A-Z vitamin deficiency Articles

We’ve all experienced motion sickness to some degree or another, but some people are more sensitive to it than others. Whether it’s in a car, a boat or an airplane, motion sickness can make your trip very uncomfortable and even cause a great deal of distress. Let's explore ways to support motion sickness with supplements and prevention tips. 

What Causes Motion Sickness?

Motion sickness occurs when the part of the inner ear responsible for balance is disturbed by chaotic motion. The eyes contribute to motion sickness by giving feedback to the brain that is constantly moving. Symptoms of motion sickness are nausea, excess salivation, vomiting, headaches, sweating and pallor of the skin. Factors that make motion sickness worse are poor air quality, lack of oxygen, overindulgence in food or alcohol, anxiety, stress, dehydration and jet lag.

Motion Sickness Support Options

Anti-nausea medication is usually used for motion sickness. The main side effect is drowsiness. They cannot be taken with other sleep aids, tranquillizers, or alcohol.

You can reduce motion sickness naturally with a number of different safe and effective nutritional supplements, including:

Ginger - This spice commonly used in cooking has an incredible nausea reducing power that equals many of the conventional over-the-counter drug medications (such as Dramamine) for reducing motion sickness. It is safe and has none of the potential side effects that can occur with conventional medications. Its active ingredient is gingerol and is best taken in a standardized (concentrated) supplement form rather than the raw powder.

The best time to take ginger for motion sickness is about an hour before you begin travelling. It can be taken at the onset of symptoms, but it will be most effective when taken in advance. Ginger can help relieve nausea, upset stomach, acid reflux, and heartburn.

Other supplements effective for relieving motion sickness include: 

• Vitamin B6 (helps relieve dizziness)
• Magnesium (helps relieve stomach acidity)
• Activated charcoal (helps absorb toxins and relieves nausea)
• Peppermint (relieves muscular contractions involved in nausea)

To reduce motion sickness, focus your eyes on a steady object that is a good distance away from where you are located. Sit in the front seat or in the middle of the vehicle. Lay your head back onto the headrest. Do not travel on an empty stomach. Do not drink alcohol while travelling because it causes dehydration.

How Can I Prevent Motion Sickness?

There are a few ways to prevent motion sickness. Before and during travel, drink lots of water and juice to settle the stomach. Apricot and carrot juice are good choices. Eat whole grains, wheat germ, millet or nutritional yeast as a source of the anti-nausea vitamin, B6. During the trip, if you begin to get queasy, eat wholegrain crackers, suck on a lemon or lime, or chew a piece of ginger root, parsley or raw pumpkin seeds.

Often called the "sunshine vitamin," vitamin D plays a crucial role in many aspects of human health. Unlike most vitamins, this vitamin functions more like a hormone, influencing a myriad of processes throughout the body. It is produced in the skin when exposed to sunlight and can also be obtained from certain foods and supplements. 

Best known for supporting strong bones by helping the body absorb calcium, this vitamin is also essential for immune function, mood regulation, muscle health, and overall well-being. 

Because modern lifestyles limit sun exposure, deficiency in this vitamin has become increasingly common, making it an important nutrient to understand and maintain for optimal health.

Important Health Benefits of Vitamin D

Bone Health Benefits

Vitamin D plays an integral role in bone health, promoting our absorption of both calcium and phosphorus from the digestive tract. For this reason, it is commonly used in the prevention and treatment of osteoporosis. Adequate levels of this vitamin help maintain proper bone mineralization, ensuring that bones remain strong and resilient. Without sufficient vitamin D, calcium cannot be effectively absorbed, which can lead to weakened bones, increased fracture risk, and conditions such as osteomalacia in adults or rickets in children. 

Immune Health Support

We are understanding more and more the importance that this vitamin plays in supporting immune function. Vitamin D has the ability to modulate the immune response, rather than simply strengthen it. In cases of immune dysregulation (autoimmune disorders, psoriasis), it serves to balance the response; therefore, decreasing the dangerous over-reaction to our own cells and tissues that is seen in many of these conditions. 

Research studying the use of this vitamin in influenza and various respiratory tract infections has also shown some promising results. It is now considered one of the top supplements to use during cold and flu season to ward off the offending viruses and bacteria. Vitamin D deficiencies have been associated with an increased risk of influenza, as well as the common cold. 

This fat-soluble vitamin has been shown to dramatically stimulate the expression of potent anti-microbial peptides, which exist in neutrophils, monocytes, natural killer cells, and in epithelial cells lining the respiratory tract. These cells play a major role in protecting the lung from infection.

Healthy Cell Growth

Research on the effects that vitamin D status has on the incidence of unhealthy cell growth, particularly colorectal and other digestive system cells, as well as female reproductive cells, is also more than convincing. 

High vitamin D status was found to significantly decrease the incidence of unhealthy colorectal cell growth in men (40%), as well as the incidence of other digestive system mutated cells. This vitamin has been found to decrease proliferation, metastatic potential and angiogenesis of unhealthy cells, while simultaneously increasing differentiation and apoptosis.

Heart Protection

Vitamin D has heart-protective effects. It has been shown to lower high blood pressure and is useful in the prevention of cardiovascular disease. 

Other Benefits

Vitamin D is also being used in the management of Type II diabetes, as it has been shown to be involved in insulin secretion and glucose tolerance. 

Many mental disorders are now being correlated with a deficiency of this vitamin, and supplementation is proving beneficial for many individuals suffering from depression, schizophrenia, seasonal affective disorder, manic/bipolar disorder and autism.

Symptoms of Vitamin D Deficiency

Vitamin D deficiency is considered less than 50 ng/ml of 25(OH)D, which is the active form of vitamin D in our bodies. Deficiency can occur with:

• Inadequate Sun Exposure
• Inadequate Dietary Intake
• Kidney or Liver Disease
• Alcoholism

And those who are elderly, dark-skinned, obese, or have fat malabsorption syndromes or inflammatory bowel disease are at greater risk of deficiency.

Deficiency causes rickets in children, leading to weak and deformed bones. In adults, deficiency can lead to osteomalacia, osteoporosis, dental problems, muscle weakness and tooth decay.

Taking Vitamin D Supplements

Although at one time 400IU was considered appropriate for supplementation, many health care practitioners are now recommending 1000-4000IU/day, with doses as high as 10,000IU/day still being considered safe and necessary depending on the condition and assuming you are under the supervision of a healthcare provider.

When supplementing with Vitamin D, be sure to look for D3 (cholecalciferol) as it is significantly more efficient at raising 25(OH)D levels than the other form of D, D2 (ergocalciferol).