Muscle Building Blog

Children play football in Battersea Park on April 9, 2008 in London, England. After a spell of cold weather and snow over the weekend the sun is beginning to shine heralding the onset of spring.

Vitamin D is the sunshine vitamin - we make it when our skin is exposed to UV rays. In a perfect world everyone would eat fresh, organic foods, get outside, and enjoy a little sunshine all year round. But with today's busy lifestyles and concerns about skin cancer many people are vitamin D deficient and don't know it.

A recent joint study from Italy and the United States says there is evidence of a link between insufficient vitamin D, the vitamin generated by sunshine on the skin and the risk of developing depression, particularly in the elderly.

Americans who fall short in meeting their daily fruit and vegetable intakes based on government guidelines are also likely to fall short in common bone-building nutrients like calcium and vitamin D, according to a newly released report by the Nutrilite Health Institute called America's Phytonutrient Report: Bone Health by Color.

Anyone looking to take the “natural” route to muscle building and quality weight gain is always on the lookout for anything to get a leg up on their physiques. Well, recently a study was conducted that may give some positive nods to yogurt, calcium, and vitamin D….(notice I said “may”). Here’s the study first, then at the end of this article I’ll give you my personal thoughts on whether this will actually make a difference in building muscle mass or not: The International Society of Sports Nutri