Are You Vitamin D Deficient?

http://www.care2.com/greenliving/are-you-vitamin-d-deficient.html

posted by Dr. Frank Lipman Nov 1, 2009 3:17 pm

filed under: Conditions, Diet & Nutrition, Health & Wellness, cancer, fibromyalgia, gout, heart disease, multiple sclerosis, obesity, parkinson's disease, psoriasis, sunlight, vitamin D, vitamin D blood tests

21 comments

In part one of this series, Dr. Frank addresses the epidemic of vitamin D deficiency: 30 to 100 percent of Americans don’t get enough of this crucial hormone. This deficiency can play a role in almost every major disease including 17 kinds of cancer, Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s. This article answers questions about testing levels of vitamin D. Stay tuned for the third and final part of this series, which addresses the best ways to increase your level of vitamin D.

What are the symptoms of vitamin D deficiency?

There is no clear pattern of symptoms. In fact many people remain asymptomatic despite low levels. But here are the most common symptoms:

Fatigue
General muscle pain and weakness
Muscle cramps
Joint pain
Chronic pain
Weight gain
High blood pressure
Restless sleep
Poor concentration
Headaches
Bladder problems
Constipation or diarrhea

What blood test should I have to check my vitamin D levels?

The only blood test that can diagnose vitamin D deficiency is a 25-hydroxy-vitamin D (25 OH vitamin D). Unfortunately, some doctors are still ordering the wrong test, 1,25-dihydroxy-vitamin D. In fact, a common cause of high 1,25-dihydroxy-vitamin D is a low 25(OH)D or vitamin D deficiency. So when doctors see the 1,25-dihydroxy-vitamin D is normal or high and tell their patients that they are okay, they are often vitamin D deficient.

Your doctor should do this test for you. Unfortunately even some of the labs, in particular Qwest, have had problems with correct results, usually giving erroneously high results.

If you don’t want to go through your doctor, the ZRT lab does a blood spot test that you can order without going through a doctor.

What is the ideal blood level of 25 hydroxy vitamin D?

The current ranges for “normal” are 20 to 55 ng/ml. These are much too low! They may be fine if want to prevent rickets or osteomalacia, but not if you want optimal health. The ideal range for optimal health is 50-80 ng/ml.

How often should I have a 25 hydroxy vitamin D blood test?

At least once a year especially at the beginning of winter. If you are supplementing, I suggest you monitor your vitamin D levels approximately every 3months until you are in the optimal range. If you are taking high doses (10,000 IU a day) your doctor must also check your calcium, phosphorous, and parathyroid hormone levels every 3 months.

My doctor prescribed Drisdol, 50,000 IU per week. What is it?

Drisdol is a prescription of 50,000 IU tablets of vitamin D2 or ergocalciferol. Ergocalciferol is not vitamin D but it is similar. D2 is not normally found in humans and most studies show it does not raise 25(OH)D levels as well as (cholecalciferol or vit D3) does. If you are vitamin D deficient, the best thing to do, is to take vitamin D3.

Stay tuned for the third and final part of this series on how to increase your level of vitamin D. Dr. Frank will answer the questions: What are food sources of vitamin D? How much vitamin D should I supplement with? What about vitamin D toxicity?

Frank Lipman MD, is the founder and director of the Eleven Eleven Wellness Center in NYC a center whose emphasis is on preventive health care and patient education. His personal blend of Western and Eastern Medicine combined with the many other complimentary modalities he has studied has helped thousands of people recover their energy and zest for life. He is the author of the recent SPENT: End Exhaustion and Feel Great Again (2009) and Total Renewal; 7 key steps to Resilience, Vitality and Long-Term Health (2003).

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21 comments add your comment

J Roberto L. says
Nov 4, 2009 3:23 PM

Philomena B.
Nov 4, 2009 1:39 PM

Addendum:

See also "Vegan 1-2-3 - Introduction,"
http://www.care2.com/causes/animal-welfare/blog/vegan-123/
comment-parts 6 & 7 of 7-part comment of Leonard J., Oct 17, 2009 1:59 PM.
AND
comment of Leonard J., Oct 17, 2009 2:22 PM.

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J Roberto L. says
Nov 4, 2009 2:56 PM

Philomena B.
Nov 4, 2009 1:39 PM

Do not be confused. Dr. Lipman is alone in his (false) position concerning what is the active D3 and what is the right D3 blood-test. All the literature opposes Dr. Lipman——whose "role models" are NOT great physicians or great physiologists/biochemists but "Dalai Lama, Desmond Tutu, Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King Jr., Mahatma Gandhi" [see his Care2 profile].

In my comment J Roberto L., Nov 3, 2009 9:23 AM and my 2-PART comment J Roberto L.,
Nov 3, 2009 2:01 AM, I presented the pertinent truth and cited many expert sources other than myself.

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Philomena B. says
Nov 4, 2009 1:39 PM

I'm so confused....every thing this article says can be found contradicted somewhere on the net or in print...I'd love to see a book entitled "The Truth About Everything"....of course, a week later a book would come out called "The REAL Truth About Everything". Does anyone really know for sure what we need for vitamins and supplements?

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J Roberto L. says
Nov 3, 2009 10:32 AM

I give up. This comment-system is incorrigible.

