Strength and Health Through Synergy

Vitamin D Milk is pasturized milk that has added Vitamin D, usually a synthetic form of Vitamin D called ergocalciferol.  This synthetic form isn’t as potent and doesn’t last as long in your body. 

The following paragraphs are from the Vitamin D Council’s website:

“Another substance that is often called vitamin D is ergocalciferol (also referred to as vitamin D2 or Calciferol). It is derived by radiating fungus. It is not the naturally occurring vitamin D for humans. Fungus contains fat-like substances called sterols which are commercially irradiated to form ergocalciferol. As it is derived from plants, and not animals, ergocalciferol is considered Kosher.

Ergocalciferol is available to U.S. doctors in prescription strength and is sometimes used in multivitamin preparations—usually at 400 IU per pill. Your doctor can write a prescription for 50,000 units of ergocalciferol (brand names Drisdol and Calciferol).

Ergocalciferol does not exist in detectable quantities in the human body, only in tiny quantities in plants and as such is “unnatural” when in the human body. You can not get any appreciable ergocalciferol by eating vegetables. Ergocalciferol is metabolized to various substances in the body, some of which are not normally present in humans, although these metabolites have never been shown to be dangerous. There is also some evidence that ergocalciferol is more toxic in overdose, which is curious as it is only about half as potent as the naturally occurring vitamin D, cholecalciferol. Your body also metabolizes ergocalciferol more quickly than cholecalciferol.”

Synthetic Vitamin D2 (ergocalciferol) becomes toxic in you body at far lower levels than D3.  Too  much synthetic Vitamin D2 may be linked to health problems.  A number of studies link Vitamin D2 to irritation of the lining of blood vessels.

In fortified Vitamin D Milk, you may not even know how much you are getting.  When Dr. Michael Holick and his colleagues at the Boston University School of Medicine tested samples of milk, they found 8 out of 10 samples contained either 20 percent less or 20 percent more Vitamin D than the amount the lable advertised — and some of the milk tested contained no Vitamin D at all.

As you can see, we cannot depend on our fortified Vitamin D Milk to supply our needs for Vitamin D.  We need to spend 15 to 20 minutes a day with bare arms and legs and no sunscreen, except on our face and neck, at mid-day to get our best form of Vitamin D.  And during the time of year when our sun isn’t strong enough to produce Vitamin D we need to supplement with Vitamin D.

Related articles

Vitamin D Information

Vitamin D Dosage

The proper Vitamin D dosage has a wide range of recommended levels depending on who you talk to or research you’ve completed yourself. Through our research we found this to be true and also extremely frustrating. We felt the recommended dosage levels were too low and not current with the cutting edge research coming out.

The current unit of measurement for Vitamin D levels in the blood is expressed in nanograms per milliliter (ng/ml). The optimal blood levels for disease prevention is in the 50  – 100 ng/ml range.

Our team decided to pose a question to Dwight McKee M.D., a leading authority on the latest recommended dosage levels for Vitamin D supplements. We asked him what he recommended as the proper dosage levels of Vitamin D supplements for children and adults. Below are his recommendations:

• Take 1,000 IU of Vitamin D per 25 pounds of body weight per day. It can be taken daily, once a week, or on a monthly basis. Please see the table below for an easy to read conversion table.

• Don’t take any Vitamin D on days when you will experience significant summer, tropical or winter sun exposure without sun block.

• People with granulomatous diseases (sarcoid, TB, Chrohn’s disease, etc.) and lymphoma, should only take Vitamin D with a knowledgeable physician monitoring their blood levels, as they can easily get toxic with these kinds of doses. These are rare conditions, but are probably what led to the medical myth of the dangers surrounding Vitamin D toxicity.

Body Weight in Pounds	Recommended Daily Dosage (IU)	Recommended Weekly Dosage (IU)	Recommended Monthly Dosage
25	1,000	7,000	30,000
50	2,000	14,000	60,000
75	3,000	21,000	90,000
100	4,000	28,000	120,000
125	5,000	35,000	150,000
150	6,000	42,000	180,000
175	7,000	49,000	210,000
200	8,000	56,000	240,000
225	9,000	63,000	270,000
250	10,000	70,000	300,000
275	11,000	77,000	330,000
300	12,000	84,000	360,000
325	13,000	91,000	390,000
350	14,000	98,000	420,000
375	15,000	105,000	450,000
400	16,000	112,000	480,000

International Unit (IU) – The international unit (IU) is a unit of measurement based on an accepted standard and on biological activity of the substance. The substance for Vitamin D has its own unique IU. What this means is that 100 IU of Vitamin D does not equal 100 IU of Vitamin E. Note: It takes 1000 IU of Vitamin D to equal 25 micrograms (mcg) of Vitamin D.

