Deficiencies are usually caused due to improper and inadequate diet, inability of the body to absorb and then use the required element. Increase in the requirement of the element or an increase in the body’s ability to excrete the element can also be a cause of vitamin deficiencies. And once the deficiency sets in, it manifests itself in the form of symptomatic diseases and problems. Symptoms of severe vitamin D deficiency are mostly related to bones – rickets in children and osteomalacia in adults. Rickets is a bone disease in which the bones do not get enough minerals to strengthen itself. This results in soft bones and subsequently to a deformed skeletal structure. Osteomalacia is a result of weakened bones and weakened muscles. The initial symptoms of osteomalacia will be pain in the bones and weakness in the muscles. Someone with a less severity of the vitamin D deficiency will display symptoms such as weight loss, loss of appetite, insomnia, diarrhea, or just a burning sensation in the mouth and the throat. People who are the most likely to fall victim to this deficiency are those who do not consume the adequate or recommended amount of this vitamin, who do not spend adequate amount of time in the sun (thus limiting the time that the skin and the bones are exposed to sunlight), those whose kidneys have stopped processing and breaking up this vitamin, and also those people whose digestive tract is not able to absorb this vitamin. Vitamin D falls in the category of vitamins that dissolve only in fat. This means that vitamin D requires the presence of certain amount of fat to be able to dissolve adequately in the body. Therefore, people who are unable to absorb the fat that is present in our daily diet will be at the risk of facing this deficiency.
The minute you come across any of these symptoms, it is advisable to get in touch with a qualified physician. These conditions not only require an overall dietary change but also require a certain amount of extra, supplementary intake of this vitamin, and this will be something that only your physician will be able to recommend. Along with that, you will need to work on your diet as well. Make it point to include fat-free or low-fat milk and milk products such as yogurt and cheese in your daily meals, cereals that are fortified with vitamin D, oranges, leans meats, fishes such as tuna, salmon, and mackerel, beans, egg yolks, beef liver, and nuts.