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J Roberto L. says
Nov 3, 2009 10:31 AM

Still not clear. One more try.

http://books.google.com/books?id=FVfzRvaucq8C&pg=PA535&lpg=PA535&dq=25%5BOH%5D+D3+liver+1,25%5BOH%5D2+D3+kidney&source=bl&ots=xZeQqV11YU&sig=0_mUIxQQ10Rwgij7azVffM52Mww&hl=en&ei=DfLvSqGYCYzKsQO-sZmKBg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=2&ved=0CA8Q6AEwATgK#v=onepage&q=&f=false

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J Roberto L. says
Nov 3, 2009 10:29 AM

In Part 1 of my comment of Nov 3, 2009 2:01 AM, the second web-page reference's full name may not appear clearly to you---because this comment-system showed it unclearly. I shall try to fix the trouble here.

http://books.google.com/books?id=FVfzRvaucq8C&pg=PA535&lpg=PA535&dq=25%5BOH%5D+D3+liver+1,25%5BOH%5D2+D3+kidney&source=bl&ots=xZeQqV11YU&sig=0_mUIxQQ10Rwgij7azVffM52Mww&hl=en&ei=DfLvSqGYCYzKsQO-sZmKBg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=2&ved=0CA8Q6AEwATgK#v=onepage&q=&f=false

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J Roberto L. says
Nov 3, 2009 9:23 AM

CORRECTION OF THIRD PARAGRAPH OF PART 1 OF MY LAST-PRECEDING MESSAGE:

Often physicians ask labs to test for 25[OH]D3——NOT 1,25[OH]2D3——because 25[OH]D3 is the major form of vitamin D circulating in the blood & they estimate the level of 1,25[OH]2D3 by extrapolating from the level of 25[OH]D3. But the true question is the level of 1,25[OH]2D3, the active D3. So testing for 1,25[OH]2D3 is not error. Rather, it measures, directly, quite exactly the quantity of the vitamin D3 form that must be measured to determine whether the patient is D3 deficient.

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J Roberto L. says
Nov 3, 2009 2:01 AM

PART 1

Dr. Lipman is badly wrong.

25[OH]D3 (produced by the liver) is NOT active D3. Rather, 1,25[OH]2D3 (produced by the kidneys) is the active D3.

Usually, physicians ask labs to test for 25[OH]D3——NOT 1,25[OH]2D3——because 25[OH]D3 is the major form of vitamin D circulating in the blood & they estimate the level of 1,25[OH]2D3 by extrapolating from the level of 25[OH]D3. But the true question is the level of 1,25[OH]2D3, the active D3. So testing for 1,25[OH]2D3 is not error. Rather, it measures, directly, quite exactly the vitamin quantity that must be measured to determine whether the patient is D3 deficient.

See, e.g., the following:

http://books.google.com/books?id=4yMaa2sAX8UC&pg=RA3-PA574&lpg=RA3-PA574&dq=25%5BOH%5D+D3+liver+1,25%5BOH%5D2+D3+kidney&source=bl&ots=Q_175smnoq&sig=dAwzo_21sWP3cbenAQpvoxiSh28&hl=en&ei=PvDvSun2BoyOtAOwtOXvBQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=5&ved=0CCAQ6AEwBA#v=onepage&q=25%5BOH%5D%20D3%20liver%201%2C25%5BOH%5D2%20D3%20kidney&f=false

http://books.google.com/books?id=FVfzRvaucq8C&pg=PA535&lpg=PA535&dq=25%5BOH%5D+D3+liver+1,25%5BOH%5D2+D3+kidney&source=bl&ots=xZeQqV11YU&sig=0_mUIxQQ10Rwgij7azVffM52Mww&hl=en&ei=DfLvSqGYCYzKsQO-sZmKBg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=2&ved=0CA8Q6AEwATgK#v=onepage&q=&f=false

CONTINUED

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J Roberto L. says
Nov 3, 2009 2:01 AM

PART 2

http://gpnotebook.co.uk/simplepage.cfm?ID=-1791688660

http://gpnotebook.co.uk/simplepage.cfm?ID=x20091021095528231629&linkID=72514&cook=no

http://books.google.com/books?id=XDBgkfVau0sC&pg=PA157&lpg=PA157&dq=25%5BOH%5D+D3+liver+1,25%5BOH%5D2+D3+kidney&source=bl&ots=r0idyrIQJk&sig=w6mwzm48uIi0Xn6UNHn_rkI8OGo&hl=en&ei=0PLvSvHcKZLYsQP_wtCEBg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=6&ved=0CCMQ6AEwBTgK#v=onepage&q=25%5BOH%5D%20D3%20liver%201%2C25%5BOH%5D2%20D3%20kidney&f=false

http://faqs.org/abstracts/Health/Synthesis-of-the-active-metabolite-of-vitamin-D-125OH2D3-by-synovial-fluid-macrophages-in-arthritic-.html

http://fasebj.org/cgi/reprint/18/2/332.pdf

http://books.google.com/books?id=6fYso23Mi5IC&pg=PA56&lpg=PA56&dq=25%5BOH%5D+D3+liver+1,25%5BOH%5D2+D3+kidney&source=bl&ots=y1-vl4X_2l&sig=jqSdkBklgOWBMCJzlXiHRff3JN4&hl=en&ei=7fTvSvOzHpHWtgOpwr31BQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=7&ved=0CCwQ6AEwBjge#v=onepage&q=25%5BOH%5D%20D3%20liver%201%2C25%5BOH%5D2%20D3%20kidney&f=false * AT PAGES 55-56 *

http://vitamindcouncil.org/reference/glossary-V.shtml

http://jimmunol.org/cgi/reprint/164/9/4443.pdf

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vitamin_D#Synthesis_mechanism_.28form_3.29

END

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Carl Nielsen says
Nov 3, 2009 2:00 AM

Why not just eat a varied diet and get some exposure to the sun instead of all those artificial supplements ?
When using supplemts you may risk getting vitamin D poisoning.

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