Not all Vitamin D Created Equal: Vitamin D3 More Potent than Vitamin D2

Vitamin D, known as the sunshine vitamin, is a fat-soluble vitamin that comes in two major forms: vitamin D2 (ergocalciferol) and vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol). Vitamin D is the only vitamin that has a hormone-like action on our bones and intestines. It is formed in the body by the action of the sun's ultraviolet rays on the skin, which then makes vitamin D3. Vitamin D3 is converted in the liver to a more active form that is five times more active than regular vitamin D3. A December 2010 study in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism discovered that vitamins D2 and D3 are not used by the body in the same way. The single-blind, randomized study included 33 healthy adults who supplemented with 50,000 IU of either vitamin D2 or D3 per week for 12 weeks. After 12 weeks, blood vitamin D levels had increased significantly more in the D3 group than in the D2 group. Vitamin D3 was up to 87 percent more potent than D2 in raising serum vitamin D levels. It was also revealed that vitamin D3 produced a two- to three-fold increase in the storage of serum vitamin D compared with vitamin D2. With this knowledge in mind, go check your vitamin D supplement to make sure the label indicates that it is D3 (cholecalciferol). Multismart and my soon-to-be-released Bone Booster contain the more potent vitamin D3.

Improve Your Brain Power

Lack of iron interferes with brain and behavioral function. In a 2007 American Journal of Clinical Nutrition study involving 113 women aged 18 to 35, women who were iron-deficient scored significantly worse on eight cognitive ability tests compared to women who had healthy iron levels. Those women who were diagnosed as anemic scored even worse than the iron-deficient group. Both the iron-deficient and anemic groups also took far longer to complete the tests. After completing four months of iron supplementation, all of these women scored just as well on the tests as the women who had good iron levels at the beginning of the study. Their speed at completing the tests also improved. The researchers concluded that iron status is a significant factor in cognitive performance in women. Your brain fog may simply be a result of low iron.

To determine your iron status, ask your doctor for two blood tests: serum ferritin and hemoglobin. A serum ferritin test will tell you how much iron is stored in your body; to prevent hair loss, your reading should be greater than 40 ng/mL. Hair regrowth starts upwards of 70 ng/mL. A hemoglobin test will indicate how much iron is found in your red blood cells to help carry oxygen to your cells. For hemoglobin, the average test range is 120-160 g/L for women and 140-180 g/L for men. Note that even low-normal iron levels can be a problem.

Women are more susceptible than men to low iron and iron-deficient anemia due to blood loss during their monthly cycles. Yet over 57 percent of women do not get adequate levels of iron from the diet. Women require up to 20 milligrams of iron daily from the diet, but most consume less than 10 mg per day and it is often poorly absorbed. A daily low-dose iron supplement is your solution. And if you are already facing a chronic iron deficiency situation, you will definitely need to supplement. Diet alone will not be enough to restore your iron stores to an optimal level. In one 2002 German study involving women with low ferritin (iron stores), supplementing with low-dose liquid iron (20 mg daily) and increasing intake of iron-rich foods was more than twice as effective at improving symptoms compared to diet alone. Ironsmart is my delicious (tastes like caramel candy), fast-working liquid iron with special technology that delivers the iron through the digestive system directly to where it is absorbed in the intestines. There is no stomach upset or constipation-just one to three teaspoons a day, depending on your needs, can help improve mental function and ward off other symptoms of low iron.

"I Have Skin Tags and Belly Fat. What Is Causing Them?"

Skin tags are strongly associated with prediabetes (insulin resistance) and Type-2 diabetes. In those with insulin resistance, insulin becomes ineffective at pushing sugar into cells and so the blood sugar builds up and the body keeps producing more insulin in an attempt to normalize blood sugar. Eventually, the pancreas becomes exhausted and diabetes results. We have an epidemic of Type-2 diabetes and early detection can prevent the development of this deadly disease. Diabetics, on average, live 10 to 15 years less than non-diabetics. Studies show that as few as three skin tags on the body are linked to increased diabetes risk. Research has also shown that those with skin tags have higher cholesterol, triglycerides, blood sugar, and C-reactive protein (all risk factors for diabetes and cardiovascular disease) than those without skin tags. People with elevated C-reactive protein, a marker for systemic inflammation in the body, are four times more likely to develop diabetes. So although skin tags look bad, they are actually a warning sign for diabetes that we should not ignore. A nutrient derived from carob called Chirositol™, the only ingredient in Glucosmart, has been researched in over 30 studies at the Virginia Medical School, where it was found to normalize blood sugar and insulin quickly, thereby helping to eliminate skin tags. Chirositol™ has also been shown to reduce appetite and improve our happy hormone, serotonin. Reduced serotonin or poor metabolism of serotonin is linked to increased sugar cravings. So by balancing serotonin, Chirositol™ also helps control appetite. One woman recently told me that she had dropped seven pounds in four weeks of using Glucosmart with Chirositol™ but the best part was, one day while she was rubbing her neck, her skin tags rolled off in her hand. With our aging population and increasing obesity rates, we need to start preventing diabetes. Glucosmart with Chirositol™ is the answer to eliminating skin tags, aiding weight loss and preventing insulin resistance before diabetes becomes a serious health threat. When you purchase Glucosmart, you should also receive my book A Smart Woman's Guide to Weight Loss for FREE. Make sure you ask for it at a health food store near you.