You can have a well-vetted skincare routine, a sleep tracker on your finger, and a supplement shelf that looks like a small pharmacy. And still, you could be missing something elemental.
Vitamin D deficiency doesn’t exactly announce itself. You might feel fatigued or like you’re just having an off day, which is exactly why it’s so easy to miss.
Vitamin D sounds basic until you realize how many people are walking around with suboptimal levels. We asked naturopathic doctor, Dr. Nigma Talib, to break down what’s worth knowing, including:
- The “I just feel off” signs that could point to low vitamin D
- Why living somewhere sunny does not mean your levels are fine
- What a year-round routine looks like for getting optimal doses of Vitamin D
What are the signs of vitamin D deficiency?
Patients rarely walk into Dr. Nigma’s office suspecting low vitamin D.
“They’ll tell me they’re exhausted despite sleeping well, they’re recovering more slowly from exercise, they seem to catch every cold that’s going around, their mood feels flatter, they’re experiencing muscle aches, brain fog, or they simply don’t feel like themselves anymore,” she says.
That vagueness makes sense when you understand how vitamin D actually functions. When activated, it behaves more like a hormone than a typical vitamin, binding to receptors throughout the immune system, muscles, bones, and brain.
“I often explain it to patients like the conductor of an orchestra,” Dr. Nigma says. “Every musician may be incredibly talented, but without the conductor, the music loses its rhythm and coordination.”
The symptoms overlap so heavily with thyroid issues, iron deficiency, and plain burnout, which is why Dr. Nigma doesn’t rely on symptoms alone.
“A serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D blood test is the most reliable marker of vitamin D status,” she says
How can people in sunny locations still have low levels of vitamin D?
Living in LA or Miami does not guarantee healthy vitamin D levels, and Dr. Nigma sees this misconception constantly.
“That’s like living beside the ocean and assuming you’re hydrated,” she says. “The water is there, but unless you actually drink it, your body doesn’t benefit.”
Most modern routines simply don’t allow for the exposure your body needs.
“Many people leave home before spending meaningful time outdoors, drive to work, spend the day inside an office, and then drive home,” she explains.
A few other factors can make it even trickier. Skin tone, age, body composition, and gut health can all affect how much vitamin D you’re actually producing or absorbing, even with identical sun exposure as someone else.
“This is why I never assume someone has adequate vitamin D simply because they live in California or spend time outdoors,” she says. “The only way to know is to test.”
How do we get healthy sun exposure?
For anyone careful about sun exposure due to skin aging or cancer risk, Dr. Nigma doesn’t think you have to choose between protecting your skin and supporting your vitamin D.
“I don’t recommend intentionally exposing the skin to excessive UV radiation just to increase vitamin D,” she says. Instead, she treats it the way she’d treat any other nutrient. “We measure them, understand what the body needs, and replace them appropriately. Vitamin D deserves that same precision.”
If you want a simple sunlight habit, she suggests “exposing the arms and legs to direct midday sunlight for approximately 10 to 20 minutes, several times per week,” with the caveat that the right amount varies by person.
And there’s a ceiling.
“Once you’ve produced the amount of vitamin D your skin can make during that exposure, additional sunlight doesn’t provide additional benefit,” she says. “It simply increases the biological cost to your skin.”
How do we supplement with vitamin D?
Because vitamin D is fat-soluble, timing and pairing matter.
“I always recommend taking it with a meal that contains healthy fats,” Dr. Nigma says, and she generally favors D3 because “it’s the form our skin naturally produces and it’s been shown to raise and maintain blood levels more effectively than vitamin D2.”
And she rarely looks at vitamin D as a standalone.
“Vitamin D doesn’t function in isolation,” she says. “Magnesium is needed to activate it, while vitamin K1 and K2 help support normal calcium metabolism and bone health.”
This complexity fueled her passion and inspired Dr. Nigma to create her own formula around the combination, rather than just recommending vitamin D alone.
One common mistake she sees is people taking one very large dose once a week or once a month instead of maintaining a consistent daily intake. “The right dose isn’t the same for everyone,” Dr. Nigma says.
That’s why she gives a customized recommendation to each individual rather than defaulting to a standard one. Again, it all comes down to testing. Supplementation is highly personal, and Vitamin D is no exception.
What does optimal really look like?
Most labs flag anything above 30 ng/mL as sufficient. Dr. Nigma tends to aim higher, generally in the 50 to 70 ng/mL range, since “laboratory reference ranges are designed to identify deficiency and disease. They aren’t necessarily designed to define optimal health.”
Here’s how she describes it:
“It’s like the fuel gauge in your car. Your car will still run when the warning light comes on, but nobody would intentionally drive across the country that way.”
What’s a good year-round routine?
The important mental shift involves treating vitamin D as something to monitor, not assume. Test periodically instead of guessing, and pay attention to how you’re absorbing it. Adjust your intake based on actual bloodwork instead of the weather outside.
As Dr. Nigma says, “I don’t treat numbers. I treat the person sitting in front of me, and vitamin D is one piece of the larger health picture.”
The bottom line: You can be doing a lot right and still have a gap you don’t know about. Vitamin D is not glamorous, but it is foundational. Consider this your nudge to book the test, make well-informed adjustments, and stop guessing about your Vitamin D levels.
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