Vitamin D

[MCatLvrMom2A&X]

My dh has low vitamin D and needs to take a supplement. Which one do I need to get? I know there is vitamin D2 & D3 is there another kind if so what should I pick?

[JaneS]

I would never under any circumstances take D2, that is the one with toxic side effects.

Any D3 which is from lanolin or fish oil is the good one so shop around for the best price. Drops are good for larger doses or if you are sick of pills, Carlson's makes a good one.

How low? How much is he planning to take?

The Vitamin D Council's information is great www.vitaminDcouncil.org and suggests 10,000 IU for at least a month and then test again. I had to do it for serveral months until my numbers came up to normal (50), and then more to get them in high normal (70's) b/c I live in Massachusetts and had an autoimmune disease.

Worth reading that site, which says most adults need 4,000 IU to get them through a winter and year round as well b/c we still don't get enough sun: most of your body at noontime and only certain times of the year the farther from the equator you live, is the only way you can stock your stores with sun. The advice "just face and hands" is very very wrong.

OMG Vin Diesel!! I haven't thought about him in AGES.... he's so not my type but there's something about him for sure.

[sbgrace]

Yes, D3. Any brand seems to work. I, too, took 10,000 IU per day to correct my level. The rule of thumb is 1000 IU per 24 pounds of weight to maintain once you get a good level. I don't know yet if that held for me. I'm retesting soon.

[MCatLvrMom2A&X]

I dont know the # but the nurse on the phone said to take 1000 IU a day. He cant have it rechecked until 3 months are up because of insurance. I will get him to get a copy of the bw when he goes back in next week to talk to them about his MRI results for his knee.

I figured his would be low because he works indoors and spends very little time outdoors.

My rheumatologist was impressed that my vit. D level was so good 46.1 or 41.6 one. I do spend time outside and in tanning bed as well. So I would have been shocked if mine was low.

I picked up D3 at wal mart a bit ago. Only $6 for 200 pills.

[MCatLvrMom2A&X]

Originally Posted by JaneS

OMG Vin Diesel!! I haven't thought about him in AGES.... he's so not my type but there's something about him for sure.

I named my ds after his character in the movie Triple X.

[sbgrace]

Studies have shown no toxicity in adults short of 10,000 IU per day indefinitely. So I guess I'm saying I'd do about 9,000 IU per day (50,000 IU per week--so 10,000 IU five days or all at once/shouldn't matter) will be safe even if he can't get retested. You could also test privately. The vitamin D council website has information about that.
Either way read up because 1000 IU per day isn't going to correct anything and in fact if he weighs over 50 pounds ( ) he'll get lower.

Get 5,000 IU of d3 pills so taking 10,000 in one setting is no big deal.

[MCatLvrMom2A&X]

K I will go ahead and give him more of the D I bought. The highest IU wal mart had was 2,000.

The pills are tiny and he was complaining that something that small couldnt possibly be enough

No wonder my parents are low on d the Dr. isnt prescribing high enough doses why am I not surprised.

[JaneS]

Unfortunately most doctors do not read the current research, they convert slowly to "new ideas".

For example, the prescription used most often is 50,000 IU of D2, which is very wrong but that's been the standard for years.

I believe it has been studied that you get 10,000 IU of D a day naturally with a healthy person (who converts it well from cholesterol) in a bathing suit in the sun. Interestingly enough, the sun *destroys* D by action on the skin as well as makes it if you have had enough, it is self limiting.

We were meant as human animals to be in the sun and make a lot of D! Or, given the traditional diet of the Eskimos, eat a great deal in food if you can't make any at all.

[JaneS]

Also I noticed your thyroid cancer ribbon, the stats on cancer prevention according to vitamin D levels at the Vitamin D Council site are fascinating.

[JaneS]

Originally Posted by sbgrace

Yes, D3. Any brand seems to work. I, too, took 10,000 IU per day to correct my level. The rule of thumb is 1000 IU per 24 pounds of weight to maintain once you get a good level. I don't know yet if that held for me. I'm retesting soon.

I haven't heard that body weight ratio but it makes perfect sense b/c I do know if you weigh more you need more... where did you see that? Be sure to post back when you get your test done.

[MCatLvrMom2A&X]

They called me back today and said that the Dr. wants him to do 50,000 IU and called in a script. I dont know if it is D2 or D3 though I wont know till I pick it up. Will it matter really?

I talked to dh last night and told him that the amount they told him to take wasnt enough and I was going to give him more than just the 1 pill but now I guess Idont need to.

[sbgrace]

Originally Posted by MCatLvrMom2A&X

They called me back today and said that the Dr. wants him to do 50,000 IU and called in a script. I dont know if it is D2 or D3 though I wont know till I pick it up. Will it matter really?

