Vitamin D3 Deficiency

[WindingRoad]

I just received a call from my doctor saying that I needed to start taking 5,000 units of D3 for a month and then to taper down to 1,000 afterward. So I am curious if anyone else has been diagnosed with this problem?

I have read online a slew of things it can cause. Most of them I haven't noticed aside from being a bit more depressed than what is normal for me at this time of year. It also says it can make it difficult to maintain and build muscle mass, which I think may be a problem for me too. I am currently preparing for a lengthy race this summer and the weight workouts have been absolutely wiping me out. I don't remember feel so wiped out like this before? I REALLY hope the supplements help. :)

[Triskeliongirl]

Yeh it happened to me too. I realized it was brought on by following the advice of a doctor to use daily suncreen. Our bodies actually need sunlight So I stopped with the routine sunscreen, and only put it on if I will be spending several hours in intense sun such as biking in summer, skiing in winter, or going to the beach. I also take the supplements and I am fine now.

In terms of skin care, I started using olive oil as a moistureizer. It works better than sunscreen to prevent wrinkles.

[Biciclista]

Doctors are just discovering the fact that most of us are Vit D deficient along with a whole host of associated problems.
I still don't have my Vit D level above 30

[OakLeaf]

I'm still not convinced that it's causation rather than correlation (with lack of sun exposure). I don't have a citation off the top of my head, but the latest thing published on the subject found that vitamin D supplements do NOT decrease the likelihood of some of the health problems associated with low vitamin D levels. I'm not at all convinced that vitamin D production is the only benefit of sun exposure.

Besides vitamin D (which is a hormone), melatonin and leptin levels are influenced by sunlight exposure. The human body is a complex system and they're realizing more and more that reductionist solutions don't work.

[lunacycles]

There was a time (not THAT long ago) when I recall being warned by the medical establishment NOT to take vitamin D supplements, as D in excess was very, very bad for you, and that 5 minutes of daylight gave you all the D you needed. Now, it appears Vit D supplementation is one of the few things you can do, supplement-wise, to lower your overall cancer risk!

Does anyone know of any dangers of taking too much? And how much might be too much? I take 1000 I.U. daily.

[makbike]

I take 1000 IU of vit D daily as my levels were once low too. I think (don't quote me on this) that I read someplace that medication for high cholesterol can block absorption of Vit D (again don't quote me on this as it was several years ago).

[Biciclista]

luna, if you read the literature the amount of Vit D that caused overdoses in studies, that was hundreds of times more than the high doses being suggested now.

We have gone from an animal who lives outdoors naked to an animal that lives INDOORS and either covers up or puts sun screen on every portion of their body that is touched by the sun.

Because i have osteo and my sister and mother and aunt (etc, etc) have it, i have been reading all i can about this.
Living where I live, there isn't even enough Vit D producing rays for MONTHS in the winter/spring/fall even if I was outside all the time and wasn't covered up.
Is it a coincidence that diseases like MS seem to be more prevalent in the PacNW?

[WindingRoad]

According to what I have ran across online they say even doses up to 10,000 units is still safe. Since I don't see me going out riding in shorts and a tank anytime soon (ice storm on the way, puke!) I guess I'm stuck taking D3 supplements and hoping for the best. I admit I don't get outside nearly as much as I once did and when I do I'm completely covered aside of my face. I have to do alot more workouts in the gym these days.:rolleyes:

[beccaB]

I've read that darker skinned people don"t absorb as much vitamin D from the sun as fair skinned people. Interestingly enough, I'm rather olive skinned and my husband is very fair. His Vitamin D level is normal and he does not take supplements but mine was borderline even though I take supplements and don"t burn easily so I don't slather on the sunscreen.

[JennK13]

My nephew was diagnosed with a Vitamin D deficiency last year at the age of 17. He played hockey for 10 years, so most of his time was spent indoors either in school or on the hockey rink. The doctor prescribed SUNLIGHT for treatment. Seriously, he had to go outside for 15 minutes a day, every day. So he would go out every afternoon and do his homework in the yard.
He was extremely tired, falling asleep in school, and he's a really good kid. We knew there was something wrong with him, not just a kid making excuses. It worked for him.

[OakLeaf]

Is it a coincidence that diseases like MS seem to be more prevalent in the PacNW?

That's not what I said at all. (That would be both reductionist AND defeatist.)

When you don't get enough sun, your vitamin D levels will be lower than someone who does. You will also have disruption to other hormones. Is it vitamin D that's responsible for the health problems? One of the other hormones? Or (most likely) more than one of the hormones in combination? Taking a vitamin D pill won't affect your melatonin levels, your leptin levels, or the levels of any other hormone that's influenced by your sun exposure. (Serotonin and dopamine are suspected, too: from today's NYT http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/01/06/light-therapy-for-depression/?src=me&ref=health ... and dopamine is implicated in many symptoms of MS.)

I just read what was described as the classic example of correlation-is-not-causation: ice cream sales correlate very tightly with drowning deaths. Come to think of it, high vitamin D levels probably correlate very tightly with drowning deaths as well, for the same reason. But I don't think you have to worry about an increased risk of drowning if you take a vitamin D pill.

[KnottedYet]

I take 8,000 I.U. of vit D-3 per day, and I'm still below normal. But then I do have a messed up gut that doesn't absorb nutrients properly. My pale ancestors lived in the gloomy high latitudes and ate massive amounts of fish. I live in the gloomy high latitudes and also eat massive amounts of fish, but I don't absorb the dang vit D right AND I managed to get the evil-est skin cancer (which means no sunshine for ME!)

The take-home message here is to have your blood levels checked as you figure out your dosages. If you have clear signs of vit D deficiency your doc may push you to try to get into the high side of normal. Blood levels are the best indicator, as opposed to intake levels.

(BTW, even with my supplemented levels below normal, my doc says I'm higher than the average Seattlite.)

Did your doc also check your iron levels? B12? Being low in those can also wipe you out pretty good.

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

My gynecologist had me do a blood test for Vit D levels last year.
I wear plenty of sunscreen usually because I'm very fair skinned.
YAY!- turns out I have excellent blood levels of vit D...must be because I've always taken vitamin supplements and little Norwegian fish liver oil capsules for years. :p
This is a relief to me also because my grandmother had severe osteoporosis and I fall in the high risk group. I hope to avoid the worst of that with diet and exercise.

[marni]

my doctor has had me on calcium supplements 1000mg along with vitamin D 1000mg for several years because she says that although she knows I am a biker, she knows that I am fair skinned, green eyed, subject to possible skin cancer and compulsive about sun screen. So far I haven't grown a third eye or had any adverse effects.

[Biciclista]

Marni, living in Texas, I imagine you are in pretty good shape.

[limewave]

I take 2000mg of Vitamin D a day, prescribed by my doctor. I cannot believe the difference it makes. I don't need it during the summer. I start it up in October/November and usually go until March or so.

[nscrbug]

I take 4,000 IU of Vitamin D3 per day...and I am still on the low end of normal. I simply feel better when I take it, as opposed to when I don't or have run out.