As Memorial Day weekend kicks off the unofficial start of summer, many people head to the beach, ready to soak up the sun—and with it, some vitamin D. But a new study suggests you don’t necessarily have to rely solely on sunshine or supplements to keep your vitamin D levels up.

Simply moving your body throughout the year, especially in the darkest months, may be just as critical as UV exposure when it comes to activating this crucial vitamin.

Published in Advanced Science, a new study (Perkin and colleagues, 2025) found that regular, moderate-intensity physical activity on most days of the week can help preserve the body’s active form of vitamin D, even during winter when sunlight is scarce. That’s important because the active form—1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D (1,25(OH)₂D₃)—is what your body uses to support bone density, immune function, and more.

Vitamin D Seasonality: Higher in Summer, Lower in Winter

For this study, researchers in the UK compared a group of participants who did four weekly cardio sessions (for example, walking on a treadmill, riding a stationary bike) to a control group that didn’t do aerobic exercise. Perkin and colleagues found a striking pattern: People who worked out four times a week were significantly more likely to maintain optimal levels of active vitamin D, regardless of the season. In contrast, those who were inactive saw their levels decline, especially in the darker, less sunny winter months. As the authors explain:

“Many adults become vitamin D deficient or insufficient during winter at northerly latitudes when cutaneous vitamin D synthesis does not occur. [Our] randomized controlled trial demonstrates that regular exercise completely maintains serum concentrations of the active vitamin D metabolite 1,25(OH)₂D₃ over winter.”

These findings are a potential game-changer, especially for those of us living in northern climates, where sunshine can be scarce from late fall through early spring. While physical activity will never entirely replace the need for sunlight, these findings highlight that movement is a practical, cost-effective tool for maintaining healthy vitamin D levels year-round.

Why Active Vitamin D Matters

To understand why this matters, it helps to know more about how vitamin D works. Most of the vitamin D we get—whether from sun, food, or supplements—is in its inactive form. To make it active, our bodies must convert it twice. First into 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D), the form typically measured in blood tests. Then into 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D, the biologically active version that works best in our cells.

The latest study shows that even though vitamin D metabolites typically experience seasonal declines during winter, physically active participants could better maintain the active form. And this wasn’t just a minor blip—it was significant enough to be considered clinically meaningful.

While the exact exercise-induced mechanism of action isn’t yet known, researchers suspect that cardio may help regulate the enzymes involved in activating vitamin D, possibly by reducing inflammation that otherwise interferes with the inactive-to-active conversion process.

A Bonus Benefit: Slowing the Aging Clock

If preserving vitamin D isn’t enough motivation to get you moving, another new study offers an extra nudge: Higher vitamin D levels may help slow the aging process.

Another new, soon-to-be-published study in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition (Zhu and colleagues, 2025) found that, on average, people with higher vitamin D levels had longer telomeres. These tiny protective caps on chromosomes’ ends usually shorten with age. Think of them as the plastic tips on shoelace ends; your DNA becomes more vulnerable to damage when these caps wear down.

Researchers tracked thousands of adults and found that those with higher vitamin D levels had biologically “younger” telomeres. Though the findings were observational, they align with earlier research linking vitamin D to lower inflammation and reduced cellular stress—factors that influence telomere length.

And because the first study showed that exercise helps preserve the active form of vitamin D, there’s a logical connection: Moving more could indirectly support longer telomeres by maintaining higher bioavailable levels of vitamin D. Exercise isn’t just good for heart health, bone strength, or trimmer waistlines—it may also help keep our cells youthful.

4 Workouts Per Week: A Simple, Powerful Goal

You don’t need to become a gym rat to reap these vitamin D benefits. The UK study focused on moderate-intensity physical activity, such as brisk walking or cycling, with one weekly high-intensity session. As long as you’re getting your heart rate up for about 30–45 minutes per day, four days a week, not only are you meeting recommended physical activity guidelines (150 minutes a week), you’re also helping your body sustain active vitamin D.

What About Supplements?

Vitamin D supplements still have their place, especially for people who are deficient or at higher risk for osteoporosis or bone loss. But the new findings suggest that supplementation alone might not be enough if you’re sedentary.

That’s because supplements provide vitamin D in its inactive form. Without regular movement, your body may be less able to convert it into the active version it uses. Rather than thinking of vitamin D supplements and exercise as either or, consider them teammates: One supplies the raw material, and the other helps your body activate and use it more effectively.

Take-Home Message

As summer begins and people head outside, it’s easy to think of vitamin D as a sunny seasonal bonus that fades around September’s autumn equinox. But new research flips that script: Regular physical activity can preserve active vitamin D year-round. And, by doing so, exercise may also help protect your body from the effects of aging on a telomeric level.

