovascular issues including hypertension, stroke and heart disease, and so much more.
 
Given proper exposure to sunshine and/or proper supplementation, D3 deficiencies are easy and inexpensive to remedy. But over the past few decades, with the establishment preaching about covering up and using sunscreen to protect against skin cancer, we are no longer getting the D3 our ancestors got easily. Milk and some multivitamins are fortified with D, though at low levels or in the improper form. And certain autoimmune conditions may make supplements difficult to absorb. As with many supplements, combinations with other supplements/foods are important for proper absorption. To work properly, Vitamin D needs magnesium, vitamin K, zinc and probably boron, so eating spinach with your Vitamin D is a good idea.
 
A leading authority in D3 research and information is Dr. John Cannell, who established the Vitamin D Council in 2003. Dr. Cannell believes that D3 deficiency is passed from mother to child and may be related to 3 modern and unexplained childhood epidemics that have surfaced in the last few decades: autism, type 1 diabetes and childhood asthma. His website and voluminous research is compelling and worth the trouble of reading if you have any interest in understanding why he feels this way and what might be done to change things. 

Even if your time is limited, read at least two of the attached articles on D3 and I guarantee you will be intrigued enough to read more. For a testimonial from a Florida Realtor with a personal story of D deficiency and the benefits of supplementation, read Penny Herman's story in this newsletter.
 
There is a lot of other health and fitness information besides: don't miss the article and multiple links on the food additives and chemicals commonly found in household cleaners and cosmetics that can cause health problems for us and our children. 
 
For those not yet motivated to exercise and lose weight, it may be worth reading that obesity can take 10 years off a person's life and excess weight can be as unhealthy as smoking!
 
Websites to help us become better consumers of medical services are important and several are listed. Please feel free to send us your recommendations for information or websites that you feel should be included in future newsletters and as always, comments, suggestions or submissions are encouraged and welcome."

Be well,
 
Kimberly Kirschner, CIPS
kim@krionline.com