A recent New York Times article discusses how the amount of vitamin D you get affects your health. Getting too little can cause health problems, but so can getting too much.

People who do not get enough sunlight, babies that are breast-fed, seniors, and people living in nursing homes often do not get enough vitamin D. If you do not get enough vitamin D, you are at a greater risk for many chronic illnesses.

However, too much vitamin D can cause vomiting, poor appetite and weight loss. It’s very hard to get to those “toxic” levels especially if you are not taking vitamin D supplements.

Vitamin D is an important nutrient that your brain, heart, muscles, and immune system use. The body’s main way of getting vitamin D is by absorbing sunlight through the skin. You can also get vitamin D by eating certain fish such as canned tuna, salmon, mackerel and bluefish. Cereal and orange juice are also sources of vitamin D.