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Joined: Mar 26, 2005 Posts: 576 Location: Northamptonshire, England.
Posted: Thu Apr 03, 2008 7:39 am Post subject:
That's very interesting, Loryas, and if people aren't convinced by that article here's something I just picked up on PubMed:
Quote:
Use of vitamin D in clinical practice.
Cannell JJ, Hollis BW.
Director, Vitamin D Council. Correspondence address: 9100 San Gregorio Road, Atascadero, CA 93422 Email: jjcannell@gmail.com.
The recent discovery - from a meta-analysis of 18 randomized controlled trials - that supplemental cholecalciferol (vitamin D) significantly reduces all-cause mortality emphasizes the medical, ethical, and legal implications of promptly diagnosing and adequately treating vitamin D deficiency. Not only are such deficiencies common, and probably the rule, vitamin D deficiency is implicated in most of the diseases of civilization. Vitamin D's final metabolic product is a potent, pleiotropic, repair and maintenance, seco-steroid hormone that targets more than 200 human genes in a wide variety of tissues, meaning it has as many mechanisms of action as genes it targets. One of the most important genes vitamin D up-regulates is for cathelicidin, a naturally occurring broad-spectrum antibiotic. Natural vitamin D levels, those found in humans living in a sun-rich environment, are between 40-70 ng per ml, levels obtained by few modern humans. Assessing serum 25-hydroxy-vitamin D (25(OH)D) is the only way to make the diagnosis and to assure treatment is adequate and safe. Three treatment modalities exist for vitamin D deficiency: sunlight, artificial ultraviolet B (UVB) radiation, and vitamin D3 supplementation. Treatment of vitamin D deficiency in otherwise healthy patients with 2,000-7,000 IU vitamin D per day should be sufficient to maintain year-round 25(OH)D levels between 40-70 ng per mL. In those with serious illnesses associated with vitamin D deficiency, such as cancer, heart disease, multiple sclerosis, diabetes, autism, and a host of other illnesses, doses should be sufficient to maintain year-round 25(OH)D levels between 55 -70 ng per mL. Vitamin D-deficient patients with serious illness should not only be supplemented more aggressively than the well, they should have more frequent monitoring of serum 25(OH)D and serum calcium. Vitamin D should always be adjuvant treatment in patients with serious illnesses and never replace standard treatment. Theoretically, pharmacological doses of vitamin D (2,000 IU per kg per day for three days) may produce enough of the naturally occurring antibiotic cathelicidin to cure common viral respiratory infections, such as influenza and the common cold, but such a theory awaits further science.
Joined: Sep 23, 2007 Posts: 158 Location: Lexington, KY
Posted: Thu Apr 03, 2008 8:51 am Post subject:
I am currently in southern Florida visiting my in-laws in West Palm Beach area during Spring Break for my kids. Every time we come down here I wish we would move here but my husband likes to live where it gets cold. These types of articles will help me support my arguments for moving down here. Keep up the good work!
Marcia _________________ DX'd 08/2006, RRMS, currently in the Tovaxin extension study group.
Marcia
Do you feel better when you are in Florida? I definitely do, which is why we moved from Ohio. Get your husband to move! You will be glad you did!
Lori
The little bit of what we consider cold weather here in Texas hurts me so bad. I don't know how people in the northern areas do it? If the temp get below 60 degs I am looking fo a coat. I go fishing just about every weekend and I feel so much better after a good afternoon in my boat in the sun. It is normally 95 degs here with 100% humidity. The wonderful Gulf breeze! Gotta love it.[/b]
so being from 'the north' as it were, i am still wondering why i can get such a fierce sunburn on my face in winter, working outdoors as i do, and still not be making vitamin D. i mean, i could look it up i'm sure it's just x and y amounts of energy input needed for pigmentation vs d3 production, but i guess i'm just lazy
Joined: Sep 23, 2007 Posts: 158 Location: Lexington, KY
Posted: Thu Apr 03, 2008 1:37 pm Post subject:
Quote:
Do you feel better when you are in Florida?