Dr. Michael Holick is a leading researcher at the Boston University Medical Center and is a high-profile member of the Vitamin D research community. To get a FREE copy of an EXCLUSIVE interview with Dr. Holick click on the link below.

Click here for FREE Interview

Recommended reading: Vitamin D supplements

Too Much Vitamin D

Too much Vitamin D is also known as vitamin D toxicity or Hypervitaminosis D. How much is too much vitamin D? A lot has been written in medical publications recently about the levels of vitamin D in the body that would indicate too much vitamin D or toxicity. Current data suggests and also supports the viewpoint that the 25-hydroxy D level must be more than 150 ng/ml to be considered too much vitamin D. As a rule of thumb it is a good idea to use 100 ng/ml as threshold, which ensures a wide safety buffer. With the vitamin D level of so many people being in the range of 20 -30 ng/ml it would take heavy doses over a period of time to raise their levels to the overdose or toxic range. Medical research indicates that amounts of vitamin D in excess of 10,000 IU per day would have to be consumed over several months to produce true toxicity in an otherwise healthy person.

“Too much Vitamin D is also known as vitamin D toxicity or Hypervitaminosis D”

The initial signs of too much vitamin D in your body are silent. An overdose or toxicity starts with an elevated calcium level in your urine then with an increased amount of calcium in the blood. An individual may not experience or notice early warning signs of an overdose until significant symptoms have already developed. Elevated calcium symptoms in the blood can include muscle weakness, constipation, abdominal pain, vomiting, extreme thirst, and itching. It can also make one prone to high blood pressure and kidney stones.

“Vitamin D is essential for a healthy functioning body”

Vitamin D is essential for a healthy functioning body. We get the majority of our vitamin D from sunlight and eating foods that are high in vitamin D. As mentioned earlier it is thought that taking large amounts of vitamin D may be beneficial. However we must be careful when we take vitamin D especially in supplemental form because it is a fat soluble vitamin that can be stored in our bodies.

How to Test your Vitamin D Level

Your vitamin D level can be measured by either a simple fasting or nonfasting blood test, which can be done by most any lab. Have a physician order a blood test to measure your Vitamin D 25-OH or 25-OH-D levels. At a minimum your Vitamin D 25-OH levels should be above 32 ng/ml (80 nmol/L). Usually there is no real need to check the Vitamin D-1-25-OH levels as they won’t reveal your deficiency status.

The current unit of measurement for vitamin D levels in the blood is expressed in ng/ml: nanograms per milliliter. You may also see vitamin D levels expressed in another measurement called nmol/L, which is nanomoles per Liter. To change ng/ml to nmol/L simply multiply the ng/ml value by 2.5.

Example:  40 ng/ml (40 X 2.5)  =  100 nmol/L

Lab Values / Levels for Vitamin D

• Less than 10 ng/ml (less than 25 nmol/L) is considered a severe deficiency

• 10  – 32 ng/ml (25 – 80 nmol/L) is moderately deficient

• 33  – 49 ng/ml (82 – 124 nmol/L) is sufficient

• 50  – 100 ng/ml (125 – 250 nmol/L) is OPTIMAL for disease prevention

• 101 – 150 ng/ml (253 – 375 nmol/L) is considered an overdose

• More than 150 ng/ml (more than 375 nmol/L) is toxic

Most people need at least 2,000 IU daily of vitamin D to get their blood levels to a sufficient level. Have your vitamin D level checked to determine the dose your body requires to get you to the optimal level.

Dr. Michael Holick is a leading researcher at the Boston University Medical Center and is a high-profile member of the vitamin D research community. To get a FREE copy of an EXCLUSIVE interview with Dr. Holick click on the link below.

Click here for FREE Interview

Recommended reading: Vitamin D supplements

Vitamin D toxicity, also known as Hypervitaminosis D, is a condition that occurs after taking excessive doses of vitamin D. Vitamin D toxicity can potentially be a serious medical condition but is treatable. Research from the Mayo Clinic suggests that Vitamin D toxicity usually results from taking an excessive amount of vitamin D supplements — not from your diet or too much sun exposure. The reason sun exposure does not cause vitamin D toxicity is that your body produces only a limited amount of vitamin D from exposure to the sun. Fortified and naturally occurring foods do not contain large amounts of vitamin D and cannot cause vitamin D toxicity. The lone exception would be if a large quantity of cod liver oil is consumed.

