Vitamin D supplements for good health

The use of vitamin D supplements is now promoted to the general population, because vitamin D deficiency is now common. For people living with Gorlin Syndrome, who need to minimise exposure to UV, vitamin D supplements are essential, unless your doctor has specifically instructed that you must not take vitamin D. This is a rare circumstance, but it can happen, in certain diseases.

General comments follow:

Everyone needs vitamin D. Recent scientific research indicated that this vitamin is vital for normal function of many body systems, and not only for maintaining our skeletons, by helping us to absorb calcium from our diets (or from calcium supplements). Vitamin D deficiency has been linked to a wide range of disease states including hypertension, depression, schizophrenia, autism, infections, cancers and autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis and type 1 diabetes.

Over the years, I have found several useful sources of information about science and health, such as "Wikipedia" and the Australian ABC, which broadcasts TV shows such as “Catalyst” and radio shows such as “Health Report”, for which transcripts are available online. It is important to note the dates of these articles; this one was from 1999, and gives readers a useful introduction to the topic, but needs to be read in the context of later research:

http://www.abc.net.au/rn/talks/8.30/helthrpt/stories/s63610.htm

This discussion was about people with "normal" resistance to cancer, and not about how people with Gorlin Syndrome need to act, so they implicitly recommend more sun exposure than is advisable for people with Gorlin Syndrome.

Note especially that the expert said that our skin becomes less efficient at turning the precursor molecules into active vitamin D, as we age. No wonder that many Australians over the age of 60 are deficient in vitamin D, even though many of them would still get exposure to sunshine at a level that would suffice, if they were younger. Thus, our aging loved ones also need vitamin D supplements; see this article from ABC “Catalyst”:

http://www.abc.net.au/catalyst/stories/2514231.htm

"Vitamin D (12/03/2009)

Have we taken our fear of the sun too far? We’re told to keep out of the sun – so what are you to think when your doctor tells you that you’re not getting enough of it and as a result you now have a serious vitamin D deficiency? Dr Norman Swan soaks up some rays to find out what is really going on. …......."

Vitamin D is also vital for brain development and function, see:

http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2010/09/07/3005303.htm

“Low vitamin D linked to schizophrenia

Tuesday, 7 September 2010 Timothy McDonald”

See the section called “Related Stories”:

“Audio: Link between vitamin D deficiency and schizophrenia (The World Today)

Sun-shy mums may raise MS risk in babies, Science Online, 30 Apr 2010”

Note that vitamin D deficiency has also been implicated in risk of developing multiple sclerosis (MS). There has recently been a breakthrough in identification of genes that are also involved; there is an interaction between the person's genetic makeup and environmental factors including vitamin D levels. This genetic breakthrough was reported on Australian TV; see this article about it:

http://www.abc.net.au/worldtoday/content/2011/s3290760.htm

"New genes found in MS study

Liz Hobday reported this story on Thursday, August 11, 2011 12:46:00

ELEANOR HALL: One of the largest human genetic studies ever undertaken is yielding some promising results for Multiple Sclerosis sufferers.

Scientists say they've found almost 30 new genes linked to the disease and are hoping that this will lead to better treatments. ….......”

Vitamin D is also implicated in our risk of developing certain cancers; see this transcript from ABC “Catalyst”:

http://www.abc.net.au/catalyst/stories/s805444.htm

"Vitamin D and Cancer (27/03/2003)

Medical experts around the world are talking about a new epidemic, a health concern that may be dramatically increasing our risk of cancer, hypertension and even diabetes – it’s a lack of Vitamin D.

Some experts predict that up to 25 per cent of Australians could be Vitamin D deficient. The cause is something that’s been known for nearly a century, a lack of sunshine. There now seems to be a connection between breast, colon and prostate cancer and a lack of Vitamin D.

Even more amazing, one expert believes 25 per cent of breast cancer deaths could be avoided if the women had maintained adequate vitamin D levels throughout their life.

Catalyst’s Karina Kelly investigates research in Australia that appears to show that Vitamin D actually kills cancer cells while protecting healthy cells from sun damage.

