Preventing fractures saves lives 
Blood test for Vitamin D
Test for osteoporosis - bone density test
Vitamin D and Cancer
Vitamin D and Multiple Sclerosis (MS) and the immune system
Vitamin D and Diabetes
Vitamin D and pregnancy
Vitamin D and rheumatoid arthritis
 
Preventing hip fractures saves lives.
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In spite of this improvement in treatment a fracture is often the beginning of the end: many of the patients who are successfully operated on die a year or two later. Doctors believe that the reduced activity levels caused by the fracture and subsequent surgery and convalescence affect the general health of these elderly people. Their cardiovascular system is already on the edge of dysfunction: the injury tips them into cardiovascular difficulties which lead to death.

Testing for Vitamin D 
There is a lab test for the active ingredient in Vitamin D3 (serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D - normal  levels between 25 and 90 nmol/L). If you are on the lower end of normal you probably need Vit D supplementation, especially if you are in the hip-fracture risk group. (A polite way of saying "if you are an older person!")
 
Testing fore osteoporosis - Bone density test.
This is a painless test using special Xrays which detect the mineral content of bone, BMD, bone mineral density. Osteoporosis is the thinning of bone which occurs with age. Women who have estrogen sensitive cancer will be put on anti-estrogen drugs which may worsen the natural aging process on bones. They need a bone density test before starting the medication and at regular intervals afterwards to measure any increased loss of bone.

Vitamin D and cancer  A US study (University of California, San Diego) showed that taking 1000 IU (25 micrograms) of Vit D3 daily reduced the danger of developing cancers of the colon (50%), breast and ovary (30%) and prostate cancer.
Exposure to the sun's rays protects against some cancers - bladder,breast,esophagus,kidney, lung, multiple myeloma, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, ovary, pancreas, prostate, rectum, stomach, uterus. This has been proven over many decades in observational studies.
A study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition showed that women who took vitamin D and calcium developed significantly less cancer of  the breast, bowel, lung, and lymphoma, leukemia, and myeloma. The serum Vitamin D levels were significant predictors of cancer risk. Calculations showed a 35% reduction in cancer risk for every 10 mg/ml increase in serum Vitamin D levels.

Vitamin D and MS and the immune system  Multiple Sclerosis is a debilitating and sometimes fatal disease of the brain and spinal column. It is genetic. It is not strongly inherited: you need several genetic defects plus several environmental factors to produce MS. Recent studies have shown a relationship with Vitamin D. A mouse form of MS can be prevented by Vit D3. It works by regulating the immune system.
A study from the University of Wisconsin suggests that Vitamin D3 may help prevent people who have the genetic tendency to MS from developing the disease.
Geography: MS is rare in high sunlight areas, lowest at the Equator. Swiss studies show high incidence at low altitude, low incidence at high altitude. (Sunlight intensity is higher at high altitude and sunlight is needed for the formation of Vit D.) In Norway people who live by the sea have low incidence and inland Norwegians have a higher incidence. Coastal people eat more fish, and fish oil is high in Vit D.
Eskimos almost never develop MS. They eat cold water fish and seal meat, very high in Vitamin D.

Vitamin D and Diabetes  Vitamin D deficiency in childhood may predispose to type 1 diabetes in later life. Type 1 is the earlier onset type, needing insulin injections.
Vitamin D has been shown to have an effect on insulin production and use and may predispose a person to type 2 diabetes. Type 2 is the obesity related type, older onset, can be controlled by diet, exercise and medications. Severe type 2 may need insulin.

Vitamin D and Pregnancy/Lactation 
The Ministry of Health in the UK has determined that women who are pregnant, or about to become pregnant, or are breastfeeding should take extra Vitamin D especially in winter. Vitamin D deficiency in the mother can affect the development of the heart, brain and bones in the child.
  Vitamin D and rheumatoid arthritis
RA (Rheumatoid Arthritis) is a complex disease with genetic and other factors that contribute to its cause. It may be an overactivity of the immune system that causes the body to start attacking the joints.
High vitamin  D intake is associated with a lower incidence of RA