The autopsy and dna will hopefully confirm where the whale came from, but I wouldn't be surprised if the whale was held in captivity at some point. A few in the state have recently changed hands, and we have had a lot of controversy surrounding orcas, especially.

We don't have orcas. We do have aquariums that have been caught doing unethical things to orcas.

I don't know why you are being downvoted. I think the likelihood of it being from an aquarium or illegal trade is greater than it happening naturally. This has never happened before. I've seen Pilot wales beach themselves, but not a fucking Orca.

I haven't gotten rechecked yet, but I feel better.

That doesn't seem like very much.

According to this rebuttal of the study, only 12.7% of the participants tested for vitamin D levels prior to the study (61%) were baseline deficient in Vitamin D. So 39% of participants weren't tested for baseline levels of vitamin D. Also, they did not account for body weight, other Vitamin D supplementation, sunlight exposure, or clothing coverage.

I think the Vital study was examining vitamin D supplementation in general. Not a great design.

I agree there is more to know, and before I was diagnosed with a vitamin D deficiency, I went to my ophthalmologist for a peripheral vision test because I was having the issues you are describing.

I feel you. I was taught from a young age to stay out of the sun as much as possible and wear sunscreen at all times to prevent aging, and sure enough I was diagnosed with a severe vitamin D deficiency. Now I go outside during peak sun and expose my back (largest surface) for about 10 minutes. I also take D3 supplements, which is a better version for those of us who don't like sun.

Here is a meta-analysis.

I was told to stand in noon-1pm full sun with my back exposed for half the time it took my skin to turn pink, which is like 10 minutes. Darker skin would require longer sun exposure.

My gastro didn't inform me that the medication he prescribed for GERD would inhibit vitamin D absorption in the gut, and he was my gastro for almost 20 years. I wasn't screened for vit d deficiency until I was 40, and my NP caught the deficiency. I should have been screened much sooner.

Take a D3 supplement daily. I usually take mine in a hair, skin, and nails vitamin. I couldn't shake my deficiency on prescription D2, but was able to with daily D3.

Make sure it's D3. I had a vitamin D deficiency really bad and was prescribed D2, which still required sun. I didn't start feeling better until taking a daily D3 for a few months.

Just to add, the mesolithic hunter gatherers of Scandinavia and Europe had dark skin for around 40k years or more after their migration out of Africa. There wasn't a need for them to adapt their melanin to colder climates because they ate a diet rich in vitamin D3, creating a shortcut that doesn't require sun exposure. They consumed fish, the livers of large mammals, and mushrooms. They were also lactose intolerant like their African ancestors. They did have the mutations for light eyes.

It wasn't until migrations to the area during the neolithic period that farming was introduced to this area, and hunter gatherers lived with farming societies for a thousand years or so before the complete adoption of agriculture. These migrations, along with climate change, the loss of hunter gatherer diet, genetic mutations for lactose tolerance, mutations regarding immunity, and sexual selection, led to lighter skin, which just happened in the last 4k years or so. Archeological evidence coupled with DNA show that vitamin D deficiency did become a problem during this transition.

I'm glad you brought up vitamin D deficiency, because it is really a problem, especially for those with darker skin near the equator. They have fewer natural sources of D3, and some cultural and religious practices in these areas lead to women, who need Vitamin D the most for bone health because of estrogen, to suffer from vitamin D deficiency in the highest numbers. The children in these areas are disproportionately affected as well.