Vitamin D is crucial to the building and maintenance of healthy bones and teeth. Calcium, the primary component of bone, is only properly absorbed by your body when vitamin D is present. Vitamin D is created within the body when direct sunlight converts a chemical in your skin into an active form of the vitamin. There are not many foods that contain vitamin D, but you can find it in fortified milk, fortified cereals, and fatty fish like salmon, mackerel, and sardines. Unfortunately, most people do not get the necessary amount of vitamin D. Therefore, supplementation is needed.

Vitamin D can come in several forms. The two major forms are vitamin D2 (ergocalciferol) and vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol). The recommended form of vitamin D for supplementation is cholecalciferol. Vitamin D3 is the perfect supplement as it is the natural form of vitamin D that your body makes from sunlight. Cholecalciferol is metabolized to its active form, calcitriol, which increases the body’s absorption of calcium and phosphorus. Calcitriol may play a role in the immune system and may inhibit cancer growth and stimulate cell differentiation.

Receiving vitamin D3 shots can treat and prevent the symptoms of vitamin D deficiency, including fatigue and bone pain. Vitamin D deficiency has been associated with an increased risk of death from cardiovascular disease, cognitive impairment in the elderly, severe childhood asthma and cancer.