Vitamin D3 yields more calcifediol than its relative, making it more effective at increasing your total calcifediol levels in the blood. Collectively these two compounds are called calcifediol, and this is the circulating form of vitamin D measured in your blood levels. Vitamin D2 is metabolized into 25-hydroxyvitamin D2 and vitamin D3 into 25-hydroxyvitamin D3. Each is effectively absorbed into the blood, but once in the liver, the vitamins are processed differently. Vitamin D2 is cheaper to produce, so it is found in fortified foods more often than you would find vitamin D3.īoth vitamin D2 and vitamin D3 are able to increase your overall vitamin D levels, but vitamin D3 is more effective in this role. Vitamin D2 comes from plant sources and fortified foods, and vitamin D3 is found in animal sources such as oily fish, liver, and egg yolks. It is vitamin D3 that is produced when your skin is exposed to the sun. Vitamin D is commonly known as the sunshine vitamin, as sun exposure triggers vitamin D production in the skin. However, there are important differences between these two forms. Vitamin D2 and vitamin D3 are the most commonly found members of this family.īoth vitamins will help you achieve required daily levels of vitamin D, and will help to support calcium absorption and bone health as well as support immune function. Vitamin D is not just one vitamin, but rather a family of nutrients that have similar chemical structures.

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