Around the middle of May this year, Ozzie Bob posted a link to a story about an A-Fib sufferer who spent about 10 years systematically trying one thing (supplement, vitamin, mineral etc) at a time until he discovered a "cure" for himself. I remember he found he had to keep Calcium lowish and I think Vitamin D3 turned out to be important for him but I lost the link.
I tried searching for Ozzie Bob but got no hits. Can anyone help me find the link that I know Ozzie Bob posted?
brlund
or Baz
Is this the post? healthunlocked.com/afassoci...
I've read about fellow you're talking about and if I can find his blog I'll post later.
As to Ozzie Bob, I would not follow his protocol. His loading dose of 60,000 units/day is way too much And potentially dangerous without frequent monitoring which apparently he is not doing. If you're deficient try 1000 to 2000 units/day. If that doesn't work, I was prescribed 50,000 units of vitamin D2 once a Week ( not once a day like ozzie bob) for 12 weeks. That should be more than enough to get your levels up.
For what it's worth there is at least one study that says too much vitamin D can trigger a fib.
Vitamin D is one of those subjects they just don't know a lot about. A fib is another. When you put the two together anyone's guess is as good as anyone else's but I would err on the safe side and not overload with vit D or anything else -- unless you're into guinea pig mode which is valid as long as you're ready to accept the risks.
mJames1,
Please be accurate if you want to use my experience in your "advice" to others. My loading dose was 20,000iu per day for 30 days, not 60,000 as you mis-remembered.
If you read my fuller Reply in this same brlund Post further down, you will see more a accurate report of my ongoing situation re Vitamin D3, if you are interested.
If I have similarly misled others then that wasn't my intention and I apologise. I will be even more careful next time I contribute.
Bob
Thanks for the correction Bob, sorry. I have no idea where the 60,000 came from, but certainly not my memory as I do not file all that much! That said, 20,000 iu/day for 30 days seems like a lot to me per previous comments especially without timely testing.
I do wish you the best of luck in your journey, Vit D and all. And do let us know what your Vit D level is when you get the results back.
Last year my Vit D was also low -- like most --so I tried 2000 units a day which didn't work. Then my doc prescribed 50,000 units of D3, once a week for 12 weeks. That brought my levels into the normal range.
This year, I just assumed it had dropped as I didn't continue with daily supplements, so I started again on the 50,000 units once a week but stopped after two weeks as I had an off day after taking it. Could have been something else, but nothing that you put in your mouth is without consequence, be it rx drugs or supplements.
Now, due to the time of the year, I'm getting 20 minutes most days of mid day. No Vit D supplements Fortunately I can take the sun, not everyone can. It will be interesting to see what my levels are when I go test again.
Jim
Jim,
Thanks for reply. I do remember saying my loading dose was 600,000iu over the 30 days, compared to the maximum NICE recommendation of ( an out of date?) 280,000 for the same length of time. Perhaps the source of your mistake?By the way, did you find it easy to organise blood tests for Vitamin D with your GP? Or were there limits, as I found? Or did you source Vitamin D blood tests elsewhere? And how often did you test?
Any feedback on this will help me a lot. Thanks.
Bob
Here in the US, I can get my GP to order a Vitamin D test periodically without much trouble, especially if I add it on to other tests I need -- say 2 or possibly more times a year. If I wanted to test more often than he felt necessary, I can also self order a Vitamin D test (without a prescription) at the same lab, as often as I want. Cost is $99. I think there are even less expensive tests for self order, but the $99 is from the same lab that does my other lab work.
For self order they also have other vitamin panels as well as metabolic panels, men's health panels, etc. It came about after they changed the law that used to mandate you needed a doctor's prescription.
Also, here, you can go online, speak to a doctor for five minutes and then get a prescription for many drugs and blood tests. There's a reason they called America, the Wild West. It still is to a certain degree and that's not necessary a negative.
Jim
Jim, Thanks for update. Your profile doesn't give your country of residence, which is useful for others when trying to avoid misunderstandings because of different health systems, as I did.
I'm starting to realise your USA medical system does have some advantages when ordering diagnostic tests as an individual, as long as you can afford such. Such testing is not yet easily available here, and very expensive when it is.
But most in UK (well, at least me) want our NHS to thrive and survive for the health and benefit of all regardless of ability to pay. I suppose I would be a Bernie supporter in USA.
Sadly our fanatical free market(sic!) Govt are hell bent on copying the USA model and are undermining the NHS at every turn. Post peak Covid here, it's still very very difficult to see or speak to GP's, made worse by the intentional Govt cuts and shortages of staff and facilities. All part of the plan sadly, and affects such matters as trying to arrange blood tests, and more serious clinical matters.
PS. The NICE recommendations I mentioned before are issued by the Govt here and usually followed by GP's to cover themselves against malpractice. It stands for National Institute for Clinical Excellence, even if the recommendations are sometimes not up to speed with the latest research. So we have to be our own best advisors.
Bob.
I was just reading some old Posts, looking for Brlund actually, and I was reminded of our discussion here about Vitamin D supplementation.I can now report, you did ask (above), that 6-7 months after my deficiency of 22 nmol/L was discovered, and after the loading dose and consequent daily dose, my level has risen to 107 nmol/L. Great. I am happy with that level and will try to keep it around this level going forward.
Additionally, I Posted an interesting research article on Vitamin D and Mortality Rates recently on the Forum. In case you missed it, I'll give the link again here ...
I think this is the fellow here:
Just remember what works for Peter may not work for Paul. Especially with a fib.
Thanks very much for this link mjames.
