Supplements 101: Vitamin D
It’s a family of nutrients that shares similarities in chemical structure. In your diet, the most commonly found members are vitamin D2 and D3. While both types help you meet your vitamin D requirements, they differ in a few important ways.
Research even suggests that vitamin D2 is less effective than vitamin D3 at raising blood levels of vitamin D. This article sums up the main differences between vitamin D2 and D3.
Bottom Line.
After all, this nutrient is essential to our immune system. * Like me, I know many of you are vitamin D fans.
Sadly, That Vitamin D Love (And Money) Can Go To Waste If You’Re Not Taking The Right Form Of Vitamin D. D3 Or D2?
Allow me to use an analogy to explain. Vitamin D3 and D2 are…nothing like that.
What Are The Main Differences Between Vitamin D And D3?
The term vitamin D is kind of a misnomer because you will not find anything labeled simply as “vitamin D” in a pharmacy vitamin aisle.
Rather, your choices will be vitamin D2 (What is vitamin D2?). Generally, when one mentions vitamin D, the implied selection is vitamin D2. The names can be confusing, because many times, patients go into the pharmacy looking for vitamin D and are surprised that there is a D2 and a D3.
Vitamin D (D2) comes from plant sources, such as wild mushrooms, as well as fortified foods, such as milk or cereal products. When your skin is exposed to sunlight, it produces vitamin D3. For this reason, it is sometimes referred to as the sunshine vitamin.
Its strength is also measured in international units.
Main Differences Between Vitamin D And D3 Vitamin D2 Vitamin D3 Drug Class Vitamin D Analog Vitamin D Analog Brand/Generic Status Brand And Generic Available Brand And Generic Available What Is The Generic Name?
What Is The Brand Name?
Ergocalciferol or vitamin D2
Drisdol, Calcidol, Calciferol Cholecalciferol, Vitamin D, Or Vitamin D3
Decara, Dialyvite D3 Max What Form(S) Does The Drug Come In?
Vitamin D3 Comes From Animals, Vitamin D2 From Plants
Vitamin D3 is known as cholecalciferol and is found in animals and animal products, including oily fish like salmon and mackerel.