Vitamin D3, Scam or Panacea?

[WillBrink]

Vitamin D3 is now claimed as a cure for everything from cancer to heart disease to erectile dysfunction. What’s the truth?

What does the science actually say? How does one know the right dose for them? Can it raise testosterone? How much is too much and is it toxic at high doses?

Can it really help fight the major diseases of our society?

Learn the answers to those questions and many more in this BrinkZone Radio show HERE

[WillBrink]

FYI, did you know Vitamin D3 is technically a steroid?

If not, there's probably a lot about vitamin D/D3 you don't know about this vitamin that may help you optimize doses and get the most from it!

My guest on the latest BrinkZone Radio - Dr Hector Lopez, is an expert on D3, and worth a listen.

[Doc Safari]

I hate to do this to you: but my computer doesn't have working speakers anymore.

Could you post a written summary or provide a link to an online text version?

[WillBrink]

I hate to do this to you: but my computer doesn't have working speakers anymore.

Could you post a written summary or provide a link to an online text version?

Why not plug some cheapo ear buds into your comp? I tend to listen to shows that way as it just sounds better.

I don't believe the show is transcribed at the moment, but I'd check the site (Webtalkradio.net) and confirm that and or, suggest they offer it as many are hearing impaired, etc.

[skydivr]

THANK YOU SIR for the post. I listened to it in it's entirety and enjoyed/learned a LOT from it.

I've had low D3 for quite a while. My Endocrinologist follows it - see him because I've had bad kidney stones. Take HZTZ and Potassium supplement to keep my urine calcium under control. But HZTZ also takes out Vitamin D - too little does bad stuff to you, but too much helps stones develop. My doctor's range test report shows ineffieciency under 30 as the lower bar. Your Dr. stays 40-60 is the "sweet spot"; I just don't know how that reacts against stone development.

I've seen mine as low as 10, but over the last 2 years it's in the mid to upper 20's. My T is low too (which seems to tie in from listening to the radio show). I do take some D3 supplement (1000iu every 3-4 days) to try and keep it up without getting "too high", but I do not think or or my dr's are managing this correctly.

Sometimes I feel my Endo and my regular Dr are at odds over it. I actually go see my regular Dr next week for reqular blood test (Also take blood pressure/chloesterol meds) so I may have another chance to talk to him about Vitamin D vs. my other issues.

Maybe a little too much info for public consumption but didn't want to tie you up with a PM although I'd enjoy that conversation if you had the time.

[WillBrink]

I hate to do this to you: but my computer doesn't have working speakers anymore.

Could you post a written summary or provide a link to an online text version?

Why not use some cheapo earbuds? That's how I listen to programs personally. Just sounds better. I don't think the shows are transcribed, but check the webtalkradio page (the company hosting the show) and check to make sure as it may be offered for hearing impaired and such, not sure.

[WillBrink]

THANK YOU SIR for the post. I listened to it in it's entirety and enjoyed/learned a LOT from it.

I've had low D3 for quite a while. My Endocrinologist follows it - see him because I've had bad kidney stones. Take HZTZ and Potassium supplement to keep my urine calcium under control. But HZTZ also takes out Vitamin D - too little does bad stuff to you, but too much helps stones develop. My doctor's range test report shows ineffieciency under 30 as the lower bar. Your Dr. stays 40-60 is the "sweet spot"; I just don't know how that reacts against stone development.

Good point and Q. What follows is NOT medical advice, so anything from what I write following would be discussed with your docs.

The issue of vite D and possibly increased risk for stones appears to be modern American diets + D, vs D itself per se. A good read from the Vitamin D Council:

"The largest study that looked at the risk of kidney stones with vitamin D came out of Harvard. They studied 45,616 men over 14 years for a total of 477,000 person-years of follow up. They found no increased risk of kidney stones with vitamin D intake but did not look at sun exposure or 25(OH)D levels. Of interest, they found three things in your diet that protect against kidney stones: high potassium (46% lower relative risk), high magnesium (29% lower relative risk), and high fluid intake (29% lower relative risk). For younger men, higher dietary calcium was associated with a reduced risk of kidney stones (31% lower relative risk).6

It seems likely that physiological vitamin D intakes will result in a higher relative risk for kidney stones for people on modern American diets (low potassium, low magnesium, high refined carbohydrates, high sodas, and a high acid residue). You may lower your risk of kidney stones by remaining vitamin D deficient, but then you raise your risk of dying from many other diseases. The best thing to do to prevent kidney stones is be sure you drink adequate fluids, be sure you have adequate magnesium (see below) and potassium in your diet, and be sure you are not in a state of low-grade metabolic acidosis. The last is important, because foods that contain potassium (vegetables and fruit), also turn your body more basic."

Cont HERE

The topic is going outside my lane, so use as a stepping point for further investigation from science based sources and act accordingly with doc(s) assistance.

I've seen mine as low as 10, but over the last 2 years it's in the mid to upper 20's. My T is low too (which seems to tie in from listening to the radio show). I do take some D3 supplement (1000iu every 3-4 days) to try and keep it up without getting "too high", but I do not think or or my dr's are managing this correctly.

Sometimes I feel my Endo and my regular Dr are at odds over it. I actually go see my regular Dr next week for reqular blood test (Also take blood pressure/chloesterol meds) so I may have another chance to talk to him about Vitamin D vs. my other issues.

Maybe a little too much info for public consumption but didn't want to tie you up with a PM although I'd enjoy that conversation if you had the time.

See above intel, and perhaps look at larger picture of diet/nutrition interactions and D in stone formation as it applies to your situation.

[skydivr]

What you said above seems to ring somewhat true to what my Dr's say - which explains the Potassium Supplement.

I'm certainly not the man I used to be. And my diet could stand improvement (and about 20lbs off)...

Thank you for your valuable time.

[WillBrink]

More useful and overlapping to the OP:


How common is vitamin D insufficiency?

Low vitamin D status, i.e. vitamin D deficiency or insufficiency, is far more common than previously thought.

When looking at stats, it’s important to distinguish vitamin D deficiency from insufficiency. While severe vitamin D deficiency isn’t as prevalent, vitamin D insufficiency is:

* 36% of the US population is deficient, with vitamin D levels below 20 ng/ml [61].

* In a study on subjects characteristic of the US white population, it was found that only 18% have a vitamin D level over 30 ng/ml [62]. Thus, a whopping 82% are insufficient in vitamin D!

Similar results were found in the 2004 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) [63] and in other analyses [58].

* To make things worse, data from (NHANES) showed that the number of persons with a vitamin D level below 30 ng/mL nearly doubled between the 1994 and 2004 [63].

Bearing in mind that the desired range as recommended by vitamin D research experts, is 50-60 ng/ml, these stats are alarming and underscore the fact that vitamin D insufficiency exists in epidemic proportions in the US. This vitamin D insufficiency epidemic spans across the globe [61].

Cont: Vitamin D – what’s the optimal level and how to achieve it?

[WillBrink]

I hate to do this to you: but my computer doesn't have working speakers anymore.

Could you post a written summary or provide a link to an online text version?

Not a text version of the show but a new article by one of my writers that covers what you need to know:

Cont: Vitamin D – what’s the optimal level and how to achieve it?