May is National Mental Health Awareness Month. Inaugurated in 1949 by the National Association for Mental Health — now known as Mental Health America — this year’s theme is Turn Awareness into Action, with a goal to help people take active steps to improve their own mental well-being. According to Ruth Ferguson, president of the board of directors of Marblehead Counseling Center, one in five Americans will have a diagnosable mental health condition in any given year. 

“What’s gotten better since 1949 is the recognition that anyone can have mental health issues,” says Ferguson, noting that MCC has been working on mental health and wellness issues on the North Shore for 55 years. “That has been a game-changer. Nearly everyone knows a friend, loved-one or coworker who has struggled.”

Awareness may be less of an issue today than it was 76 years ago, but research from MHA has also found that nearly 30% of adults with mental illness report they try and cannot find treatment.

“Helping everyone in need is an issue,” Ferguson agrees. She says MCC has been joined by the Marblehead community in trying to expand services to an increasing number of individuals and families. “For many years, the Center was a quiet refuge for many in the community,” she notes, “but the COVID pandemic exacerbated issues and created many more.”

Health and wellness includes more than just therapeutic interventions, and MCC is seeing an uptick in the need for social service support, which they also provide. 

“At MCC, we try and treat the whole client,” explains social worker Teri McDonough, the center’s  social service coordinator.

“We see families dealing with food insecurity, domestic violence, and legal issues,” McDonough adds. “Families who need translation services or have been evicted, or a partner has lost a job. Caregiving for a family member who has mental illness can cause related mental health crises. These are part of the mental health picture and have an enormous impact on anxiety, depression, feelings of hopelessness and familial instability in our clients.” 

McDonough, who has been with the center since 2014, says there has been an exponential increase of patients who need more complex social service interventions.

Marblehead Counseling Center continues to step up its programs in an attempt to reach those who are seeking help. Ferguson points to its telehealth online counseling program and the town of Marblehead’s allocation of federal ARPA dollars for additional support of MCC and its programs. “As the need increased, MCC expanded its space within the Hobbs Building, most recently renovating space to provide group counseling sessions.” 

Ferguson also points to the critical support of area charitable organizations, MCC sponsors and townspeople who’ve participated in recent fundraising efforts such as the Community Champions event at The Beacon and the Marblehead Pickleball-MCC tournament earlier this month, the yearly Gerry 5 VFA Thanksgiving fundraiser and two sold out shows featuring comedians Rob Delaney and Kelly McFarland this past winter, all of which help offset operating costs and expanded services at the center. In October, MCC will benefit from the semi-annual Marblehead Select Board golf tournament at Tedesco Country Club.

Though awareness of mental health concerns continues to grow, so do many of the problems that lead to crises. The idea behind the 2025 Turn Awareness into Action campaign is to offer some basic tools for starting a journey towards better mental health. The MHA has created a host of cool ‘self help’ tools that anyone can access online. These include self-assessment quizzes, a shopping list of foods that are good for brain health, and a May Mental Health Tips

calendar with 31 days of activities and strategies supporting mental well being. There are crisis hotline numbers, articles and worksheets about everything from making social connections to ways to volunteer your time and improve mental health, to a DIY mental health toolkit.

Of course, getting the therapeutic or professional help one needs is critical, says Ferguson, but so is the simple act of taking the first steps toward understanding one’s own mental health and wellness: taking action. 

“With 46% of Americans expected to meet the criteria for a diagnosable mental health condition sometime in their life,” she notes, “we need as many different paths towards getting people the help they need as possible.”

Online resources:

Marblehead Counseling Center

Mental Health America Mental Health Tips Calendar

Take a Mental Health Test

Mental Health Grocery List:

DIY Mental Health Toolkit:

Pamela Wheaton Shorr is a board member of the Marblehead Counseling Center.

Submitted Content

Kiera Mitchell is a redshirt freshman defender for the WSU soccer team.

Mitchell comes from Henderson, Nevada. She played for Albion Soccer Club in Las Vegas, the fourth-ranked team in Nevada, during high school.

In the 2024 offseason, Mitchell suffered a season-ending injury, so she spent her freshman year redshirting. She will make her WSU debut in 2025.

“Soccer is my life and my passion,” wrote Mitchell on her NCSA recruiting profile.

The 5-foot-11 defender wrote that she hopes to play professionally and will play whatever position it takes.

“I’m a centerback at heart,” wrote Mitchell. “But always looking to attack when possible.”

Now, however, Mitchell will be a defender for the Cougars in 2025.

The track season has ended for athletes in Lexington County following the conclusion of the South Carolina high School League track and field championships. 

Over the course of three days, athletes from all over South Carolina traveled to Spring Valley or Richland Northeast High School for the state championships. The best-of-the-best came together to compete head to head for gold in various track and field events. 

Each classification had its own meet. Two meets were held each day with one at each host site. 

In all, 43 Lexington County athletes left with a gold, silver or bronze medal. Many others finished in the top-eight to earn a spot on the expanded podium. 

Nine different athletes won a gold medal, and one program scored enough points to win the overall team championship. 

