September 8, 2016 general

There is vitamin D dose confusion. There is NOT confusion about the importance of this hormone-like “vitamin”. Apparently it is important for just about every aspect of our health. For example, the following quote is taken from my Library article on D: “inadequate Vitamin D levels are associated with arthritis, asthma, infections, depression, diabetes and dementia. Researchers also seem to agree that vitamin D helps prevent several cancers, heart disease, autoimmune conditions (e.g. multiple sclerosis), influenza, complications of the flu and in fact, death from all causes.

It seems likely that in children, deficiency of Vitamin D may well be ‘THE [that emphasis was in the original quote] leading cause of cancer, type 1 diabetes, asthma, allergies, atopy [e.g. eczema], and possibly epidemic autism.’¹ The elderly should note that Vitamin D increases muscle strength and brain function while reducing chronic pain.”

You are not average. (I don’t mean that in the same sense that some parents constantly tell their children that they are exceptional at, let’s say, playing the violin, when there is ample evidence to the contrary.) I mean that your biochemistry is like no other person’s. Vitamin D provides a good example of why official pronouncements and guidelines can sometimes be nearly useless. That is because they speak to a theoretical “average person”. Below are examples that illustrate my point. They are abstracted from a blog by my friend, an expert on bone health, Dr. Susan Brown.

• One woman in Connecticut had to increase her intake to 8,600 IU for several months to reach the ideal [per Dr. Brown]* blood level of 50 ng/mL.

• A Denver client had a blood level of 53 ng/mL vitamin D in January when she was only taking 1,000 IU daily.

• And then there’s Dr. Brown’s experience in central New York. “I was using 2,800 units of vitamin D during the summer and getting lots of sunshine from my outdoor activities, but I still tested at 35 ng/mL in October.  If I had not raised my wintertime vitamin D intake substantially to 5,800 IU/day, I would’ve had a very inadequate level of vitamin D during the winter.”

Until you know how your body reacts, it looks like it might be smart to test your vitamin D blood levels both in the summer and in the winter. If a person isn’t able to be tested, many experts believe that 7,000 IU per day is reasonable to supplement. (I think it is much scarier to be too low than too high.)

*Don’t worry if blood tests show higher than 50. Some experts think ideal is 75+ and there is no real concern up to 100. Click here to read my article for more information and  resources on vitamin D.

¹J. Pizzorno. “Vitamin D: Still Learning About Dosi