Welcome to the Phoenix Helix podcast dedicated to maximizing autoimmune health through the

paleo-autoimmune protocol and functional medicine. While there is no cure for autoimmune disease,

the choices we make every day can have a powerful impact on how we feel. I'm Eileen Laird, your host from

PhoenixHelix.com, and I reduced my rheumatoid arthritis pain by 95%,

which took me from a life of excruciating pain and disability back to a full and beautiful life.

A short disclaimer, I'm neither a doctor nor a nutritionist, and the opinions expressed here are personal.

Always consult with your health care team before making medical decisions. Now let's get on to the show.

Welcome to Episode 179.

Our topic today is vitamin D and autoimmune disease.

Our bodies produce vitamin D naturally when exposed to sunshine under the right conditions.

When people don't get enough, they often choose to supplement.

Is that an even trade? Vitamin D supports many roles in the human body, including immune system

regulation. That's one of the reasons it's so often recommended for people with autoimmune disease.

So how do you know if you're deficient in vitamin D? What are optimal levels?

And what factors influence those levels beyond sunshine? We'll be answering these questions

and more in today's podcast. My guest is Dr. William Mitchell, a naturopathic doctor whose

expertise is autoimmune disease. He was on my podcast once before in

episode 148, Diagnosis Detective. If anyone listening is currently undiagnosed, I highly recommend that

conversation. And I'm excited to have him back on the show. Welcome, Dr. Mitchell.

Eileen, thanks for having me. Pleasure to be here.

Before we dive into the conversation, though, let's give a shout out to our podcast

sponsor, Araza Beauty. Our skin absorbs what we put on it so it's wise to read product

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