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Ask you doctor to get your Vitamin D levels tested!!!

D

DougoMan

Senior member
My doctor was telling me there has been a lot of research lately suggesting that are lot of people are deficient in vitamin D. He recommended getting tested, and the results were shocking.

The scale was:
0-10 = Seriously deficient
10-20 = Deficient
30-80 = Normal

Apparently people even in the 10-20 range have at least a 2x chance of of cancer, hypertension and heart attack, as well poor bone strength.

My level was 10! He said it was the lowest he had ever seen, and it's not like I do not get plenty of sun.

He gave me an Rx for 50,000 unit supplements that he said I would need to get the level up. For comparison, the FDA claims that you only need 400 (over 100x less!) units daily. Apparently the FDA is currently investigating this and will raise it soon.

Definitely something it sounds like you should insist your doctor test next time you are there, and even if you do not they say over 50% of people in the US are deficient so you should probably be taking 2,000 units daily as a supplement.
 
Most really don't get out in the sun like they think they do. However, the vitamin D buzz is big now and people are cashing in on it. People are also getting more prone to calcium deficiencies as well.
 
alkemyst said:
Most really don't get out in the sun like they think they do. However, the vitamin D buzz is big now and people are cashing in on it. People are also getting more prone to calcium deficiencies as well.
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Drinking more milk would assist with both of those deficiencies.
 
alkemyst said:
Most really don't get out in the sun like they think they do. However, the vitamin D buzz is big now and people are cashing in on it. People are also getting more prone to calcium deficiencies as well.
Click to expand...

Yeah, vitamin D + calcium have been pretty big deals lately. If I would supplement anything, it would be fish oil, vitamin D, and calcium. Vitamin D is involved in a ton of genetic processes. Having low vitamin D levels really prohibits the body from doing what it needs to do. Calcium levels enhance vitamin D's effects in the body, plus reduces risk of osteoporosis later.

Or people could just drink more milk 🙂 Since I can only afford fish oil supp's, milk allows me to keep both vitamin D and calcium up to a certain extent. It doesn't hurt that I get a good amount of sunshine each day.
 
alkemyst said:
Most really don't get out in the sun like they think they do. However, the vitamin D buzz is big now and people are cashing in on it.
Click to expand...
I was actually speaking to my dermatologist about this the other day.
She says that it's not only our indoor lifestyles that cause the problem. The other factor is that, especially where I live, people are becoming much more aware of the risks of skin cancer, skin damage etc. As a result, when they do go outside they wear sunscreen, hats and long sleeved shirts and are much more cautious about spending lots of time in direct sunlight. They no longer receive sufficient quantities of UV exposure to produce the required amounts of Vitamin D.
 
drink milk, and do some healthy sunbathing.
Osteoporosis is becoming a big issue lately, ppl doesn't go out often enough.
 
You need to be within a specific range of latitudes for the sun to have any effect on your vitamin D levels for the winter months; the atmosphere reflects away the necessary UV wavelengths this time of year. People who have darker skin, like African-Americans, need a much longer time in the sun. For those of us in the Northeast,

Milk is naturally a pretty poor source of vitamin D on its own unless it has been fortified, in which case you'd probably have to drink between 3-4 cups (that's almost a liter, or a quart) per day to meet the DAILY requirement. For those of us who do not drink a lot of milk because it isn't traditionally a part of our diet (I'm Asian) or are lactose intolerant (I'm Asian) that's a pretty tough call. Combine that with the fact it is incredibly difficult to get good-quality, affordable fish on a daily basis in the states (vs. Japan, for instance) and this makes a pretty good case for supplementation. For pregnant mothers, infants, and the elderly especially.

Taking a multivitamin that supplies B-vitamins or vitamin A/E, on the other hand, is pretty silly since these are so widespread in the food supply deficiencies are unknown.

As far as calcium goes milk is a pretty poor source...sure, it is the central source in the Western diet but there are plenty of societies with very low rates of osteoporosis where milk is rarely consumed (once again, Asia). Leafy green vegetables besides spinach generally deliver as much, if not more, calcium than milk does. They also provide a ton of other mineral and micronutrient content, so it is win-win.
 
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edcarman said:
I was actually speaking to my dermatologist about this the other day.
She says that it's not only our indoor lifestyles that cause the problem. The other factor is that, especially where I live, people are becoming much more aware of the risks of skin cancer, skin damage etc. As a result, when they do go outside they wear sunscreen, hats and long sleeved shirts and are much more cautious about spending lots of time in direct sunlight. They no longer receive sufficient quantities of UV exposure to produce the required amounts of Vitamin D.
Click to expand...

I think the concern over skin cancer is really overblown.

