Our bone health is crucial for our wellbeing, especially as we grow older. Weak bones are vulnerable to breaking with the slightest injuries and may cause immobility. Therefore, one must ensure to build good bone health and ensure sufficient levels of Vitamin D.
What is Vitamin D?
Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin essential for vital physiological functions such as maintaining bone health, supporting immune function, and regulating calcium and phosphorus levels in the body. Adults, including pregnant and breastfeeding women and children from the age of 1 year, need ten micrograms of vitamin D in a day.
Why do we need vitamin D?
Our body needs vitamin D for various reasons. Some of the reasons are:
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Bone health: Vitamin D facilitates calcium absorption, which helps build strong and healthy bones.
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Muscle function: Sufficient levels of vitamin D help in preventing falls, particularly in older adults and is essential for proper functioning of our muscles.
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Immune system support: Vitamin D plays a role in the immune system’s function. It helps to defend the body against all kinds of infections.
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Chronic disease prevention: Maintaining sufficient vitamin D levels is important. It may lower the risk of certain chronic conditions, including cardiovascular diseases.
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Mood regulation: There is a connection between vitamin D and mood regulation. It potentially enhances mental wellbeing.
Vitamin D or the sunshine can guard against osteoporosis as we grow older. Enough vitamin D helps to prevent bone disease in children. Apart from regular exposure to sunlight, eating the right foods, such as salmon, tuna, fish, dairy, and plant milk fortified with vitamin D, can also help maintain vitamin D levels. However, certain dry fruits are rich in vitamin D and good for bone health.
Dry fruits that are rich in vitamin D
Dry fruits exhibit variability in nutrient content, but typically, they contain crucial vitamins like A, C, and K and minerals like iron and potassium. These elements promote overall health by supporting functions such as vision, immune response, blood clotting, and maintaining electrolyte balance. Dry fruits are also rich in vitamin D, so one should eat them as a balanced diet. Here are some of the important dry fruits beneficial for our bone health and overall wellbeing:
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Dried apricots: They offer 1.5 International Units (IU) of vitamin D per 100 grams. They also provide essential vitamins and minerals like A, iron, and potassium.
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Cranberries: Cranberries are an excellent source of vitamin C, making them a star ingredient in skin care products. But it also has vitamin D (around 0.7 mg), so we must include cranberries to improve our bone health.
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Dried figs: With around 3 IU of vitamin D per 100 grams, dried figs are also known for their fiber, calcium, potassium, and magnesium content.
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Almonds: Consuming soaked almonds every morning is a good choice, as almonds offer 9 percent of the daily value (DV) of vitamin D. They also contain fiber, protein, calcium, vitamin E, copper, and magnesium.
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Prunes: Prunes have around 3.7 mg of vitamin D. They also contain vitamins such as A, C, and K.
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Raisins: This sweet, dry fruit contains fiber and important minerals such as iron. It also contains 82.00 IU of vitamin D per 100 grams.
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Dates: Dates are a good source of the sunshine vitamin. They have around 2.2 mg of vitamin D, fiber, protein, potassium, and magnesium.
Side effects of eating too many dry fruits
It is advisable to incorporate a moderate daily intake of 4 to 5 varieties of dry fruits for a nutrient and vitamin-rich lifestyle, as too much of anything can harm our health. Also, rare, excessive intake of vitamin D can result in side effects such as hypercalcemia, characterized by elevated blood calcium levels, leading to symptoms like nausea, weakness, and potential kidney issues.
The Bottom Line
Obtaining most of our vitamin D from natural sources is crucial, and supplements should only be taken under medical guidance. However, one must not rely solely on dry fruits for vitamin D. One must have a balanced diet and opt for sources like fatty fish and fortified foods in addition to dry fruits for optimal intake! With an all-inclusive approach, one can build stronger bones. For a customized diet CLICK HERE.
