One of the most important lessons I've ever had to learn involving doctors and nutritional advice is that just because someone is a physician doesn't necessarily mean that he or she is an expert in every subject that is in any way related to health.

I recently came across an article written by a medical doctor named Susan Hill that was filled with inaccuracies regarding vitamin D. Granted, I was already well aware that not every doctor is an expert in vitamin D, but I was surprised to see the doctor accept the writing assignment without first doing a bit of research to confirm her (inaccurate) beliefs on the matter.

She didn't know that vitamin D deficiency has been conclusively linked to an increased risk of cancer and heart disease, and also made misstatements involving vitamin D and depression. Specifically, she claimed that there was insufficient evidence to firmly establish a link between vitamin D deficiency and depression, or as she termed it, "winter blues."

She went on to list four health benefits of vitamin D, but to name only four is doing a grave injustice to the vitamin and to the mountains of research identifying literally dozens of other health benefits and preventable diseases.

Point being, unless you're having a one-on-one conversation with a doctor in which you can ask for clarification on certain things, you should still do your own research before accepting every health-related statement made by a physician as Gospel. Doctors are human too, and sometimes some doctors do have a tendency to speak out on matter about which they lack the knowledge if not the qualifications to speak as an authority on said subjects.