Supports teeth, bones, muscles, and immune system

D-Pearls are small, soft gelatin capsules with 25 μg (1000 International Units) of vitamin D3 in each capsule. Vitamin D is a lipid-soluble nutrient, so the vitamin D in this product is dissolved in high- quality cold-pressed olive oil for improved absorption in the digestive system. The capsule size makes them easy to swallow, but they can also be chewed. Research has shown that D-Pearls has excellent absorption in the body. Our vitamin D is sourced from lanolin, from sheep's wool.

Safety and quality

Pharma Nord's factory in Vojens, Denmark, manufactures both pharmaceutical drugs and dietary supplements. The company has chosen to manufacture all its products in compliance with pharmaceutical guidelines and rules for quality inspection. That way, consumers will always know that any Pharma Nord product meets the highest standards for quality, effect, and safety.

Minor variations may occur in the firmness of the vitamin D capsules due to fluctuations in temperature and humidity. Product tests carried out in our climate chambers show that this does not in any way affect the quality or the effect of the preparation.

D-Pearls has been on the European market since 2007.

A Norwegian research group (Grung et al) has shown that D-Pearls is a supplement with excellent absorption. In the study, two groups of teenagers received a daily supplement of vitamin D (38 µg/1,520 IU) or placebo, respectively, for three months.
In the placebo group, vitamin D levels in the blood remained virtually unchanged, whereas levels increased in the group that received D-Pearls.

The illustration above shows the development of vitamin D status during the three-month intervention period, when the two groups of teenagers received vitamin D or placebo capsules.
 

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In a study conducted by American and Norwegian researchers, he participants received D-Pearls 40 µg (1,600 IU) per day for four and a half months during the winter period, or matching placebo capsules. Vitamin D levels in the blood in both groups were measured at baseline and at the end of the study.
 
At study start, all participants had an average vitamin D blood level of 63 nmol/L with no major differences between the placebo group and the active treatment group. Upon completion of the study, vitamin D levels in the placebo group had dropped to 47 nmol/L. This is a completely natural and predictable decrease in vitamin D status during the time of year where your sun exposure is limited. In the group that received D-Pearls, however, blood levels of vitamin D rose to an average of 76 nmol/L.

The illustration shows the changes in vitamin D status over a 4.5-month period. Blood levels of the nutrient went up in the group that got 40 µg of vitamin D (D-Pearls) daily, whereas they plummeted in the group that received matching placebo capsules.

Vitamin D is a lipid-soluble vitamin. In order for the nutrient to be absorbed in the intestine, it must be ingested with some kind of dietary fat. Like most 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).

Vitamin D2 is only available from the diet. It is produced by certain fungi and plants when they are exposed to ultraviolet light.

Science used to believe that both forms of vitamin D were equally effective in the body. However, depending on what method is used to measure their effectiveness, vitamin D3 is 56-87 per cent more effective than vitamin D2 in terms of 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 have an increased need for vitamin D. The same goes for nursing home residents.

Vitamin D has an array of important functions in the body. For instance, vitamin D:

•     Is important for normal cell division
•     Helps to maintain normal bones and teeth
•     Contributes to normal absorption and utilization of calcium and phosphorus
•     Plays a role in the body's immune system and muscle function
   

Sources of Vitamin D

There are two primary sources of vitamin D: Sunlight and diet.

Vitamin D from the sun

On the surface of our skin we have a cholesterol precursor that is converted into vitamin D when exposed to UV-rays form sunlight. Once it has been exposed to sunlight it is reabsorbed in the body and converted (hydroxylated) in a two-step process, first in the liver and then in the kidneys and in other tissues. Once these two steps are completed, vitamin D has become active.

Sunlight is our main source of vitamin D but the synthesis is only possible when the sun sits sufficiently high in the sky. In large parts of Europe, this is limited to the period from April through September.

Rule of thumb

To form vitamin D from sunlight, the UV index must be at least 3 or higher. The UV index is used to measure the intensity of the sun's ultraviolet radiation. If you are in doubt about whether you can make vitamin D from the sun, simply look at your shadow to determine the sun's position in the sky. If your shadow on a horizontal surface in the sun is equal in length to your height, then the altitude of the sun above the horizon is 45 degrees. This position enables vitamin D synthesis.

Vitamin D from the diet

It is difficult to get a sufficient amount of vitamin D from the diet alone, partly because one of best sources of the nutrient is oily fish such as salmon, herring, and mackerel, and people generally do not eat all that much fish. Vitamin D is also found in limited amounts in meat, milk, and eggs. In the plant kingdom, vitamin D is available in small amounts in certain fungi. The best dietary sources of vitamin D are:

Cooking, baking, and frying result in a certain loss of vitamin  D from foods.

According to research, daily supplementation with vitamin D is a more effective way of increasing blood levels of the nutrient than taking larger weekly or monthly doses.