Causes

Taking vitamins is a good thing, because our body needs a certain amount of vitamins in order to function properly and to utilize the food and minerals that we take in.  However, too much of a good thing is bad for us and can even possibly kill us. Vitamin toxicity in general is a condition in which a person develops symptoms as side effects from taking massive doses, usually well in excess of the minimum daily requirement, for the given vitamin. An excess of vitamin D causes abnormally high levels of calcium in the blood, which can eventually severely damage the bones, soft tissues, and kidneys. It is almost always caused by forms of vitamin D that require a doctor’s prescription. Vitamin D is one of the vitamins that are most likely to produce vitamin poisoning if it is consumed in mega-doses.

Symptoms

Contrary to some beliefs vitamin D toxicity is rare even for those who take regimens of supplements. However, you may be at greater risk of toxicity if you have certain health related conditions with your liver or kidneys. Toxic doses of vitamin D taken over a prolonged period of time will result in irreversible deposits of calcium crystals being made in the soft tissues of the body. The calcium crystals may cause damage to the kidneys, heart, and lungs. The symptoms of vitamin D toxicity are:

• Nausea

• Vomiting

• Pain in the joints

• Constipation

• Loss of appetite (anorexia)

• Dehydration

• Fatigue

• Irritability

• Poor appetite

• Confusion

• Heart rhythm abnormalities

• Kidney stones

Treatment

• Stopping vitamin D supplements

• Restricting calcium intake

• Prescribed medications

• Hydration with fluids

• Hospitalization in severe cases

Be sure to consult your physician if you are experiencing any of the symptoms previously mentioned.

Diagnosis

• High blood pressure

• Passing large quantities of urine

• Extreme thirst

• Above normal quantities of calcium in the urine

• Above normal quantities of calcium in the blood

Prognosis

The prognosis for reversing vitamin D toxicity is excellent for most people suffering from vitamin D toxicity. Side effects usually go away as soon as overdosing stops. The exception to a full recovery are those cases with severe vitamin D toxicity. Too much vitamin D leads to deposits of calcium salts in the soft tissue of the body, which cannot be reversed.  To prevent this condition, pay careful attention to the correct vitamin D dose.

Dr. Michael Holick is a leading researcher at the Boston University Medical Center and is a high-profile member of the vitamin D research community. To get a FREE copy of an EXCLUSIVE interview with Dr. Holick click on the link below.

Click here for FREE Interview

Recommended reading: Vitamin D supplements

under construction

To hear what world renowned researcher Dr. Michael Holick has to say download his interview here

Cathy Fletcher

Vitamin D Facts

Benefits of Vitamin D

Everyone needs to know what the main Vitamin D sources are.

Do you?

There are three main Vitamin D sources:

• food
• exposure to sunlight
• taking dietary supplements

Let’s look at each Vitamin D source in detail.

Food

There are only a few foods that contain a good source of Vitamin D. Oily fish, such as mackerel, salmon, sardines and tuna, and fish liver oils provide some of the best Vitamin D sources in food. Beef liver, cheese and egg yolks contain small amounts of Vitamin D. The type of Vitamin D found in food is mostly Vitamin D₃ (cholecalciferol) and its metabolite 25(OH)D₃, although mushrooms contain some Vitamin D₂ (ergocalciferol).

Vitamin D is added to some foods. In the U.S. most milk is fortified with 100 IU/cup of Vitamin D (25% of the Daily Value or 50% of the AI level for ages 14-50 years). A milk fortification program was implemented in the 1930’s in the United States to combat rickets, then a major public health problem. Some breakfast cereals and breads have been fortified with Vitamin D, as are some orange juice brands, yogurt, and margarine.

In the United States, cereal flours and related products, milk and products made from milk, and calcium-fortified fruit juices and drinks are allowed to be fortified with Vitamin D. Maximum levels of added Vitamin D are specified by law.

Food sources of Vitamin D are listed below:

Food that contains Vitamin D [from: USDA Nutrient Database for Standard Reference, Release 21, 2009.]

