vitamin D

[EAMom]

I thought this was an interesting theory re vitamin D and autism. http://www.vitamindcouncil.org/health/auti...ry-autism.shtml

It discusses how the rise in austim may be linked decreased exposure to sun (less time outdoors) and increased use of sunscreen (so body is able to produce less vit D).

 

There is also a lot (if you google) on Vitamin D and MS, other autoimmune diseases, cancer.

[myrose]

Hello EAMOM,

 

A friend of mine has a friend whose husband was diagnosed with cancer. His cancer Doctor pulled her aside one day and told her to take 1000 milligrams of D3 (not just D) everyday. He said to trust him and that his whole family takes it.

That was over a year ago and I have been taking it everyday since then.

Just thought I would pass on.....

[myrose]

Forgot to add that my daughter also takes it but only 500 a day.

[TiredMom]

Forgot to add that my daughter also takes it but only 500 a day.

 

 

I was looking online for a chewable vitamin D supplement for my daughter (she can't swallow pills yet), but with no luck. What brand does your daughter take? Thanks very much!

[EAMom]

Flintstones with Iron has 400 IU...i hope that would be enough in Northern CA assuming our kids are getting a little sunshine on top of that? My kids don't use sunscreen in the fall/winter.

 

I know that make liquid and chewable pill versions of vit D but haven't been able to find much in the way of reviews...

[ajcire]

That is interesting.. I just had bloodwork done for my ds for the first time to try to figure out if this is pandas and the dr. checked off to check vit. d because he said they have been seeing an increase in low vit. d...

 

My mother coincidentally was just put on a very high dose of vitamin d by her regular dr. after routine bloodwork.

[EAMom]

That is interesting.. I just had bloodwork done for my ds for the first time to try to figure out if this is pandas and the dr. checked off to check vit. d because he said they have been seeing an increase in low vit. d...

 

My mother coincidentally was just put on a very high dose of vitamin d by her regular dr. after routine bloodwork.

 

Hi Erica,

older people and darker skinned people (more melanin) are more likely to be Vit D deficient. You are also more likely to be deficient the farther away from the equator you are. Of course, some people go so nuts over the sunscreen nowadays that it's possible to have a problem anywhere! Does your mom where makeup?...a lot of makeup nowadays has sunscreen built in. Also, kids it seems that kids spend a lot more time inside vs 30 years ago.

[myrose]

We take cholecalciferol (vitamin D3) not the D2

 

Here is some info on the cancer part (I have taken 1000mg daily for almost a year now. My daughter too but only 500.

 

The best way is to get your levels checked, you may need really high doses to bring you up and than maintain with a different does.

There is no way to tell unless you have the levels checked. You could take it everyday and it wouldn't matter if your levels are not correct.

 

The first thing I noticed after I started taking it was the INCREASE in energy! WOW

 

 

 

 

Vitamin D3 is one of the most useful nutritional tools we have at our disposal for improving overall health. This vitamin is unique because cholecalciferol (Vitamin D3) is a vitamin derived from 7-dehyrocholesterol; however, Vitamin D3 acquires hormone-like actions when cholecalciferol (Vitamin D3) is converted to 1,25-dihydroxy Vitamin D3 (Calcitriol) by the liver and kidneys. As a hormone, Calcitriol controls phosphorus, calcium, and bone metabolism and neuromuscular function. Vitamin D3 is the only vitamin the body can manufacture from sunlight (UVB). Yet, with today’s indoor living and the extensive use of sunscreens due to concern about skin cancer, we are now a society with millions of individuals deficient in life-sustaining bone building and immune modulating 1,25-dihydroxy Vitamin D3.

 

For more than a century, scientists have recognized that Vitamin D3 is involved in bone health. Research has continued to accumulate, documenting Calcitriol’s role in the reduction of the risk of fractures to a significant degree. The latest research, however, shows that 1,25-dihyroxy Vitamin D3 deficiency is linked to a surprising number of other health conditions such as depression, back pain, cancer, both insulin resistance and pre-eclampsia during pregnancy, impaired immunity and macular degeneration.

