A major problem we have in life is the inability to ask questions we don’t know to ask. I discuss this in my recent book, Fluid of Life – What doctors never told me about my blood.
As if to prove this point, a week after this book launched, material I was reading inspired me to ask a question. That question provided an answer that if I had thought about it, I would have guessed it. However, I never knew to ask, so I hadn’t thought about it.
The question was: Do chickens that get exposed to sunlight have more Vitamin D in their eggs than chickens raised in enclosed facilities?
I asked this question because Vitamin D is essential to our over-all health, and it plays a role in iron absorption. One of the foods said to contain Vitamin D naturally is eggs. According to a simple search online, 1 large raw egg has 41 IU of Vitamin D. Preparing it changes this slightly, but not a lot.
However, that’s not the full story. When I looked for answers to my question, I found various ones, but they all said the same thing: chickens exposed to sunlight produce eggs with higher Vitamin D.
One source said at least four times the amount. Another said 10 times the amount. This article in the Daily Mail, “Vitamin D makes free-range eggs better for you,” stated, ‘Researchers discovered that yolks from birds that are allowed to wander outdoors contain up to 30 per cent more vitamin D than those from birds kept in sheds or cages.’ [published: December 4, 2016]
If you want more science, check out this study at the National Library of Medicine: UVB Exposure of Farm Animals: Study of a Food-Based Strategy to Bridge the Gap between Current Vitamin D Intakes and Dietary Targets by Richard C. Willson [Posted: July 24, 2013]
The conclusion is, when someone is trying to increase blood volume and is looking at the numbers for Vitamin D, it’s important to consume eggs laid by chickens exposed to the sun. And, according to the National Library of Medicine article, it’s important to consume chicken meat of chickens that have also been exposed to the sun.
But don’t take my word for it. Ask the question. Do your own research. You may discover something I haven’t.
Written by Diana Tibert, author of Fluid of Life
The book is available to Kindle Unlimited Members and the world at Amazon.
To our health.
Quarter Castle Publishing 