Your reminder that what works for one of us may not work for another is timely, but with so many ways of looking at A-Fib, no stone should be left unturned either!
What I find stunning is the time (years in fact) taken by Steven to apply the scientific method of varying one possible cause at a time (albeit with N = 1) to establish its potential as a causative factor. To save a lot of time, he could have tested two or three candidates simultaneously and, if a reduction in symptoms followed, then run further tests to determine which of the three was responsible. The down- side to this approach is the possibility of an effect being obscured by an interaction between the test variables such that one cancels the effect of the other, but this is a low risk and there are ways of dealing with this too.
Anyway, I've got flutter and fibrillation of the "sole" variety with age (81 ) as the only "risk factor" in the CHADS scoring system, so my statistical chances of a stroke are only slightly higher than the chance of serious bleeding due to anticoagulant (AC) side effects, so I've decided not to take prescription ACs.
That means I'm very keen to find possible ways or reducing flutter and A-Fib because of its correlation with clotting, and equally keen to reduce the probability of clotting with supplements like CoQ10, Hawthorn, fish oil, circumin etc, and foods suggested to thin blood and are good for you anyway like garlic, ginger, salmon, and various fruits and vegetables.
My cardiologist accepts this approach as reasonable but says it's not likely that diet and supplements will "thin" the blood enough to prevent a clot in the way an AC would. When he told me that I asked "Well then, why are we told to stop all such potential thinners days or weeks before surgery" ? To my surprise he replied "Just to be on the safe side. But there's no clinical evidence for such thinners causing excessive bleeding after surgery". I looked around for while a found a bit of recent research but not much.
Is anyone in the group (in a similar position to me, or otherwise) interested in comparing notes/ideas on reducing A-Fib without meds. Sanjay Gupta (York Cardiology) has offered a few hints, but a way of measuring A Fibs at home would be a good start. I have a Wellue Pulsebit Mate that tells me when I'm arrhythmic but is there something better out there?
Cheers
Brlund (Baz)
Hi friend, Just read your initial Post. Glad you've now got the info you need.
Re my loading dose of Vitamin D, and despite what others have written, I was concerned about my large loading dose, 20,000iu per day for 30 days. Consequently I talked to various pharmacists about it, then I tried to contact the prescribing GP but she had gone on annual leave. But none of the pharmacists said it was totally unprecedented, so I went ahead.
As I'm not as careless with my health as suggested, I then tried to get monitored after 3 months to check whether I was harming myself, as I have followed the initial dose with 2 months now of a daily tablet containing 3000iu Vitamin D3 + 100mcg K2. But my GP responded that she was unable to retest Vitamin D until 6 months had passed, a cost restriction presumably imposed by her CCG (Clinical Commissioning Group).
So what else can I do. I wasn't happy about it.
However the universe came to my assistance last week when I had a first ever Cardiology appointment. And at the hospital it was actually a Specialist Arrhythmia Nurse who spoke with me. So I mentioned my Vitamin D concerns to her, and she appropriately ordered a Vitamin D retest for me on that same day. I was very relieved but disappointed it had been such a struggle to get this vital monitoring retest. And now I'm waiting for the blood results, as well as a referral to discuss my situation further with the Coagulation Team. Another area of concern to me as we have previously discussed.
Take care my friend,
Bob (aka ozziebob)
Addendum: Re my Post above, I am hoping that I will also be able to get my Vitamin D levels tested again at 6 months, which was what the GP previously offered. Separately, I need to acknowledge that it's mainly others' experiences and Posts on this Forum that has alerted me rather late in the day to potentially harmful Vitamin deficiencies that seem to particularly arrive as we get older. I am now 75. I appreciate all such shared experiences.
Further, now I have started on supplementation it is a wonder to me that, as a non-meat eater since teenage years, with some amount of neuropathy in my feet, years of tiredness I previously linked (perhaps wrongly) to my childhood polio, I have never recognised that I am a prime candidate for a Vitamin B12 deficiency.
So this is my next task, to get this tested, not just blood Vitamin B12, but "active" blood Vitamin B12. I don't think this will be easy. Not to mention the minefield and chaos of offers and ingredients and forms of B12 supplements available online. Confusing or what! Such is life!
Your friend, bob.
That's a very good idea to get tested for the active B12. If you go over to the Pernicious Anaemia Society on HealthUnlocked , you'll get great info and lots of experiences from members who have dealt with B12 deficiency. They've helped me so much!
Thanks for the info "lover" man, or is it "over" man? I've already had a quick look at the P A Society site, and it seems it will be useful in negotiating a somewhat problematic medical area. I will get back to you with any questions I have when I know more about my situation re B12.
Bob
LOL It's btlover and is because I rescue BTs or Boston terriers 
I've found the PAS to be a very friendly as well as informative site, a lot like this one. It's so good to be able to connect with others who have the same health concerns. Unfortunately, some doctors, at least here in the US don't listen very well.
Oh yes, I have now noticed your collection of BT's in your photo icon. In UK, BT is out largest telecommunications company, and I'm not sure anyone here loves them particularly.
I'm just an Australian who is called bob. But my best friend was a dog. How sad, or is it essential, that they are only allowed short lives?
Keep up the rescue work. Power to your efforts.
Thanks Bob I'm just an old lady who's trying to help out where I can. Some days animals are far preferable to humans Lol
Looking for an alternative to Warfarin. Vitamin E therapy? 
Should I look for an alternative to sotolol
Things Looking Up after Ablation!
This looks interesting 
AF- 7 weeks post ablation looking good