Melanoma completely blown out of proportion by the media who took it and ran with it - and then was misinterpreted by the masses. People are now staying indoors and slathering on sunscreen as if the sun is going to kill them (because clearly, three billion years of evolution didn't prepare us for this).

Caution, certainly, should be exercised, but it is not a reason to run away from the sun.
 
alkemyst said:
a multivitamin is great, but for D, Calcium and Fish Oil it would be very very lacking.

I take a Multi, supplement some E, C, and B now. I take Fish Oil as well...
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I take fish oil too because it's not covered as part of a multi, that's not the issue.

But a multi does contain A-E... and here I thought you take daily multis to make up for what you lack in diet. So I fail to see the point of taking a multi if it in itself is not doing what it's supposed to? I also don't want to take too much supplements since they're not regulated so I try to be as "minimal" as I can... so that means multivitamins + fish oil daily and that's it.
 
darkxshade said:
I take fish oil too because it's not covered as part of a multi, that's not the issue.

But a multi does contain A-E... and here I thought you take daily multis to make up for what you lack in diet. So I fail to see the point of taking a multi if it in itself is not doing what it's supposed to? I also don't want to take too much supplements since they're not regulated so I try to be as "minimal" as I can... so that means multivitamins + fish oil daily and that's it.
Click to expand...

The level of vitamin D in a multi is pretty low compared to a pure vitamin D supplement. I try to take 2000-3000 IU per day because I'm in an office 8 hours a day and hardly see the sun any more. During the summer I'll probably supplement less, but it's cheap insurance in my opinion. Also, there has been some good research that shows increased muscle gain and strength when D levels are adequate, so that's a bonus for those of us interested in strength.
 
I've been taking 5k UI daily for over a month now, living in the northwest rainy state where we only get sun 3-4 months out of the year.


SunnyD said:
Eat healthy and tell snake oil salesmen to fuck off.
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There's been a lot of articles published recently on vitD and it's cheap as hell. Bought a 120 softgel bottle of NOW Adam 5k for like $4.
 
Kipper said:
You need to be within a specific range of latitudes for the sun to have any effect on your vitamin D levels for the winter months; the atmosphere reflects away the necessary UV wavelengths this time of year. People who have darker skin, like African-Americans, need a much longer time in the sun. For those of us in the Northeast,

Milk is naturally a pretty poor source of vitamin D on its own unless it has been fortified, in which case you'd probably have to drink between 3-4 cups (that's almost a liter, or a quart) per day to meet the DAILY requirement. For those of us who do not drink a lot of milk because it isn't traditionally a part of our diet (I'm Asian) or are lactose intolerant (I'm Asian) that's a pretty tough call. Combine that with the fact it is incredibly difficult to get good-quality, affordable fish on a daily basis in the states (vs. Japan, for instance) and this makes a pretty good case for supplementation. For pregnant mothers, infants, and the elderly especially.

Taking a multivitamin that supplies B-vitamins or vitamin A/E, on the other hand, is pretty silly since these are so widespread in the food supply deficiencies are unknown.

As far as calcium goes milk is a pretty poor source...sure, it is the central source in the Western diet but there are plenty of societies with very low rates of osteoporosis where milk is rarely consumed (once again, Asia). Leafy green vegetables besides spinach generally deliver as much, if not more, calcium than milk does. They also provide a ton of other mineral and micronutrient content, so it is win-win.
Click to expand...

I drink at least 3-4 cups of fortified milk 🙂 I tend to lose weight if I don't. I was actually trying to think of the best natural sources of vitamin D and calcium other than milk. I know you're the man to turn to for that info, Kipper. What are some that come to mind? Appreciate it.
 
SociallyChallenged said:
I drink at least 3-4 cups of fortified milk 🙂 I tend to lose weight if I don't. I was actually trying to think of the best natural sources of vitamin D and calcium other than milk. I know you're the man to turn to for that info, Kipper. What are some that come to mind? Appreciate it.
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Looks like you're best off with any kind of fish, milk, seafood, fortified cereals, or some cheeses. Check out this sweet site:
http://www.nutritiondata.com/foods-000102000000000000000-w.html

I don't see any natural sources other than fishes. Some mushrooms have a bit of Vitamin D, it looks like. Kidney and liver have some too.
 
SociallyChallenged said:
I drink at least 3-4 cups of fortified milk 🙂 I tend to lose weight if I don't. I was actually trying to think of the best natural sources of vitamin D and calcium other than milk. I know you're the man to turn to for that info, Kipper. What are some that come to mind? Appreciate it.
Click to expand...

Fatty fish or fish liver oil. Roughly 100 IU an ounce. If you live in a part of the world where you can get fatty fish low on the food chain fresh, go for it. But here in NYC it costs a bloody fortune, and the fish isn't THAT fresh anyway. There's also sundried shiitake mushrooms, but good luck finding those (they do need to be sundried or there is no vitamin D).

