Why Your Vitamin D Levels Drop in Winter (And How to Fix It Fast)

Winter in Denver = Vitamin D disaster. Nearly every patient (except for one that I can think of) that I have seen in the past three years is vitamin D deficient or insufficient YEAR ROUND! So those colder, darker days of winter pair with a high latitude and indoor living tank vitamin D levels. Even though we have over 300 days of sunshine in Colorado and people are generally more active outdoors, I still see significant vitamin D deficiency that worsens in the winter. At Well North Functional Medicine, we don’t guess, we test and correct any deficiencies to bulletproof your immunity.

The Functional Medicine Breakdown of Vitamin D Deficiencies 

• • • Skin Synthesis Plummets: UVB rays drop 90% Nov–Feb; clothing blocks the rest.
    • Immune Impact: There are Vitamin D receptors on EVERY immune cell so low levels = 4x higher respiratory infection risk.
    • Root Causes: Gut malabsorption (celiac, IBD), obesity (fat sequesters D), and dark skin (needs 3–5x more sun).
    • Out of the hundreds of patients I have seen in the past couple of years, all but ONE patient has needed supplemental vitamin D to reach optimal levels. 

Your 3-Step Winter Fix for Optimizing Vitamin D Levels

1. 1. 1. 1. Test, Don’t Guess: Blood vitamin D level goal for 25-hydroxy Vitamin D = 50–80 ng/mL.
         2. Supplement Smart:
            
            • Adults: generally need between 2,000-5,000 IU D3 + K2 daily with a meal that contains fat.
         3. Food + Light Hacks:
            
            • Wild salmon (600 IU/3oz), egg yolks, UV-grown mushrooms.
            • 10-15 min midday sun on arms/legs when possible (even cloudy days helps) but as I mentioned, this is usually not sufficient. 

Signs Your Vitamin D level is low 

Vitamin D is a pro-hormone and has many functions in the body so when our vitamin D levels are low, we can see an array of symptoms including: 

• • • Fatigue
    • Frequent colds
    • Muscle aches
    • Slow wound healing
    • Depression
    • Anxiety
    • Weight gain
    • Hair loss 
    • Bone fractures 

Look for a partner in health to dig deep and get some answers? Look no further! Alison at Well North Functional Medicine is accepting a limited number of new patients through the end of the year! Book a FREE Discovery call below!