 

As it becomes clear that Vitamin D3 plays a wide role in overall health, it’s becoming equally clear that a large percentage of individuals are deficient in this important nutrient, which has hormone-like activity. The fear of skin cancer has stopped many individuals from obtaining beneficial amounts of sunlight. The skin uses the energy of UVB to convert 7-dehydrocholesterol into Vitamin D3. Even individuals, who venture out into the sun often and use suntan lotion, may be deficient in Vitamin D3. Furthermore, as we age, we are less equipped to produce sufficient quantities of this vital nutrient. One study found that age-related declines in kidney function may require older people to ingest more Vitamin D3 to maintain the same blood levels as younger people.1

 

The Recommended Daily Intake (RDI) of Vitamin D3 is set so low those mature individuals who consume this small amount (400 to 600 International Unites (I.U.’s)) are still likely to be deficient if they live north of the Tropic of Cancer or south of the Tropic of Capricorn. In fact, researchers have discovered that the RDI, which was considered adequate to prevent osteomalacia (a painful bone disease) or rickets, is not high enough to protect against the majority of diseases linked to 1,25-dihyroxy Vitamin D3 deficiency. For example, an analysis of the medical literature found that at least 1,000 to 2,000 IU of Vitamin D3 per day is necessary to reduce the risk of colorectal cancer and that lower doses of Vitamin D3 did not have the same protective effect.2

 

Researchers Call for Higher Doses

 

In an editorial in the March 2007 edition of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, a prominent group of researchers from leading institutions such as the University of Toronto, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Tufts University and University Hospital in Zurich, Switzerland, lashed out at the conventional media for its inaccurate reporting of Vitamin D supplementation.3

 

The researchers wrote, “Almost every time the public media report that Vitamin D nutrition status is too low, or that higher Vitamin D intakes may improve measures of health, the advice that accompanies the report is outdated and thus misleading. Media reports to the public are typically accompanied by a paragraph that approximates the following: ‘Current recommendations from the Institute of Medicine call for 200 IU/day from birth through age 50 years, 400 IU for those aged 51–70 years, and 600 IU for those aged >70 years. Some experts say that optimal amounts are closer to 1,000 IU daily. Until more is known, it is wise not to overdo it.’ The only conclusion that the public can draw from this is to do nothing different from what they have done in the past.”

 

The researchers point out that supplemental intake of 400 IU per day barely raises blood concentrations of 25(OH)D, which is the circulating Vitamin D metabolite that serves as the most frequently measured indicator of Vitamin D status. To raise 25(OH)D from 50 to 80 nmol/L requires an additional intake of 1,700 IU Vitamin D per day.

 

The researchers went on to write that, “The balance of the evidence leads to the conclusion that the public health is best served by a recommendation of higher daily intakes of Vitamin D. Relatively simple and low-cost changes, such as increased food fortification or increasing the amount of Vitamin D in Vitamin supplement products, may very well bring about rapid and important reductions in the morbidity associated with low Vitamin D status.”

 

One of the challenges is the outdated acceptable upper limit for Vitamin D3 consumption, which was set at 2,000 IU. However, researchers point out that more recent studies have shown that 10,000 IU is the safe upper limit.4

 

Dr. R. Vieth, one of the foremost authorities on Vitamin D3 supplementation, has extensively studied Vitamin D, and lamented the low requirements for Vitamin D3 in a recent issue of the Journal of Nutrition: “Inappropriately low UL [upper limit] values, or guidance values, for Vitamin D have hindered objective clinical research on Vitamin D nutrition; they have hindered our understanding of its role in disease prevention, and restricted the amount of Vitamin D in multivitamins and foods to doses (that are) too low to benefit public health.”5

 

When examining the medical literature, it becomes clear that Vitamin D3 affects human health in an astonishing number of ways and that not obtaining enough of this important nutrient can leave the door open to developing a number of health conditions.