Vitamin D can only be made by the body when sunlight falls on skin unprotected by sunscreen. This raises some big questions for Australians who have been living with the sun safe message for the last 20 years. … … "

“Quarterly Advocate” had this article on vitamin D:

http://www.bccns.org/news/2009Winter.pdf

"Multiple Health Concerns Surface as Winter Arrives

Source: Future Microbiology , Nov 23, 2009

CORVALLIS, Ore. – A string of recent discoveries about the multiple health benefits of vitamin D has renewed interest in this multi-purpose nutrient, increased awareness of the huge numbers of people who are deficient in it, spurred research and even led to an appreciation of it as "nature's antibiotic."

On issues ranging from the health of your immune system to prevention of heart disease and even vulnerability to influenza, vitamin D is now seen as one of the most critical nutrients for overall health. But it's also one of those most likely to be deficient – especially during winter when production of the "sunshine vitamin" almost grinds to a halt for millions of people in the USA, Europe and other northern temperate zones. Analogs of the vitamin are even being considered for use as new therapies against tuberculosis, AIDS, and other concerns. And federal experts are considering an increase in the recommended daily intake of the vitamin as more evidence of its value emerges, especially for the elderly.

"About 70% of the population of the USA has insufficient levels of vitamin D," said Adrian Gombart, principal investigator with the Linus Pauling Institute at Oregon State Univ. "This is a critical issue as we learn more about the many roles it may play in fighting infection, balancing your immune response, helping to address autoimmune problems, and even preventing heart disease." Those issues were just outlined in a new publication in Future Microbiology, a professional journal, on the latest findings on vitamin D research, at OSU and in many other programs around the world. ….........”

Note that food in Australia is not supplemented with vitamin D, as far as I know.

Immune function is important for handling infectious diseases, and also for protecting us from cancer. Our immune systems are thought to destroy most tumours, soon after they begin, leaving a minority that somehow avoid this process and grow big enough to trouble us.

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Among the “Educational articles” at the USA Gorlin Syndrome site was a reprint from the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM), which is a reputable medical journal:

http://www.gorlinsyndrome.org/EduDocs/Dermatological/VitaminD/Vitamin%20D%20Deficiency.pdf

“N Engl J Med 2007;357:266-81.

Vitamin D Deficiency

Michael F. Holick, M.D., Ph.D.”

It is a very detailed review of the whole topic of vitamin D, with more information than most of us want to read, but see Table 2 on page 274 – 275, which gives examples of groups that are likely to suffer from deficiency and how to fix it. How can we swallow enough vitamin D? The richest natural sources include codliver oil or lots of "oily fish"; the same ones that are recommended as sources of "omega 3" oil or "fish oil", such as sardines or salmon. Tablets or capsules, each having 1,000 units of vitamin D3, can readily be bought at pharmacies in Australia; I now take 2 to 3 such tablets a day. Higher potency supplements require a doctor's prescription. I was reassured by the information on page 278 that explained that I was not going to “overdose” if I took up to 10,000 units / day, but that 50,000 units a day for 6 months was definitely too much vitamin D. I am obese, and obesity impairs vitamin D utilisation in the body, meaning obese people need twice as much vitamin D as most slim people. Therefore, I am taking around 3,000 units / day, taking into account the various supplements I consume. That intake is safe for me, according to the NEJM article.

Long ago, my doctor had recommended that I take a supplement of 1,000 units / day, and I did so, for a time. For some reason, I had ceased taking it, but I resumed taking vitamin D last year, at 2,000 to 3,000 IU/day, because of what I had read in NEJM. I soon felt healthier than I had felt in years!! (In those ill years, my vitamin D intake was probably 200 IU/ day, or less.) My doctor had also diagnosed me as suffering from “fibromyalgia”. I have read that chronic vitamin D deficiency is often misdiagnosed as “fibromyalgia”because its symptoms are so similar: muscle weakness, aches and pains. My “fibromyalgia”symptoms are much less troubling, now that I am not deficient in vitamin D. I have been able to resume moderate exercise at the gym. I no longer struggle to do basic daily tasks, such as walking, and my use of analgesics has decreased.