Vitamin D

[Pat-inCO]

Last night I had a nice nap and woke up about 02:00. Could not get back to sleep
so I turned on the sleep machine (TV). On one channel was a sales pitch for
Vitamin D, where the guy advised we "need" 5,000 IUs per day and he had this
super-whiz-bang stuff that would . . . .

Out of curiosity, this morning I went looking and found:
https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/VitaminD-HealthProfessional/
Being from the National Institute of Health (.gov) I tend to give it far more
credibility than any TV ad.

Says that for most of us (ESPECIALLY older folks like me) we probably need more
Vitamin D. The thing that I didn't understand is that Vit.D enables the body to more
effectively use the calcium from milk, cheese, etc. For older folks, that means
brittle bones can be strengthened more easily than without it. :shock:

Since we are looking at some where in the three to four cents per day,
it somehow seems worth considering. :wink:

P.S. I started taking 1,000 IUs per day about six months ago.

 

[ronto]

There is such a thing as taking too much Vitamin D and too much can be toxic. For an adult 71 years old and over 1,000 IU per day is suggested and never more than 4,000 IU.

 

[Pat-inCO]

There is such as thing as taking too much Vitamin D and too much can be toxic.

GEE!
You think that may be why I included the link?

 

[ronto]

There is such as thing as taking too much Vitamin D and too much can be toxic.

GEE!
You think that may be why I included the link?

I like to check other sources also not just one.

 

[Jimbo357mag]

You should be having routine blood work done at least once a year and at that time your level of Vit D can be check along with a myriad of other things. I take 2000 IU per day.

 

[Mobuck]

I had "blood work" done at the local Dr office last spring. Couple of weeks later I get a call from Dr office "Hey are you still taking Vit D as suggested by the Dr last year?" My response "No, as a matter of fact I quit taking that a while back because it was causing problems". Dr office said I should get started again. Tried it again with same results--Vit D toxicity and high calcium levels in my blood. Quit again. I think the Dr office misread the results and should have told me to stop taking Vit D at once.

 

[caryc]

After a bone density test a couple years ago, my doctor put me on Calcium 1200 mgs and Vitamin D3 2000 iu's per day.

I also have blood work done once a month.

 

[muzzleloader]

The wife and I take one 50,000 Unit pill once a month and I take a normal multi-vitamin with D included. My previous MD felt this was a good plan for cardiac health as well as bones and such. The 50,000 unit pills are quite reasonable and expire about the time they run out with two people taking them.

 

[Rick Courtright]

The wife and I take one 50,000 Unit pill once a month and I take a normal multi-vitamin with D included. My previous MD felt this was a good plan for cardiac health as well as bones and such. The 50,000 unit pills are quite reasonable and expire about the time they run out with two people taking them.

Hi,

My Mom broke her hip when she was 85. She had a new primary physician when she got out of rehab, who said she has ALL of her patients, old and young, tested for Vit D levels. And a huge percentage of them are deficient. Older people because they don't get out in the sun enough, and their bodies don't produce Vit D from sunshine as well as younger folks, and the young ones because they spend way too much time indoors developing Nintendo thumb or other video games maladies and simply don't even go outside to be in the sun.

Mom tested "deficient" and the Doc put her on 50,000 units, once a WEEK, for eight weeks. Mentality of this regimen is that the body needs a lot of Vit D to process calcium and promote bone healing after the injury/surgery--an unknown amount depending on the patient--so this gives it whatever it needs, and the rest will be used or discarded later. We had to go see the surgeon for several checkups, and he originally expected a minimum healing time of 12 weeks because of her age. He was amazed at how quickly she healed, and released her after eight weeks!

I asked him if this Vit D regimen from the primary had anything to do with the timing and quality of the recovery. He wasn't sure, but asked for the primary Doc's name and number. "I'd like to talk to her about this!'

Back to the primary, she said a lot of research has gone on about Vit D in recent years, with many thoughts of increasing the RDA to at least twice the current level (400 IU/day to maybe 800, or more, depending on age), as well as "toxicity" studies. She said they'd done studies with 5,000 to 6,000 units per day for up to five years, with no adverse effects noted.

Now just to throw a wrench in the works, a couple of months ago I heard of a study which "claimed" Vit D isn't required for the absorption of calcium at all and we've been led down a rosy path on that subject. Sounded like some of that infamous tinfoil hat research to me, but who knows? As noted earlier in the thread, multiple sources should be considered before deciding what's what. There's a lot of interesting reading out there on this subject.