 

Depression

 

Vitamin D3 deficiency is common in older adults and has been implicated in psychiatric and neurologic disorders. For example, in one study of 80 older adults (40 with mild Alzheimer’s disease and 40 nondemented persons), Vitamin D3 deficiency was associated with low mood and with impairment on two of four measures of cognitive performance.6

 

Back Pain

 

Musculoskeletal disorders have been linked to Vitamin D3 deficiency in a number of studies. One of the newest studies explored the role that low Vitamin D3 levels play in the development of chronic low back pain in women. Sixty female patients in Egypt complaining of low back pain lasting more than three months were studied. Researchers measured levels of Vitamin D3 in the women with low back pain and compared those levels to those of 20 matched healthy controls.

 

The study revealed that patients with low back pain had significantly lower Vitamin D3 levels than controls. Low Vitamin D3 levels (25 OHD < 40 ng/ml) were found in 49/60 patients (81 percent) and 12/20 (60 percent) of controls.7

 

Bone Health

 

One of the best known and long-established benefits of Vitamin D3 is its ability to improve bone health and the health of the musculoskeletal system. It is well documented that Vitamin D3 deficiency causes osteopenia, precipitates and exacerbates osteoporosis, causes a painful bone disease known as osteomalacia, and exacerbates muscle weakness, which increases the risk of falls and fractures. Vitamin D3 insufficiency may alter the regulatory mechanisms of parathyroid hormone (PTH) and cause a secondary hyperparathyroidism that increases the risk of osteoporosis and fractures.8

 

Cognitive Enhancement

 

Scientists are developing a greater appreciation for Vitamin D3’s ability to improve cognition. In a recent study, Vitamin D3 deficient subjects scored worse on mental function tests compared to individuals who had higher levels of the Vitamin.9 The researchers wrote, “In conclusion, the positive, significant correlation between serum 25(OH)D concentration and MMSE [mental state examination scores] in these patients suggests a potential role for Vitamin D in cognitive function of older adults.”

 

Cancer

 

One researcher first noted the connection between Vitamin D3 and protection from cancer in the 1940s, when he discovered that individuals at sunny latitudes had a reduced rate of deaths from cancer. He suggested that sunlight provided “a relative cancer immunity.”

Since then, a number of studies have strongly suggested that Vitamin D3 deficiency is associated with an increased risk of developing many forms of cancer including breast, ovarian, prostate and colon cancer.10 In one recent clinical trial, researchers studied 1,179 healthy, postmenopausal women (all 55 years or older and free of known cancers for at least 10 years prior to entering the study) who were taking large amounts of Vitamin D3 with calcium. The subjects were randomly assigned to take daily dosages of: (1) 1,400-1,500 mg supplemental calcium, (2) 1,400-1,500 mg supplemental calcium plus 1,100 IU of Vitamin D3, or (3) placebos. Over the four-year trial, women in the calcium/Vitamin D3 group experienced a 60 percent or greater reduced risk of cancer than their peers in the placebo group, who were not consuming these supplements.

 

Because there was the chance that some women may have had undiagnosed cancers at the study’s start, the researchers threw out the first-year results and then analyzed the results from the last three years of the trial. These later years resulted in even more dramatic decrease, with the calcium/Vitamin D3 group experiencing a 77 percent reduction in cancer risk.