Sun exposure
The sun is an important Vitamin D source. Ultraviolet B (UVB) radiation with a wavelength of 290-315 nanometers penetrates uncovered skin and converts cutaneous 7-dehydrocholesterol to previtamin D₃, which in turn becomes Vitamin D₃. UVB radiation exposure and Vitamin D synthesis are affected by season, geographic latitude, time of day, cloud cover, smog, skin melanin content, and sunscreen.

Several factors affect how much Vitamin D your skin synthesises from the sun:

Season: there is virtually no Vitamin D available in winter in continental U.S.

Latitude: the nearer the poles you are the less UVB there is

• The UVB energy above 42 degrees north latitude (a line approximately between the northern border of California and Boston) is insufficient for Vitamin D synthesis between November and early March.
• In far northern latitudes, reduced UVB intensity lasts for up to 6 months. Ten degrees farther north of Boston (Edmonton, Canada) reduced UVB is intensity prevents Vitamin D synthesis between mid-October and mid-March.
• In the United States year-round Vitamin D production occurs at latitudes below 34 degrees north (a line between Los Angeles and Columbia, South Carolina).

Altitude: the higher the altitude the greater the amount of UVB reaching you and with this more Vitamin D is synthesised.

Barriers to the sun:

• Cloud can reduce UVB energy. Complete cloud cover reduces UVB energy by 50%
• Shade and severe atmospheric pollution (e.g. smog, ozone) reduce UVB by 60%.
• UVB radiation will not penetrate glass, so exposure to the sun through a window drastically reduces Vitamin D production. Window glass allows only 5 percent of the UVB light range that produces Vitamin D to get through your home or car.
• Sunscreens with a sun protection factor of 8 or more block 99% of Vitamin D production.

A person’s age, health and culture:

• The elderly are substantially less efficient at producing Vitamin D in response to sunlight.
• Obese people are less efficient at producing Vitamin D in response to sunlight. Vitamin D gets trapped in fat cells and cannot easily exit.  Obese patients need at least twice as much Vitamin D as an individual of normal weight to maintain normal Vitamin D levels.
• Cultures that wear clothing that covers most of their bodies are unlikely to produce enough Vitamin D.

Skin pigmentation: The darker the pigmentation or more tanned your skin, the less UVB penetration and the more sun required for Vitamin D production.

How much sun?

Expose your arms and legs to the sun for 5 – 15 minutes at least 2 or 3 times per week in the months from spring to autumn between the hours of 10am and 3pm. Make sure you apply sun cream on your face, neck and upper torso.

More is not better with UVB exposure. Longer exposure will not increase Vitamin D production, but will increase the danger of skin damage and possible skin cancer.

Dietary Vitamin D Supplements

Supplements are an important Vitamin D source. Vitamin D is generally available in two forms D₂ (ergocalciferol) and D₃ (cholecalciferol). The two forms have been regarded as equivalent based on their ability to cure rickets, but evidence suggests that they are metabolized differently. Vitamin D₃ could be more than three times as effective as Vitamin D₂ in raising serum 25(OH)D concentrations and maintaining those levels for a longer time, and its metabolites have superior affinity for Vitamin D-binding proteins in plasma. Many supplements are being reformulated to contain Vitamin D₃ instead of Vitamin D₂.

To summarise:

There are three Vitamin D sources.

• Vitamin D supplements (take at least 1000IU per day).
• Sun. Expose your arms and legs to the sun for 5 to 15 minutes at least 2 or 3 times per week in the spring, summer and autumn between the hours of 10am and 3pm. Always put sun cream on your face, neck and upper torso. The sun is not strong enough in higher latitudes for Vitamin D production, particularly in winter.
• Foods high in Vitamin D will help but are not enough to attain your required daily levels. Oily fish such as salmon, tuna and mackerel provide the best source of Vitamin D.

NOTE: Supplements are necessary for the following groups:

• People who do not get much sun exposure
  
• middle-aged and older adults because optimum Vitamin D levels cannot be gained by sun exposure and food alone.
• people who live at higher latitudes
• people who are overweight
• People with illnesses such as osteomalacia, rickets, osteoporosis and heart disease.

Please note that supplements should be taken in conjunction with regular exercise and maintaining a healthy, balanced lifestyle.

For information on ways to improve your general health and reduce weight click here.

We encourage you to read our article on Vitamin D supplements or if you would like advice on choosing the right supplement click here.

Please check out our articles on the Benefits of Vitamin D and Vitamin D Facts.

Here’s to your long-term health!

Claire