100% plant-based vitamin D3 in Phytocaps

D-Pearls Green are small, soft plant-based capsules with 38 mcg (1520 IU) of vitamin D3 in each capsule. The vitamin D secreted by algae is dissolved in cold-pressed olive oil to improve absorption. The size of the capsules makes them easy to swallow, but they can also be chewed. The phytocapsule is colored with a little low-fat cocoa powder. Research has shown that D-Pearls have good absorption.

It has previously been possible to get vitamin D2 (ergocalciferol) from plants and yeast, which vegetarians and vegans could consume, but research (Shieh A, et al. 2016) has shown that vitamin D3 is more effective in raising the body's D-vitamin level than D2.

The vitamin D in D-Pearls Green is produced by algae. The algae used is grown under controlled conditions and is approved as food and commonly used in food globally. However, D-Pearls Green do not contain parts of the algae itself; rather, the algae secrete vitamin D3 which is purified. There is no difference between vitamin D3 from algae and vitamin D3 from lanolin. They are chemically identical.

Safety and quality

At Pharma Nord's factory in Vojens we produce both pharmaceuticals and dietary supplements, which makes it possible to carry out the same control procedures for dietary supplements as for pharmaceutical  products. Both dietary supplements and medicines are examined according to a carefully determined plan - which ensures that the products contain what the specification says. This gives consumers assurance that the individual D-Pearl contains the amount of vitamin D that is listed.

Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin. This implies that the vitamin need some fat in order to be absorbed in the intestine. Like other vitamins, vitamin D is essential. There are several kinds of vitamin-D, but the two most important forms are D2 (ergocalciferol) and D3 (cholecalciferol).

D3 is the form of the vitamin that is synthesized in the skin when we are exposed to sufficient amounts of sunlight or a similar type of UV-radiation. Vitamin D from sunlight is an effective vitamin D source but is only produced when the sun is high in the sky. In large parts of Europe (at latitudes above 37 degrees north), this only happens during the summer period, and therefore we can only produce sufficient levels of the vitamin in the summer months.

Vitamin D2 are only available from the diet. It is produced by certain fungi and plants when they are exposed to ultraviolet light. Both vitamin D2 and D3 require subsequent activation in the liver and kidneys in order to become biologically active. Scientists used to believe that both forms of vitamin D were equally effective in the body. However, depending on the measuring method used, vitamin D3 is 56-87 per cent more effective than vitamin D2 when it comes to raising blood levels of vitamin D. Moreover, D3 is stored in fat tissue more than three times as effectively as D2*.

* Heaney RP, et al. Vitamin D3 Is More Potent Than Vitamin D2 in Humans. J Clin Endocrinol Metab 2010.

Children and nursing home residents require more vitamin D than adults.

Vitamin D has an array of important functions in the body:

•  helps to maintain normal bones and teeth
•  supports normal immune function
•  contributes to a normal absorption and utilization of calcium and phosphorus
•  plays a role in the body's immune system and muscle function

Sources of vitamin D for vegetarians and vegans

Sunlight and suplements

Vitamin D from the Sun

We form a precursor to vitamin D3 in the skin from cholesterol when we get enough sunlight or similar UV radiation. This precursor must subsequently be converted (hydroxylated) in the liver and kidneys respectively to become active vitamin D.

Vitamin D from sunlight is an effective source of vitamin D, but it is only formed when the sun reaches high enough in the sky. A country like Denmark is so far in the north that we can only get vitamin D from the sun in the summer.

Rule of thumb

To form vitamin D from sunlight, the UV index must be at least 3 or higher. The UV index is used as a measure of the intensity of the Sun's ultraviolet radiation. If you doubt whether you can form vitamin D from the Sun, look at your shadow. If the length of your shadow is the same or shorter than your height, then you can form vitamin D. If, on the other hand, the shadow is longer than the height, vitamin D is not formed.

It is a challenge to get sufficient vitamin D exclusively from plant foods. Mushrooms that have been exposed to sunlight do form some vitamin D, but there is a certain loss of vitamin D from the diet when food is heated. People who do not eat animal products can get vitamin D from the Sun if it is high enough in the sky, which it is not in the winter months (end of September to late March) at northern latitudes. The body will store a surplus of the vitamin D from the Sun, which can be used when we can no longer form vitamin D from the Sun because the Sun is too low in the sky. However, there will not be enough vitamin D in the body for the entire winter. Without supplements, many who live too far north will therefore be low in vitamin D by the month of December.

Research has shown that in terms of the amount of vitamin D in the blood, a daily supplement of vitamin D is more effectively than larger weekly or monthly supplementations.

Vitamin-D supplements are generally recommended for:

• Children aged 0 – 2 years (vitamin D as drops)
• Pregnant women
• Children and adults with dark skin
• Children and adults who wear fully covering clothes in the summer time
• People who do not spend time outdoors in the daytime or generally avoid sunlight
• Nursing home residents
• People older than 70 years
• Anyone who, regardless of their age, are at increased risk for osteoporosis

Vegans and vegetarians are advised to adhere to the official guidelines for sun exposure and possibly take a supplement of vitamin D during the winter period.
Blood levels of vitamin D can be determined by a blood test that measures the unit 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25-(OH)D) and is expressed in nmol/l. Vitamin D status is graduated in the following way:

• <12 nmol/l: Severe deficiency
• 12-25 nmol/l: Deficiency
• 25-50 nmol/l: Insufficient
• >50 nmol/l: Sufficient
• 75-150 nmol/l: Optimal level in individuals with fragile bones and kidney patients
• >ca. 200 nmol/l: Risk of overdose

> = greater than
< = less than

Conversion

• 1 nmol/l = 0,4 ng/ml
• 1 ng/ml  = 2,5 nmol/l

Measurement of vitamin D

The safest way to know one's vitamin D status is by means of a blood test. However, for normal, healthy individuals there is no immediate need to measure blood levels of vitamin D. For certain groups, however, it is advisable to gauge their vitamin D status.

For instance, people with a lifestyle that gives reason to believe that they could benefit from checking their status. Besides the obvious factors that limit vitamin D such as lack of sunlight and poor diet, there are more subtle causes such as the fact that some types of medicine may affect the body’s vitamin D absorption, thereby increasing the need for this particular nutrient.