 

There was no statistically significant difference in cancer incidence between the participants taking placebos and subjects consuming only calcium supplements.11

 

Another interesting study demonstrated that in vitro Vitamin D3 may cause tumor cells to be more sensitive to chemotherapy drugs, increasing the efficacy of the cancer treatment.12

 

Immunity

 

Scientists have linked various aspects of immune health to a Vitamin D3 deficiency. Vitamin D3 regulates T cells, which are important to the functioning of a strong immune system. Vitamin D3 acts as an immune system modulator, preventing excessive expression of inflammatory cytokines and increasing the killing efficiency of macrophages. In addition, it dramatically stimulates the expression of potent anti-microbial peptides, which exist in immune system cells such as neutrophils, monocytes, natural killer cells, and in cells lining the respiratory tract. These Vitamin-D3-stimulated peptides play a major role in protecting the lung from infection.13

 

In addition, Vitamin D3 deficiency may influence development and progression of various autoimmune diseases.14

 

Multi-Talented Nutrient

 

Vitamin D3 deficiency has been linked to a host of other conditions such as high blood pressure, fibromyalgia, diabetes, multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, and an increased risk of pre-eclampsia and insulin resistance during pregnancy.11,15-16 Most recently, low Vitamin D3 levels have been linked to an increased prevalence of early age-related macular degeneration.17

 

Proper Dosage

 

In many of my patients, even after consuming 2,000 to 4,000 IU of Vitamin D3 per day, their test results indicate that their Vitamin D3 levels have not increased. These patients needed to consume 8,000 IU of Vitamin D3 per day to achieve proper blood levels of the Vitamin. Patients should, therefore, have their physicians test their serum 1,25-dihyroxy D3 levels to determine the proper level of supplementation required. Testing is very important due to the fact that, in a small number of patients, Vitamin D3 supplementation can raise calcium levels to an excessively high level. I have found this to be especially true in African American patients. Testing for 1,25-dihyroxy Vitamin D3, PTH and calcium blood levels should therefore become a part of every woman’s regular blood work.

 

Conclusion

 

A growing number of researchers who have widely studied Vitamin D3 are almost begging the general public to consume more of this important nutrient. Due to Vitamin D3’s high safety profile in doses up to 10,000 IU per day and because of the wide role it plays in our health, consuming 2,000 to 4,000 IU per day of this nutrient at times of the year when sunlight is scarce is a prudent way to improve overall health.

 

 

http://www.vrp.com/articles.aspx?ProdID=art2130&zTYPE=2

 

 

 

ilkins CH, Sheline YI, Roe CM, Birge SJ, Morris JC. Vitamin D deficiency is associated with low mood and worse cognitive performance in older adults. Am J Geriatr Psychiatry. 2006 Dec;14(12):1032-40.

7. Lotfi A, Abdel-Nasser AM, Hamdy A, Omran AA, El-Rehany MA. HypoVitaminosis D in female patients with chronic low back pain. Clin Rheumatol. 2007 Mar 22; [Epub ahead of print].

8. Pérez-López FR. Vitamin D and its implications for musculoskeletal health in women: An update. Maturitas. 2007 Jun 28; [Epub ahead of print].

9. Przybelski RJ, Binkley NC. Is Vitamin D important for preserving cognition? A positive correlation of serum 25-hydroxyVitamin D concentration with cognitive function. Arch Biochem Biophys. 2007 Apr 15;460(2):202-5.

10. Grant WB. An estimate of premature cancer mortality in the U.S. due to inadequate doses of solar ultraviolet-B radiation. Cancer. 2002 Mar 15;94(6):1867-75.

11. Lappe J, Travers-Gustafson D, Davies K, Recker R, Heaney R. Vitamin D and calcium supplementation reduces cancer risk: results of a randomized trial. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. June 8;85(6):1586-1591.

12. Ma Y, et al. Study presented at the 2007 centennial meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR), April 14 to 18, 2007, Los Angeles.

13. Cannell JJ, Vieth R, Umhau JC, Holick MF, Grant WB, Madronich S, Garland CF, Giovannucci E. Epidemic influenza and Vitamin D. Epidemiol Infect. 2006 Dec;134(6):1129-40.