I talked to dh last night and told him that the amount they told him to take wasnt enough and I was going to give him more than just the 1 pill but now I guess Idont need to.

Yes it matters. The prescription forms are D2. He needs D3.

I was purchasing 5000 IU of D3 pills online. Lots of people use Carlson's drops. I found Spring Valley 5000 IU pills locally. If it wasn't Walmart it was CVS.

I started supplementing 5000 IU per day for about 3-4 months and then tested. My D was in the 20's (I can't imagine what it was before but I know I was "feeling" it). I started with 10,000 IU per day and tested about 1.5 months later and I was 70. I dropped down to maintenance and I need to retest.

[MCatLvrMom2A&X]

I am checking with the pharmacy to see what they called in for him.

[sbgrace]

You can read about D2 (vs. D3) on the vitamin D council site. You don't want the D2. Check for less expensive 5000 IU D3 forms. I never thought of D3 as particularly expensive but even if it were the health impacts are so large and proven that it would be worth whatever to correct. Read up and you'll see you don't want D3.

[MCatLvrMom2A&X]

I just called the pharmacy and they called in 50,000 IU to be taken once weekly. According to who I talked to this is the starting dose to get him going and is a combo of D2 and D3 so that his body will start absorbing then he will be on the maintenance with D3.

The highest I could find OTC is 5,000 and it will not only cost me the $ for the pills 365 for $17 but shipping as well. It is only going to cost $10 for the ones from the pharmacy.

I did go to the site linked but having trouble navigating it and finding what I need.

[KimPM]

Originally Posted by MCatLvrMom2A&X

I just called the pharmacy and they called in 50,000 IU to be taken once weekly. According to who I talked to this is the starting dose to get him going and is a combo of D2 and D3 so that his body will start absorbing then he will be on the maintenance with D3.

The highest I could find OTC is 5,000 and it will not only cost me the $ for the pills 365 for $17 but shipping as well. It is only going to cost $10 for the ones from the pharmacy.

I did go to the site linked but having trouble navigating it and finding what I need.

I would NOT do the D2, nor the prescription. Just do consistent large doses of the over-the-counter D3. I've found that for me, I need 1000 IU just to *maintain* my D level. If I want to increase it...well, say 3000-5000IU a day, for a few months. Depends on how high it needs to go. Also, I think there is only so much your body can absorb at once (without being toxic). There's some point at which more is not better.

As far as the cost, it's always cheaper to take the drugs, but they are not always the better way health-wise.

[JaneS]

They are incorrect to px this outdated form. Please see information on Vitamin D Council website brb and I will find for you.

[JaneS]

Cholecalciferol (vitamin D3)

Cholecalciferol is the naturally occurring form of vitamin D. It is the substance made in large quantities in your skin when sunlight strikes your bare skin. It can also be taken as a supplement.

Ergocalciferol

Another substance that is often called vitamin D is ergocalciferol (also referred to as vitamin D2 or Calciferol). It is derived by radiating fungus. It is not the naturally occurring vitamin D for humans...

Ergocalciferol does not exist in detectable quantities in the human body...There is also some evidence that ergocalciferol is more toxic in overdose...

The important thing to know: cholecalciferol is the vitamin D to take. Do not let your doctor give you any prescription medication for vitamin D. The only exception to this is ergocalciferol. Although with ergocalciferol you must remember you are taking a drug—not a vitamin—that does not normally occur in the human body.

http://www.vitamindcouncil.org/vitam...macology.shtml

[JaneS]

If you take ergocalciferol, or "vegetarian vitamin D", be warned. Ergocalciferol is not vitamin D, but a vitamin D-like patent drug whose patent has expired. It does not normally occur in the human body and is probably a weak agonist at the receptor site, meaning it may actually partially block vitamin D actions. Ergocalciferol is the villain in most of the reported cases of toxicity in the world's literature. All bets are off in terms of measuring blood levels if you take ergocalciferol. Some of the labs can pick it up and some cannot. Do not take ergocalciferol—it is not vitamin D.

If your doctor prescribes 50,000 units of ergocalciferol (Drisdol) once or twice a week, obtain a bottle of 50,000 unit capsules of cholecalciferol [D3] and take them instead. Take one or two per week until your level is around 50 ng/mL. Then stop taking them and begin maintenance therapy at a much lower dose. You could also take one 5,000 unit capsule every day until your vitamin D level is around 50 ng/mL. Then take enough by mouth during the cold months (and go into the sun during the warm months) to keep your 25(OH)D level around 50 ng/mL.

http://www.vitamindcouncil.org/newsl...2006-jan.shtml

[JaneS]

Note to mods:
The Vitamin D Council has a Creative Commons license, see link on site, that allows distribution of their information as long as weblink to them is provided.