As far as calcium any dark green vegetable barring spinach or lettuce will do. You could also eat small fish with bones, like sardines. The bioavailability from leafy greens is just as good as milk, if not higher by weight. Bok choy and Chinese cabbage (etc.) come to mind, which explains why Eastern Asians don't suffer calcium deficiency despite the virtual absence of milk from the diet (high fish consumption helps too).
 
I actually had a blood test last week, my results are below:

Test: VITAMIN D, 25-HYDROXY
Your Value: 35
Standard Range: 30-100 ng/mL

I take in 2500 IU per day total in vitamin D supplements, so I was surprised I scored in the lower range of the scale. I work in an office so I'm indoors for the vast majority of the day. When I am outside, I'm in a car so I'm not getting very much direct sunlight at all.

BTW, the support for vitamin D supplementation seems pretty recent like within the last couple of years. I hope it's not another case of where we hear a few years later that there's no proof that supplementing vitamin D is beneficial, or worse that megadoses of vitamin D is detrimental.
 
iluvdeal said:
I actually had a blood test last week, my results are below:

Test: VITAMIN D, 25-HYDROXY
Your Value: 35
Standard Range: 30-100 ng/mL

I take in 2500 IU per day total in vitamin D supplements, so I was surprised I scored in the lower range of the scale. I work in an office so I'm indoors for the vast majority of the day. When I am outside, I'm in a car so I'm not getting very much direct sunlight at all.

BTW, the support for vitamin D supplementation seems pretty recent like within the last couple of years. I hope it's not another case of where we hear a few years later that there's no proof that supplementing vitamin D is beneficial, or worse that megadoses of vitamin D is detrimental.
Click to expand...

Well, the problem is that some research articles do hint at negative aspects of high vitamin D dosage. However, there hasn't been enough research testing the ranges of healthy vitamin D supplementation so researchers don't know what's too much. I've seen 1,000IUs of vitamin D work great in research. I probably wouldn't take more than that because a) I'm cheap and not willing to spend much on supps and b) it's sufficient to produce very significant results. There's a point at which too much of a good thing can turn bad. I'd avoid that at all costs.
 
SociallyChallenged said:
Well, the problem is that some research articles do hint at negative aspects of high vitamin D dosage. However, there hasn't been enough research testing the ranges of healthy vitamin D supplementation so researchers don't know what's too much. I've seen 1,000IUs of vitamin D work great in research. I probably wouldn't take more than that because a) I'm cheap and not willing to spend much on supps and b) it's sufficient to produce very significant results. There's a point at which too much of a good thing can turn bad. I'd avoid that at all costs.
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Actually, 2000 IU (50 mcg) is the upper intake defined right now (but it's from 1997). It is, obviously, under review at the moment. 1,000 is probably safe per day. But obviously, if you spend your days outside and live in the southern part of the states...then you may not need 1,000.

Long-term intakes above the UL increase the risk of adverse health effects [4] (Table 4). Substantially larger doses administered for a short time or periodically (e.g., 50,000 IU/week for 8 weeks) do not cause toxicity. Rather, the excess is stored and used as needed to maintain normal serum 25(OH)D concentrations when vitamin D intakes or sun exposure are limited
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http://dietary-supplements.info.nih.gov/factsheets/vitamind.asp
 
Kipper said:
I think the concern over skin cancer is really overblown.

Melanoma completely blown out of proportion by the media who took it and ran with it - and then was misinterpreted by the masses. People are now staying indoors and slathering on sunscreen as if the sun is going to kill them (because clearly, three billion years of evolution didn't prepare us for this).

Caution, certainly, should be exercised, but it is not a reason to run away from the sun.
Click to expand...

Skin cancer is overblown but premature aging caused by UV is a good reason to still a good reason to use sunscreen and not go outside too much. I see people that have been life guards in the summers for just 5-8 years when they were younger and they never got burnt and their skin is just horrid now (late 20's to early 30's).
 
According to fitday I get about 241 units per day (61% of recommended amount). Milk doesn't fit in with my diet right now. Other ideas on how to get it?
 
And you know what else, I've been taking the 50,000 unit pills my doctor prescribed for about 10 days now and I feel just incredible.

For the last couple of years at least I have been suffering from what I could only describe as debilitating fatigue. I mean it has gotten so bad that I need drugs like Ritalin just to keep from lying in bed all day and sleeping.

The last few days, though, I have had more energy and slept better than I have in YEARS. It's just crazy and not subtle at all. Mentally I'm a lot sharper too and it's considerably easy to concentrate.

Maybe it's a coincidence but regardless I have friggin thrilled. I hope it lasts!
 
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