14. Kuryłowicz A, Bednarczuk T, Nauman J. [The influence of Vitamin D deficiency on cancers and autoimmune diseases development.] [Article in Polish] Endokrynol Pol. 2007;58(2):140-152.

15. Bodnar LM, Catov JM, Simhan HN, Holick MF, Powers RW, Roberts JM. Maternal Vitamin D deficiency increases the risk of preeclampsia. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2007 May 29; [Epub ahead of print].

16. Maghbooli Z, Hossein-Nezhad A, Karimi F, Shafaei AR, Larijani B. Correlation between Vitamin D(3) deficiency and insulin resistance in pregnancy. Diabetes Metab Res Rev. 2007 Jul 2; [Epub ahead of print].

17. Parekh N, Chappell RJ, Millen AE, Albert DM, Mares JA. Association Between Vitamin D and Age-Related Macular Degeneration in the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 1988 Through 1994. Arch Ophthalmol. May 2007;125: 661-669.

[kim]

another thing to consider regarding vit D.....

 

http://www.ch3nutrigenomics.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=2800

 

VDR/Taq and VDR/Fok (vitamin D receptor):

The panel looks at more than one portion of the vitamin D receptor, the Taq as well as the Fok sites. While the Fok change has been related to blood sugar regulation, changes at Taq can affect dopamine levels. For this reason it is important to look at the composite of the COMT and VDR/Taq status and make supplement suggestions based on the combined results at these two sites. The focus on changes in the Fok portion of the VDR is in regard to supplements that support the pancreas and aid in keeping blood sugar in the normal healthy range.

[myrose]

Kim

 

I can't get anything on the link you provided...it asks for password. Anyhow I was trying to figure out what vitamin D you are referring to. Thanks

[ajcire]

No, my mom doesn't wear make-up at all... she isn't even as good on sunblock as she should be in the summer time... we live in NY.. I don't know why her vitamin d is so low...

[EAMom]

No, my mom doesn't wear make-up at all... she isn't even as good on sunblock as she should be in the summer time... we live in NY.. I don't know why her vitamin d is so low...

 

New York is actually pretty far north. Higher lattitude (rays not as strong in winter), longer colder winter, and less months with exposed arms/legs. Here's an interesting study re epi-pens...more prescriptions in Northern States (highest in Boston), least in Hawaii...thought to be related to vitamin D.

 

http://www.bio-medicine.org/medicine-techn...mmunology-46-1/

 

Plus, older people don't make vitamin D as easily. I think age is a factor but I also think it's interesting that older people are more likely to wear long pants and long-sleeve shirts even in warm weather! My parents do this!

[kim]

Myrose,

 

That is a link to Dr. Amy Yasko's forum. She has a genetics panel that I'm dying to have done for the boys. I have been waiting for this economy to improve and to make sure that my hubby isn't going to be out of a job, but that just isn't happening.

 

When you copy a link to a topic page, it will kick you to the sign in screen, so you have to join to read the link that I posted. Once you join, you can copy and paste that link and it will take you to the genetics 101 page. I wanted to point out that while the suggested daily recommendation of vit D, particularly D3 may very well be too low, there may also be a problem with the vit D receptors. I was looking for some Pubmed articles regarding Taq and Fok earlier. I didn't have a lot of time, but I did make note of these three articles so far. Since I have a particular interest in bone and sulfur metabolism, the third one looked interesting, but I haven't had a chance to try to figure out what it's saying yet.

 

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1531027...ogdbfrom=pubmed

 

Mechanisms of neuroprotective action of vitamin D(3).Kalueff AV, Eremin KO, Tuohimaa P.

Center of Physiology and Biochemical Research, Kiev 01042, Ukraine. cpbr@mail.ru

 

This review considers modern data on the mechanisms underlying the neuroprotective effect of the neurosteroid vitamin D(3) and its receptors in the nervous system. Special attention is paid to Ca2+ regulation, stimulation of neurotrophin release, interaction with reactive oxygen and nitrogen species, and neuroimmunomodulatory effects of calcitriol, the main biologically active form of vitamin D(3), in the nervous system.

