With Vitamin D

Low vitamin D levels have been linked to colds and flu. A recent study linked respiratory infections and disorders, such as asthma, with low vitamin D levels.

Vitamin D promotes calcium absorption and is needed for bone growth. We are just beginning to understand the link between vitamin D and seasonal colds and flu. Vitamin D stimulates your white blood cells to make cathelicidin. Cathelicidin attacks a wide variety of pathogens, including fungi, viruses and bacteria.

Vitamin D helps prevent heart disease, diabetes and cancer. That’s because vitamin D is a steroid hormone that influences every cell in your body.

As beneficial as vitamin D is, it can be difficult to obtain during the winter months, because sunlight is still the best source. Very few foods contain vitamin D. Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin. Fatty fish such as salmon, tuna, and mackerel and fish liver oils are the best sources. Small amounts of vitamin D are found in egg yolks, beef liver and cheese.

Checking vitamin D levels is easy and inexpensive. When you are having your child’s annual check-up ask for the pediatrician to check his/her vitamin D levels. It costs about $30. Vitamin D drops are inexpensive and easy to incorporate into your family’s daily routine.

Normal vitamin D levels are over 32, but the OPTIMAL level is between 50 and 70. If you have a disease, then you’ll want your level to be over 70.

Vitamin D Dose Recommendations
Age
Below 5         35 unites per pound per day

5 – 10          2500 units

Adults         5000 units

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In Baby Bites I explain, “Eggs are God’s perfect food, as they contain nine amino acids and are one of the few foods containing vitamin D. The egg protein is of such high quality that all other proteins are measured by it. Eggs are a good source of lysine, also found in beans, meat, fish, and dairy products. In addition there are only 5 grams of fat in a large egg yolk.

Are you avoiding eggs because of cholesterol? There’s a modern myth that eating eggs will give a person high cholesterol. Unless you already have high cholesterol, eating a few eggs a week won’t alter your cholesterol levels.”

Ali is a little bundle of sunshine herself!

Many people have been scared silly by the media blitz about high cholesterol. Because the egg’s cholesterol is contained entirely in the yolk, it’s routinely discarded. My mom always avoided the yolk, even though I reassured her that a few eggs wouldn’t alter her cholesterol levels. In fact, your body makes it’s own cholesterol. When you cut out cholesterol from your diet, your body makes up the difference by producing more!

Egg whites contain very few of the egg’s nutrients. When you throw away the yolk, you’re throwing away ALL of the vitamins A, D, E, K, and carotenoids, 90 percent of the B vitamins, calcium, and iron, and nearly half of the protein. So, enjoy your morning eggs, you’ll be better off than taking vitamins.

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For a synopsis of Baby Bites: Transforming a Picky Eater into a Healthy Eater, Click Here.