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 (older people have reduced skin synthesis of vitamin D and their intestinal absorption of vitamin D is impaired)
• People older than 70 years
• Anyone with an increased risk of osteoporosis, regardless of their age

Vegans and vegetarians are advised to follow 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 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25-(OH)D) and is expressed in nmol/L. Vitamin D status is graduated in the following way:

> = greater than
< = less than

Vitamin D conversion
 

• 1 nmol/l = 0.4 ng/ml ~ 0.4 µg/L
• 25 µg = 1,000 IU (international units)

Measurement of vitamin D

The best way to determine your vitamin D status is a blood test. Normal, healthy individuals who eat a balanced diet and are exposed to sunlight generally don't have to worry about their vitamin D status, but certain groups are advised to have their vitamin D levels checked. Science has found that people with dark skin synthesize less vitamin D in their skin that light-skinned people. There is also a relation between low vitamin D status in the blood and overweight and obesity, which is because vitamin D is stored in the body's fat tissue.

Besides obvious vitamin D-limiting factors such as lack of sunlight and unhealthy eating habits, there are more subtle things that can have a negative impact on your vitamin D status. For example, certain types of medicine may impair the body's absorption of vitamin D, thereby increasing the need for the nutrient.

Aging affects us differently, depending on our genes and lifestyle. Still, everyone finds that, over time, the body becomes worn out and functions less efficiently. This phenomenon is part of the normal aging process and can also have an effect on our need for vitamin D.

Most of the body's cells have vitamin D receptors (VDR) which are small structures on the cells’ surface that are activated by active vitamin D3. The presence of these receptors in literally all our different tissues explains the universal need for vitamin D in our entire body.

• The immune system

It became clear that vitamin D contributes to the normal functioning of the immune system when it was discovered that various white blood cells such as macrophages and dendritic cells as well as T and B lymphocytes are equipped with vitamin D receptors. Vitamin D enables these immune cells to carry out their different functions. For example, it has been shown that vitamin D activates genes in the cell nucleus. These genes encode peptides that inhibit viruses, bacteria, and fungi.

Our immune system reaches its peak efficiency in the teenage years. Even in healthy, elderly people, the immune system is more vulnerable to new infections that it has never encountered earlier. Elderly people produce fewer white blood cells, and the level of inflammation in their body is higher than what you see in younger people. Older people must be sure to get enough vitamin D.

• Bone tissue

Our bone mass reaches its peak strength when we are in our 20s and 30s. From that point onward, our bone tissue gradually loses its strength due to demineralization. Vitamin D is necessary for maintaining normal bones and teeth because the nutrient helps us maintain normal calcium levels in bone tissue and in the blood.

From the age of 40, our bonen mass gradually starts to deteriorate. The loss amounts to 0.5% annually for men, whereas women lose twice that amount due to hormone changes.

• Muscle function

Our muscles also need vitamin D to function normally. The ability of muscles to contract is dependent on calcium ions. As previously mentioned, vitamin D regulates levels of calcium in the blood and in this is important for muscle function.

As we get older, the number of vitamin D receptors in muscle tissue decreases. This results in a gradual loss of muscle mass and muscle strength. The heart muscle, on the other hand, is not significantly affected by this.

• Skin and mucous membranes

It is known that the body produces a precursor of vitamin D in the skin when exposed to sunlight of a certain intensity. Factors that can prevent or reduce this vitamin D synthesis include severe air pollution, too much clothing, dark skin, overuse of sunscreen, obesity, the sun sitting too low in the sky, and old age.

With increasing age, the amount of collagen and elastin decreases, causing the skin to lose elasticity and strength and become more wrinkled. The skin becomes less efficient at producing vitamin D from sunlight, and the digestive tract becomes less efficient at absorbing vitamin D.

The hardness of our soft gelatin capsules can vary. The difference depends solely on the water content of the capsule shell. We dry all our soft capsules before packaging, which makes the capsules firmer and facilitates the packaging process itself. Over time, the capsules can absorb water from the air, and this will soften the capsule shell.

The variations in the hardness of the capsule have no effect on the product quality, but if a hard capsule is a problem, a solution may be to leave the capsule outside the blister sheet for a day, whereby the capsule can absorb a little water from the air. This is generally not something we recommend, as the product will no longer be protected as when it is in the blister sheet. Another method of quickly softening the gelatin capsule is to place it in lukewarm water for one minute. However, it should be seen as an emergency solution.

The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has evaluated the evidence behind vitamin D and has acknowledged the following claims:

• Contributes to normal absorption/utilization of calcium and phosphorus
• Contributes to normal blood calcium levels
• Contributes to the maintenance of normal bones
• Contributes to the maintenance of normal muscle function
• Contributes to the maintenance of normal teeth
• Contributes to normal function of the immune system
• Has a role in the cell division process
• For men and women aged 60 years and older: Vitamin D helps to reduce the risk of falling as a result of postural instability and muscle weakness. Falling increases the risk of bone fractures in men and woman 60 years of age and older. (Art 14a)