 

 

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1681647...ogdbfrom=pubmed

 

[Effect of vitamin D on the nervous system and the skeletal muscle]

 

 

Nakagawa K.

Kobe Pharmaceutical University, Department of Hygienic Sciences.

 

The presence of vitamin D receptors (VDRs) in the brain suggest that vitamin D had functions in this organ and accumulating data have provide evidence that this is indeed the case. Recently, it has been recognized that vitamin D behaves as a neuroactive compound (neurosteroid) largely implicated in the control of brain homeostasis. Likewise, the neuroprotective effects of vitamin D, achieved by its action levels of nerve growth factors in the treatment of neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's disease (AD) and Parkinson's disease (PD). Recent studies on VDR gene knockout mice revealed that VDR also regulates behavioural characterization and differentiation of skeletal muscle. Thus, vitamin D appears to regulate development and homeostasis of the nervous system and skeletal muscle.

 

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1516599...ogdbfrom=pubmed

 

As the fourth most abundant anion in the body, sulfate plays an essential role in numerous physiological processes. One key protein involved in transcellular transport of sulfate is the sodium-sulfate cotransporter NaSi-1, and previous studies suggest that vitamin D modulates sulfate homeostasis by regulating NaSi-1 expression. In the present study, we found that, in mice lacking the vitamin D receptor (VDR), NaSi-1 expression in the kidney was reduced by 72% but intestinal NaSi-1 levels remained unchanged. In connection with these findings, urinary sulfate excretion was increased by 42% whereas serum sulfate concentration was reduced by 50% in VDR knockout mice. Moreover, levels of hepatic glutathione and skeletal sulfated proteoglycans were also reduced by 18 and 45%, respectively, in the mutant mice. Similar results were observed in VDR knockout mice after their blood ionized calcium levels and rachitic bone phenotype were normalized by dietary means, indicating that vitamin D regulation of NaSi-1 expression and sulfate metabolism is independent of its role in calcium metabolism. Treatment of wild-type mice with 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 or vitamin D analog markedly stimulated renal NaSi-1 mRNA expression. These data provide strong in vivo evidence that vitamin D plays a critical role in sulfate homeostasis. However, the observation that serum sulfate and skeletal proteoglycan levels in normocalcemic VDR knockout mice remained low in the absence of rickets and osteomalacia suggests that the contribution of sulfate deficiency to development of rickets and osteomalacia is minimal.

[kim]

In addition to above, this is a story that I have been following. Tragic/interesting

 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-kirby/...l_b_143967.html

 

Minneapolis and the Somali Autism Riddle

 

In fact, one of the most obvious "environmental" differences between Minnesota and Somalia is mass vaccination (another is sunlight, but more on that later).

 

 

Another wealth of info

 

http://www.vitamindcouncil.org/health/autism/

[EAMom]

Kim,

the somali article was very interesting!

 

I hadn't heard that about tylenol. I wonder how the autism rate would be affected if doctors told parents specifically not to give tylenol (and perhaps give ibuprofen intead).

 

"Another problem is that Tylenol depletes glutathione, and regretfully, most kids who get a shot also get Tylenol," Plotnikoff said. "It's routinely given without considering that it can increase the risk of heavy metals, like mercury, causing oxidative injury in the brain."

 

"Glutathione has antioxidant properties, and it also chelates, or removes heavy metals in the body. We want a lot of it around. We need it, and we depend upon it," he added.

 

It certainly sounds like the vaccines and/or tylenol could be acting like the straw that breaks the camels back with these already vit d deficient kids. It is also possible the hygiene hypothesis plays a role...undoubtedly these babies are in a more hygienic environment in Minnesota than Somalia. http://www.grc.nia.nih.gov/branches/rrb/dna/pubs/aaihh.pdf