Vitamin D - the sunshine vitamin
You and your family need to know something of the Vitamin D story, in order to be safe. It is not a coincidence that our health is powerfully linked to the sun.
Even in sunny Southern California, most people have low blood levels of Vitamin D.
Low blood levels of Vitamin D put one at greater risk for cancers (breast, colon, prostate, and 14 more), heart attack, depression, osteoporosis, weight gain, difficulty losing weight, diabetes, multiple sclerosis, and more.
Every child, woman, and man needs to have her/his Vitamin D level tested!
Many people ask why they can't just take Vitamin D, and skip the testing. The reasons are: 1) when all is said and done, for ones safety one needs to know ones levels, 2) many individuals have dangerously low levels and need high levels of supplementation to bring them back to a safe level - the test results indicate the needed level of supplementation, 3) individuals need varying levels of supplementation to achieve healthy blood levels, 4) a few people do not need to take Vitamin D.
Where can you get tested?
As of January 1, 2013, Dr. Young orders Vitamin D blood tests for patients, for a cash-only price of $50. The common insurance price for a Vitamin D blood test is $240. If your insurance-related out-of-pocket costs are greater than $50, don't waste the extra money, have Dr. Young order the test for you. Another way is to use finger-stick kits which can be purchased through the Vitamin D Council at this link.
Until you have been tested...
Until tested, adults and children would be well-advised to take supplemental Vitamin D. Many experts recommend 5,000 iu per day for adults.
What form of Vitamin D should you take?
Oral Vitamin D comes as both D2 and D3. Vitamin D3 is the preferred form.
What should blood levels be?
Today, most medical laboratories report that the healthy range is 30-100 ng/ml. However, internationally recognized experts recommend 50-100 ng/ml. Intelligently, we might consider 50 ng/ml to be the bottom of the bucket. If one wanted to be in the middle regarding the protection that Vitamin D affords, would not one choose to be around 75 ng/ml? In April of 2010, Dr. Young's blood level was 87.1 ng/ml. What do you think is good for you?
Always look at your own test results!
Often times my patients are advised by another doctor, that their Vitamin D test results are good. Upon requesting the report, we find a level of 31 ng/ml; clearly no where within the range that experts in the field would consider safe and healthy.
At Ventura Chiropractic & Massage, we sell high-quality, fairly-priced Vitamin D supplements ranging from 2,000 iu to 10,000 iu, and drops for children.
One of the best resources for unbiased information on Vitamin D is the Vitamin D Council, a non-profit organization dedicated to educating doctors and the public about Vitamin D and its critical role in health.
Research
Medscape Family Medicine
Vitamin D and Mortality Risk: Should Clinical Practice Change?
An Expert Interview With Cedric F. Garland, DrPH by Linda Brookes, MSc
August 13, 2014
"Meta-analyses have almost all concluded that lower [Vitamin D] 25(OH)D levels are associated with a significantly increased mortality risk.[1-7]"
"Raising the serum 25(OH)D from 30 to 40 ng/mL reduces the incidence of breast, bowel, and lung cancer by 80%, as reported by Lappe and colleagues in their clinical trial.[12]"
http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/829677?nlid=63383_1521&src=wnl_edit_medp_wir&uac=29061MY&spon=17