Yes I do! I can get out of the house and breathe fresh air. I'm from Kentucky and the bone chilling cold winters which spill into April and begin in September make me stiff and uncomfortable. I feel that for 6 or so months out of the year I'm a hermit cooped up in my house. It's not the way I want to live. Any ammunition you can give me to support my position on moving I'll gladly use.
Thanks!
Marcia _________________ DX'd 08/2006, RRMS, currently in the Tovaxin extension study group.
Talking about skin pigmentation. Strange, but I have slightly redish/blonde hair. Normally people with my hair color you would associate with having light colored skin, but in my case I have a dark tan. My neuro is always saying how dark I am for someone with my hair color. For what it worth. arti
Joined: Sep 12, 2006 Posts: 832 Location: Dayton, Ohio USA
Posted: Thu Apr 03, 2008 4:07 pm Post subject:
This is fascinating. I take 4000IU per day while my wife and daughter each take 2000 per day. I hope that's enough to shield my little girl from possible MS. I about cried when I read that if it's the father that has it, the offspring are more likely than if it is the mother. I quit putting sunscreen on her years ago. When I was growing up, we would burn the first day, and then we would just be dark brown all summer. Every time I see parents just hammering their kids with 50 SPF every half hour I always want to tell them to back off a bit. Now I think I'll just give them this article! _________________ "When you're in jail, a good friend will be trying to bail you out. A best friend will be in the cell next to you saying, 'Damn, that was fun.'"
I worry about my five year old son. he is sandy blonde with extremely dark skin. his mother is french/coonass. i hope you all know what a coonass is!!!LMAO....arti
Joined: Sep 11, 2007 Posts: 568 Location: southern California
Posted: Thu Apr 03, 2008 5:29 pm Post subject:
OK....I live in southern California, and the weather is really beautiful here all year round (Please don't hate me!) I was just in West Palm last week too, visiting my Dad. We played tennis, and I got quite a burn!
My Californian husband has had three basal cell sites cut off his face and torso. He's been outside in the sun his whole life, and he got MS. I KNOW his MS isn't from lack of vitamin D thru his skin, but maybe through his digestive system. I think leaky gut and malabsorption were the culprits in his vitamin imbalances.
Lew, PLEASE put sunscreen on your precious daughter...fifteen minutes w/out suncreen a day is all she needs. You can also give her more vitamin D fortified food and milk. Melanoma isn't any better than MS. My socal son is at the beach all summer, and he wears a rash guard shirt and sunscreen...and I'm not worried about his vit. D levels, because he's outside everyday. No need to burn, folks!
-the very fortunate Calfornian cheerleader _________________ Husband diagnosed RRMS March 2007
20 lesions brain/spine
Copaxone, Swank, supplements, laughter
Joined: Sep 23, 2007 Posts: 158 Location: Lexington, KY
Posted: Thu Apr 03, 2008 6:35 pm Post subject:
I do wear sunscreen especially on my face at SPF 30. I put SPF 50 on my kids when they go outside especially when swimming and they still come home with a beautiful tan. Of course I do not. I am as fair skinned as they come. My freckles get darker but that's all. I'm of germanic descent with brown hair, blue eyes, and fair skin. Do you think my skin might just have problems accepting vitamin D?
Marcia _________________ DX'd 08/2006, RRMS, currently in the Tovaxin extension study group.
nope i don't think so... light young skin makes vit d the best. the older you get, the less you make. the darker you are, the more clothing you wear (duh), the more you are inside, the worse your vitamin d status.
of course vitamin d is not the single determining factor in whether someone gets cancer (or other inflammatory condition) but it's looking like it's a big chunk.
if your levels are low after being out in the sun with pale skin, then i'd have to hypothesize some kind of failure in the hydroxylation processes in the liver and kidney?
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