Vitamin D and zinc both play important roles in your health -- for example, vitamin D controls physiological processes including blood pressure regulation and cell growth, while zinc maintains reproductive health. While zinc and vitamin D don't interact directly, they share several connections due to their complementary effects on several organs in your body. Include both nutrients in your diet, and you'll help maintain strong tissue and prevent disease.
Effects on Cell Communication
Zinc and vitamin D share a connection because they both aid in cell communication. Vitamin D has the ability to bind to proteins, called vitamin D receptors, which are found in a range of cells throughout your body. Once vitamin D binds to its receptor, it can interact with your DNA, activating or suppressing genes, which triggers a response in your cells. Zinc aids in healthy cell signaling by making up a component of transcription factors -- proteins that control the activity of your genes -- and because it controls hormone release.
Effect on Immunity
Both vitamin D and zinc play an important role in immune function. Several types of immune cells contain vitamin D receptors, and exposure to vitamin D helps control their activity, regulating your ability to mount an immune response. Getting enough vitamin D also helps prevent overactivation of your immune system, which in turn helps control auto-immune diseases. The zinc from your diet also supports healthy immune function -- it promotes the development of immune cells to help fight off infection. Even a mild zinc deficiency can negatively affect your immune system, increasing your risk of infection.
Effect on Bone Health
Vitamin D and zinc have an effect on your bones. Vitamin D regulates your body's calcium levels, and too much or too little vitamin D can cause calcium to leach from your bone tissue into your blood, triggering bone loss, whereas healthy vitamin D levels help maintain strong bone tissue. Zinc also contributes to strong bones. It regulates gene activity in developing bone cells and prevents the development of osteoclasts -- the cell type that destroys old bone tissue -- reports a study published in "Cell Communication and Signaling." It also activates genes needed to make osteoblasts, the cells that deposit new bone tissue, according to a study in the August 2013 issue of "Biological Trace Element Research." Overall, this means that zinc prevents bone degradation and promotes bone tissue growth.
Intake Recommendations and Sources
The Institute of Medicine recommends small amounts of vitamin D and zinc daily -- just 15 micrograms of vitamin D, and 8 or 11 milligrams of zinc for women and men, respectively. Simply adding fatty fish and dairy products to your diet helps you consume more vitamin D -- for example, a 6-ounce portion of canned salmon contains your entire recommended daily intake, while each 8-ounce serving of cow's milk contains 2.5 micrograms. You can also get vitamin D from sun exposure, although some climates require more time in the sun than others. Fish, meat and shellfish boost your zinc intake, while chickpeas and almonds serve as vegetarian-friendly zinc sources.
- Linus Pauling Institute: Vitamin D
- Linus Pauling Institute: Zinc
- Linus Pauling Institute: Nutrition and Immunity
- Linus Pauling Institute: Micronutrients and Bone Health
- Biological Trace Element Research: Effects of Zinc Transporter on Differentiation of Bone Marrow Mesenchymal Stem Cells to Osteoblasts
- Cell Communcation and Signaling: Zinc Inhibits Osteoclast Differentiation by Suppression of Ca2+-Calcineurin-NFATc1 Signaling Pathway
- Stockbyte/Stockbyte/Getty Images