Rick C

 

[gramps]

Just finished reading a Medscape article about how supplements don’t help, and possibly could do harm. Hmmm so ya think they are going to take the vitamins and minerals out of cereal, flour, milk, iodine out of salt etc? You should have heard the howling and gnashing of teeth from the physicians. Esp the ones from 3rd world nations! I am 68, and I take the supplements I think I need. If all I get is “placebo effect”(30%), then I am ok with that. Vit D3 is good for the immune system too.
gramps

 

[rimmer]

I take 50,000 units a week because my body has very little. After 4 years it barley registers on a blood test.

And I'm out in the sun almost every day, all day.

 

[toysoldier]

I take Vitamin D to help reduce blood calcium levels that contribute to kidney stones. Haven't had a stone since I started, about 3 years ago.

 

[Xsales]

A person needs like 8-10 minutes of sun exposure per day on a very small part (like top of you hand) to get enough Vit D

OP: you are now in AZ?
You don't get enough sun here?
We do all we can to AVOID the sun

 

[Colonialgirl]

MY Doc at the VA told me a long time ago that I needed to take Vitamin "D" so, I do; 1000IU daily.

 

[steveodtw]

I also take 1000IU of Vit. D daily, per Dr.s instruction. FYI anyone on Medicare, I have had several occasions where Medicare rejected paying for Vit. D blood test part of a claim, until I challenged the Dr.'s office and they found the "right code" that Medicare accepted. As I recall it was a difference of about a $60.00 charge. Crazy when Medicare will accept bloodwork claims for absoutely everything else I have done.

 

[gunzo]

In the spring It's called ground-hogging. Watch them & you'll see it, or watch a dog or a cat. In the spring you stretch out & just soak up some sun. No tanning oil or sunblock, just close your eyes & let the sun warm you up, recharge your batteries, so to speak.
My mother would say; you kids get outside & get some fresh air & sunshine. That order was medicinal & we didn't even realize it.

 

[Bear Paw Jack]

I take 50,000 IU of D, weekly, and have taken as much as 2 of those per week. I just seem to run low. Going to have to start taking B12 shots too.

 

[Rick Courtright]

A person needs like 8-10 minutes of sun exposure per day on a very small part (like top of you hand) to get enough Vit D

Hi,

That sounds good, and has been "standard advice" for a long time. However, as a doctor once told me about something else we should get "automatically" from our diet: "In a perfect world..." Sadly, there's a lot of stuff MY body doesn't do today the way it did a half century ago. So when the doctors themselves are actually advising the taking of a food supplement, that seems to be pretty strong evidence in my mind that I'm like "most people" and none of us is living in that perfect world!

Rick C

 

[arfmel]

I believe I can tell a difference in my energy level when I remember to take my Vitamin D pills.

 

[Mobuck]

I can't be exposed to sun for very long before I start showing signs of excess Vit D. I now have to wear long sleeves year round and a hat in the summer or I have symptoms within hours. Not ideal for someone in my line of work.

 

[vito]

I used to take a Vit. D supplement but after I had my first gout attack a few years back, my internist told me to discontinue the supplement as I started taking the meds to prevent a gout re-occurrence. Trust me, if you have never had gout, you will not like it if and when it hits you. I did have a second attack a few weeks after the first attack, and it was worse than the initial attack, virtually crippling me with pain. My doc upped the meds and since then I have been fine. He said excess Vit. D is known to be related to gout, so be careful out there. I get a fair amount of sun throughout the year just by walking my dog and riding my motorcycle, even with the liberal amount of sun block that I use because of a history of skin cancers. Plus I take a Centrum Silver multivitamin each day. From all that I have read I am quite convinced that most of the supplements do nothing or do actual harm.

 

[Pistolero]

I take 50,000 IU of D, weekly, and have taken as much as 2 of those per week. I just seem to run low. Going to have to start taking B12 shots too.

Because of my type II diabetes I take B-12 supplementation. According to various diabetes management journals Metformin an other diabetes pills can prevent proper absorption of vitamin B12. I started taking B12 sublingually a few years ago. It is OTC, inexpensive and can be found in the vitamin department at Walgreens, WallyWorld and most grocery stores. I will discuss taking a vitamin D supplement when I see my doctor in early fall.

The sublingual pills work for me but for some folks the B12 injection is the best route. It is a good idea to take a vitamin B-12 level test to check the amount of vitamin B-12 in the blood or urine to gauge your body's overall vitamin B-12 stores.

“So, why would taking metformin possibly put you at risk for a B12 deficiency? According to some studies, between 10% and 30% of people who take metformin on a regular basis have some evidence of decreased B12 absorption. Researchers aren’t quite sure why this happens.”

Link:
https://www.diabetesselfmanagement.com/ ... eficiency/

 

[6GUNSONLY]

My blood work consistently shows a vitamin D deficiency, but 5000 units a day resulted in high calcium levels, so I stopped taking it altogether. Even when I was taking it, my levels would still be low, so it really didn't seem to be helping much.