Can Vitamin D really help prevent you from developing cancer?

Once only associated with strong bones and teeth, new scientific research is finding that Vitamin D can cut your risk of developing common cancers by as much as 50%.

Researchers in the U.S. have found that the "natural" form of Vitamin D, D3 or cholecalciferol, can dramatically cut our chances of getting breast, ovarian, colon, and prostate cancers by up to 50%.

What form of Vitamin D is Best?

Remember that your body has the ability to manufacture its own Vitamin D through direct exposure to sunlight. This form of Vitamin D is called Vitamin D3 or cholecalciferol. This of course is the best form of the vitamin.

The synthetic form is Vitamin D2 or ergocalciferol. This is what is used to fortify milk for instance. It is estimated that it takes twice as much D2 to get the same benefit as Vitamin D3.

Vitamin D3 can also be found in oily fish such as salmon (3 ounces = 530 IU), sardines (3 ounces = 231 IU), and Mackerel (3 ounces = 214 IU).

Unfortunately not all of us can get the required amount of sunlight necessary to produce enough Vitamin D3.

Some of us have fair skin and need to use sunscreen when we venture outdoors. Some of us have dark skin and do not produce as much Vitamin D3 due to our skin pigment.

And of course, the cold parts of the year can keep most of us indoors or bundled up when we do head outside.

And also unless you eat lots of oily fish, you are not going to get your 1000 IU there either.