Vitamin D, a key milk nutrient, linked to better muscle powerFebruary 05, 2009New study reveals teen girls with higher vitamin D levels may have improved muscle performance Young female athletes could have yet another reason to grab a glass of vitamin D-rich milk. Not only does vitamin D work with calcium to keep bones strong, but researchers now found that teenage girls with higher vitamin D levels may be able to jump higher and faster than their peers with lower levels, according to a new study published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism. UK researchers collected vitamin D levels for 99 girls, ages 12 to 14. To test the girls' muscle function, the girls were instructed to jump as high as possible while researchers used a device designed to measure power and performance called jumping mechanography. After controlling for differences in the girls' body weight, the girls with the highest vitamin D levels had the highest jump speeds, jump height, power and force. This potential muscle advantage adds to the growing list of evidence positioning vitamin D as a super nutrient. Well known for its role in keeping bones strong, vitamin D is now being hailed for so much more. Emerging science suggests vitamin D may also help protect against diabetes, hypertension, heart disease and certain cancers. It may also support a healthy immune system to ward off infections, and some preliminary evidence suggests it may affect longevity. Yet despite a potential upside of boosting vitamin D levels, Americans of all ages still fall short of their vitamin D needs. Even in this study with demonstrated muscle benefits, overall, the girls' vitamin D levels were far less than ideal - a finding consistent with numerous studies indicating a resurgence in vitamin D deficiencies in adolescence. In fact, current deficiency levels prompted the American Academy of Pediatrics to double the vitamin D recommendations for children and teens to 400 IU daily. The Academy estimates that up to half of adolescents have low vitamin D levels. The recommended three glasses of lowfat or fat free milk a day delivers 75 percent of the vitamin D that's needed each day. Milk remains the leading source of vitamin D in the American diet - it's one of the few food sources of the super nutrient. Plus, along with vitamin D, milk is a good source of calcium and high-quality protein - two nutrients vital to help teens maintain bone density and lean muscle. Weber Shandwick Worldwide |
||||||||||||||||||||
| Related Vitamin D Current Events and Vitamin D News Articles Heart and bone damage from low vitamin D tied to declines in sex hormones Researchers at Johns Hopkins are reporting what is believed to be the first conclusive evidence in men that the long-term ill effects of vitamin D deficiency are amplified by lower levels of the key sex hormone estrogen, but not testosterone. New study links vitamin D deficiency to cardiovascular disease and death While mothers have known that feeding their kids milk builds strong bones, a new study by researchers at the Heart Institute at Intermountain Medical Center in Salt Lake City suggests that Vitamin D contributes to a strong and healthy heart as well - and that inadequate levels of the vitamin may significantly increase a person's risk of stroke, heart disease, and death, even among people who've never had heart disease. Lactose intolerance rates may be significantly lower than previously believed Prevalence of lactose intolerance may be far lower than previously estimated, according to a study in the latest issue of Nutrition Today. Nation's hip fracture rate could drop 25 percent with aggressive osteoporosis prevention Aggressively managing patients at risk for osteoporosis could reduce the hip fracture rate in the United States by 25 percent, according to a Kaiser Permanente study published in the November issue of the Journal of Bone & Joint Surgery. Neurologists Investigate Possible New Underlying Cause of MS Neurologists at the University at Buffalo are beginning a research study that could overturn the prevailing wisdom on the cause of multiple sclerosis (MS). Latest analysis confirms suboptimal vitamin D levels in millions of US children Millions of children in the United States between the ages of 1 and 11 may suffer from suboptimal levels of vitamin D, according to a large nationally representative study published in the November issue of Pediatrics, accompanied by an editorial. Women with breast cancer have low vitamin D levels Women with breast cancer should be given high doses of vitamin D because a majority of them are likely to have low levels of vitamin D, which could contribute to decreased bone mass and greater risk of fractures, according to scientists at the University of Rochester Medical Center. New link found between osteoporosis and coeliac disease People with coeliac disease may develop osteoporosis because their immune system attacks their bone tissue, a new study has shown. Insufficient levels of vitamin D puts elderly at increased risk of dying from heart disease A new study by researchers at the University of Colorado Denver and Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) shows vitamin D plays a vital role in reducing the risk of death associated with older age. University of Toronto study shows climate change will lead to less ultraviolet radiation over northern high latitudes Physicists at the University of Toronto have discovered that changes in the Earth's ozone layer due to climate change will reduce the amount of ultraviolet (UV) radiation in northern high latitude regions such as Siberia, Scandinavia and northern Canada. More Vitamin D Current Events and Vitamin D News Articles |
||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||