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It can prevent bone loss, improve dental health, reduce the risk for 16 types of cancer, as well as heart disease, chronic pain, and other serious chronic health problems. It’s free… or you can buy it for about $.03 for 2000iu. What is this wonder drug? Vitamin D, which isn’t really a vitamin at all, but a steroid hormone.

With the news that Gwyneth Paltrow has a pre-osteoporosis condition because of her vitamin D deficiency, the sunshine vitamin is getting lots of attention. What does this have to do with dentistry?

Vitamin D Deficiency…

• Allows bone resporption (as in jawbone degeneration)
• Allows increased inflammation (as in the symptom closely linked to periodontal disease)
• Affects almost 40% of Americans (that’s about half of your patients)

We know that dentists play an important role in a person’s medical team. Not all general medicine doctors are testing their patients’ vitamin D levels, though. As a dentist, you can inform and influence your patients to get their vitamin D level checked. Simple, cheap supplements (2000iu of D3) can boost vitamin D levels to a healthy state. Other ways to get the vitamin include getting out in the sunshine (but protect that skin) and through consuming dairy and fish products.