Gray Collegiate’s girls team won its second-consecutive state title, and first in 4A, after scoring 61 points. The War Eagles finished three points ahead of Daniel to win the championship. 

The War Eagle girls were propelled to first place thanks in part to an excellent showing from Tamara Steward. She finished the day with four medals, two gold, one silver and one bronze. 

Steward was on the track and in the field, finishing first in the girls 100m hurdles and long jump. She got a silver medal in the girls 400m hurdles and a bronze in the 4x100m relay. 

Taylor Jones, Aliyah Edwards and Zaria Gaines won a bronze medal as Steward’s relay teammates. 

Steward was not the only athlete to win multiple medals at the games. Her teammate Tresta Miller won two silvers in the 100-meter and 400-meter races. 

Gray’s Damarcus Gaither won three medals in the boys events, claiming first in the 200-meter run and 4×100-meter relay and second in the 400. 

Brookland-Cayce’s Aden Price won three medals, finishing first in the 400-meter race, third in the 100-meter and third in the 4×400-meter relay.  

In the 2A meet, a pair of Batesburg-Leesville athletes double-medaled in field events. Keira Frye won gold in the girls discus and shot put, while Ja’Quan Corleyearned bronze and silver in the same boys events. 

The state title meets mark the end of the high school track season in South Carolina. Some of the state’s top athletes will get the chance to keep running at national events early this summer. 

Below is a list of all the local athletes who medaled and what event they won it in. 

Lexington County athletes to medal

5A Division I 

Kendra Miles – Lexington – 2nd girls 1600m

Ciara Williams – Lexington – 2nd girls long jump

Josh Voegele – Lexington – 3rd boys 1600m

TyRon Ray – River Bluff – 3rd boys high jump

Patton Casto – River bluff – 3rd girls shot put

Tyler Brown – Dutch Fork – 3rd boys 4x800m relay

Evan DeMasi – Dutch Fork – 3rd boys 4x800m relay

Eli Johnson – Dutch Fork – 3rd boys 4x800m relay

Owen Warner – Dutch Fork – 3rd boys 4x800m relay

5A Division II 

Nyla Fair – White Knoll – 2nd 100m hurdles 

Summit Wood – Chapin – 3rd boys 3200m

Reagan Trevett – Chapin – 3rd girls 800m 

McKenzie Lindler – Chapin – 3rd girls pole vault

Reagan Trevett – Chapin – 3rd girls 4x800m relay

Lilly Holman – Chapin – 3rd girls 4x800m relay

Jacqueline Bonavilla – Chapin – 3rd girls 4x800m relay 

Addison Houmiel – Chapin – 3rd girls 4x800m relay

4A

Damarcus Gaither – Gray Collegiate – 1st boys 200m, 1st boys 4x100m relay, 2nd boys 400m

Kayden Garvin – Gray Collegiate – 1st boys 4x100m relay

Caleb Raysor – Gray Collegiate – 1st boys 4x100m relay

David Quattlebaum – Gray Collegiate – 1st boys 4x100m relay

Tamara Steward – Gray Collegiate – 1st girls 100m hurdles, 1st girls long jump, 2nd girls 400m hurdles, 3rd girls 4x100m relay

Taylor Jones – Gray Collegiate – 3rd girls 4x100m relay

Aliyah Edwards – Gray Collegiate – 3rd girls 4x100m relay

Zaria Gaines- Gray Collegiate – 3rd girls 4x100m relay

Tresta Miller – Gray Collegiate – 2nd girls 100m, 2nd girls 400m

DeAndre Jones – Brookland-Cayce – 1st boys high jump

Aden Price – Brookland-Cayce – 1st boys 400m, 3rd boys 100m, 3rd boys 4x400m relay

Isaiah Daniels – Brookland-Cayce – 3rd boys 4x400m relay

D’andre Dunbar – Brookland-Cayce – 3rd boys 4x400m relay

Jaylen Glover – Brookland-Cayce – 3rd boys 4x400m relay

London Paige – Brookalnd-Cayce – 3rd girls high jump

Aaliyrah Culbreath – Airport – 2nd girls long jump

​​Amari Lewis – Airport – 3rd boys 4x100m relay

Kyree Montgomery – Airport – 3rd boys 4x100m relay

Kendrick Pearson – Airport – 3rd boys 4x100m relay

Terrance Bolden – Airport – 3rd boys 4x100m relay

3A

Aza Shelby – Swansea – 3rd girls 100m hurdles, 3rd girls 400m hurdles 

2A

Madison Kyzer – Pelion – 1st – girls javelin 

Corey Campbell – Pelion – 2nd boys pole vault

Johnathan Davis – Pelion – 3rd boys 100m

Keira Frye – Batesburg-Leesville – 1st girls shot put, 1st girls discus 

Ja’Quan Corley – Batesburg-Leesville – 2nd boys shot put, 3rd boys discus