Vegans, vitamin D and the sun

[Trendygirl]

I would really like to start taking vitamin D after everything I have read. Even in the summer I don't tend to go in the sun as I burn really easily. I have tried to find some D2 (Ergocalciferol) the vegan source of vitamin D but I have had no luck. Even when I have asked at the Pharmacy they didn't have a clue what I was going on about. I e-mailed Holland & Barrett about their Vitamin D supliments which were suitable for veggies but found that it is derived from sheeps wool! Does anyone know where I can get some vegan vitamin D

[Artichoke47]

I forget where you're from. Here is a vegan multivitamin w/ Vitamin D in it: http://www.veganstore.com/index-store.html?deptid=17137&parentid=57&stocknumber=240%20%20%20%20%20%20%20IRON&page=2&itemsperpage=12

I haven't seen a stand-alone Vitamin D supplement labeled as vegan.

Here is another multivitamin: http://www.veganunlimited.com/20009.html#

[Trendygirl]

Hi thanks for that! I'm from Birmingham England

[Gorilla]

i don't take a vitamin D supplement, but i use Pure soya margarine which is approved by the Vegan Society and therefore contains vitamin D2. you can also buy plant milks which are fortified with vitamins including D2. i used to burn very easily in the sun, but i've found since i went vegan i can be out in the sun more without getting burnt - don't know why! :)

[Trendygirl]

I recently read Plant Based Nutrition & Health by Stephen Walsh PhD ISBN 0-907337-26-0 and listened to the lectures at ttp://www.veganmd.org/talks/#nutrition

I don’t think that you can get enough vitamin D from vegan spread and milk. After looking at these resources it has made me think. According to them vegans have less heart disease, cancer etc but we still only live as long as meat eaters. We die because of other courses which are attributed to not getting some vital nutrition we need. I recommend that everyone should read this book and listen to the lectures, they are well researched by vegan Doctors and they have looked into real scientific research into the diets of vegans.

I am sorry if I sound a bit of a nut but after looking at the research I have just mentioned it has got me in a real tiz. I used to think that you should be able to get all our nutrients from a natural vegan diet and we would if we lived like our early human ancestors. However we live in an unnatural world we don’t live in the parts of the world that we are designed for, we live too far away from the equator, we don’t eat wild plants anymore, we don’t eat our own faeces or eat soil, we don’t eat enough food which is grown in the right soil and what we do eat and drink is sanitized.

I want to live forever! Only joking, but I am a little worried about not living to my full vegan potential.

[Kevster]

Plamil soya milk has vitamin D and B12,

K

[Gorilla]

i've been reading Plant Based Nutrition too, and from what i can tell from the book just about all vegans, no matter what they eat, have some sort of deficiency to worry about. the book is very complex IMHO and makes it sound impossible to make sure you get exactly the right amount of every single nutrient unless you get really obsessed about it, which i could do (and i am an obsessive person!) - but life's too short!

i've heard that other people found the same thing with this book. i'm sure it's very useful to some people but it'd just make me paranoid if i tried to follow it to the letter. i can understand you being worried about your health because it's obviously important, but there are loads of other things in the book that'll scare you if you pay too much attention to them. have you looked at the Vegan Society's website about nutrition? although it's basically the same info, i find it much easier to understand and make informed choices about what to eat: www.vegansociety.com/html/food/nutrition/

i don't mean to sound derogatory, please don't take offence - i just know from personal experience that if you get too worried about this sort of thing you'll go crazy :eek:

[mysh]

Have any of you ever heard of an omni with no deficiencies? I haven't. I remember there was a study recently on what's missing in our diets done in the US, which showed that veg*ns were generally low on 7 vitamins and minerals. Omnis were low on 12 - which included all of the ones that the veg*ns were low on.

[John]

http://www.vitaminlife.com/product-exec/product_id/37206/PNAME/Vegan%20Vitamin%20D

[Atlanta Newbie]

^^^ I am happy with the VegLife multivitamin that I take. Its called Vegan One Multiple, and it includes the daily 400 IU of vitamin D as well as the vegan version of just about every other vitamin/mineral you could ever possibly need. :)

One word of advice: I would definitely seek out a vegetarian or health-food market as opposed to a traditional pharmacy or drug store. I've found that the chain drug stores are about 0% veg-friendly, while my local veggie grocery has a wide array of wonderful selections.

[gertvegan]

I called Vega Nutritionals ( who have 89 products registered with The Vegan Society trademark according to the society website ) asking about a vitamin D supplement, the 3rd time today they had received a similar query. They say they should have a vegan suitable supplement available in January. Their website which is not up and running at the mo is www.vegavitamins.com

[wuggy]

I agree with Gorilla about vitamins, etc.
I have also read 'Plant based Nutrition' recently, and found it helpful but a bit complex.
I'm sure it's fair to say that through veganism, most of us get far more interested in our health than most meat eaters, who may be running low on many important nutrients, but are unaware, or maybe just aren't too interested.
Personally I take a vegan multivitamin, flaxseed oil, and St. John's Wort (for slight but persistent depression), make sure I go out in the fresh air for an hour every day whenever possible, try to improve on my eating habits - and not worry too much!

[Trendygirl]

Yeah! I know, at the end of the day we shouldn’t worry too much but I know that I could be doing more. I eat pretty healthy but never deprive myself of the treats if I want them. I am trying to get more exercise, eat more fruit and vegetables, as well as getting out the house more. I have read that lack of vitamin D can result in Depression and I am wondering if there could be a link with my own reoccurring depression. I feel quite good at the moment but want to do everything I can to make sure I don’t go back there. I heard that using a light box can help but they are very expensive and I don’t know much about them. I can’t take St.Johns Wart because I take the contraceptive pill and it makes the pill none effective.

Also I read that vitamin D can help to build strong bones. I broke my big toe about a year and a half ago, it was a bad break and took many more months than the doctors said it would take to heal. I hope that this had nothing to do with a poor diet, either years of drinking up to four pints a day of cows milk or because I had become a vegan about 6months before I broke my toe.

I also burse very easily and they take a long time to go away. I am a lot more healthy than I was when I was veggie but when I look at my boyfriend who is also vegan, he seems to be full of energy and I’m not.

[wuggy]

Trendygirl - Depression can be very debilitating and energy-sapping, and I have found that, left unchecked, mine depresses my whole immune system.
I make certain that I don't read too many yukky things now, or look at icky pictures or videos (I got to saturation point long ago). Also, Yoga, Meditation and walking really help me with my depression, which, incidentally, was heightened by the Pill.

[Trendygirl]

That might be yet another reason why I should find alternatives to using the pill. You are right though, all the pictures of animal in pain does upset me and drains me terribly. I have started to get involved in promoting veganism in a friendly way which I think helps me to feel less helpless. I think that just simply getting out in the world and doing things helps depression, whether its going to yoga or meeting new people.

I just want to be healthy and start living life!

[wuggy]

If you know you suffer with depression you have GOT to look after yourself, and maybe be a little 'selfish' now and again.
You know what you know, don't torture yourself with horrible images, I know you feel you need to know what those animals are going through, but making yourself ill will only weaken your spirit and make you less able to help in the long-term.
I speak from experience, I gave myself a nervous breakdown with it all!

[Gorilla]

i don't want to take this thread too much further off topic, but you've mentioned depression which i've experienced too. there are lots of nutrients that can apparently cause depression if you're deficient, for example calcium, B vitamins, iron etc. as well as vitamin D and i've been trying different things to see if any of them help rather than resorting to anti-depressants again, now i'm trying herbal medicine.

i was taking the pill and noticed an improvement in my depression after i stopped taking it. i took St John's Wort for a while but it didn't seem to do much for me. if you find your depression is worse during the winter a light box may help, but they are expensive and i don't think they're a substitute for sunlight as far as vitamin D production is concerned - they supposedly don't have the same ultra-violet spectrum that causes the body to produce vitamin D. i have energy-saving light bulbs which are supposed to simulate daylight that can help in the long winter months and they're much cheaper (about £20 each and they'll last for years).

getting out and about can help, i'm not really up to that a lot of the time but things like this forum can make a big difference. it seems a lot of people who are veg*n also suffer from depression, which is a terrible shame. i hope you find a natural remedy that helps you :o

[Gorilla]

BTW I was in a health food shop today and looking at the vitamin supplements just out of interest, and saw a vitamin D tablet that had D2 in it. when i checked the ingredients though, i realised it was in a gelatine capsule!

what is the point of going to the trouble of putting D2 in the tablets if you're just going to make them with gelatine?!!! :confused: i was under the impression that D3 is easier and cheaper to produce, which is why nearly all supplements and fortified foods contain it!!! :rolleyes:

[Trendygirl]

I know it’s crazy! I was looking for flax seed oil which is few and far between in Birmingham. I found some capsules but they were made out of galantine as well, sometimes I think that manufactures are trying to lose custom. Like when they put a small amount of egg in the veggie burgers. I don’t get it, why do they want to miss out on getting hold of our money?

[mysh]

When I was first looking for B12 supplements, almost all of them were non-veggie. Weird.

[celtic rose]

I take a daily multivitamin made by seven seas and approved by the vegan society. If its good enough for the vegan society its good enough for me! And its available in Tescos.

[1vegan]

I know it’s crazy! I was looking for flax seed oil which is few and far between in Birmingham.

Have you been to a "health food store" ?

I can get flax seed oil by the bottle in my hfs :)

edited : maybe this is usefull for you http://www.organicfood.co.uk/shopping/birmingham.html

[phillip888]

I just saw this, D2 is present in dark green leafy plants (it's produced during photosynthesis) and of course, sun exposure. You can get D2 in pill form too.

From what I've read sun exposure will not do it alone for many people because humans have at sometime in their recent evolutionary past consumed large amounts of green leafy vegetables during the day... Surprise!

[Tigerlily]

After reading up on how D vitamins could be animal derived...would that also include the D vitamins in multivitamins?

I take a multivitamin by Webber Naturals. I contains Vitamin D3 Palmi...(I can't remember the whole word, I don't have the bottle with me). I know Vitamin D3 in margarines are animal derived, so is it the same with multivitamins?

I'm almost done of my multivitamin bottle so I need to buy more. Any good recommendations? I don't have a credit card, so I can't shop online though. :(

[John]

Avoid D3. I believe that it is made from ground-up fishes. Try to find D2.

You can get D2 from fortified soymilk. And of course sunlight is the natural source.