How long until Vitamin D supplements work?

[Inaquandary]

How long until Vitamin D supplements work? I have been taking 5000iu a day, I don't feel very improved. Also taking Vitamin K.

[Nanaedake]

Have you added magnesium as well? It can take a few months for supplements to begin to make a difference.

[SeasideSusie Remembering]

Lindsay

As Nana says, magnesium is needed, it helps D3 to work.

What D3 supplement are you taking?

Do you take it with the fattiest meal of the day - D3 is fat soluble so must be taken with dietary fat.

Do you have any gut/absorption problems? If you're not absorbing well enough then an oral spray is best (Better You).

I got my severely deficicient level of 15 up to 202 in 2.5 months so the right supplement at the right dose can work reasonably quickly.

[Inaquandary in reply to SeasideSusie]

I don't have gut problems that I'm aware of. I take 5000iu soft gels, I have them with my main meal at night.

[SeasideSusie Remembering in reply to Inaquandary]

You could always try a spray and see if it makes s difference. BetterYou do 3000iu so you could take 6000iu and see how that goes. Make sure you take magnesium and K2-MK7 as well.

[Nanaedake]

Good point Susie makes to take vitamin D as a spray. You might find your stomach acid altered by the thyroidectomy as hypothyroidism gives us low stomach acid and then we can't absorb supplements as well as before. If we're taking pain relief it can also affect the gut and impair absorption.

[Inaquandary]

Thank you all. I knew I could rely on you guys for answers x

[LilacLilly in reply to Inaquandary]

Hi Lindsay and everyone, I'm knew. It's just wonderful to be able to communicate on here. Just a thought, Lindsay, are you taking a good probiotic as well? As the others say hypothyroidism affects the gut and absorption. I've just started taking Symprove. I'm hoping this will help my gut and therefore the absorption. I have such bad hair loss I'm really frightened so am hoping that the vitamin d3 / k2 will help. I've also read that the liver is vital in thyroid function so I'm taking milk thistle drops morning and evening. I hope this helps. Also you have any of you heard about taking HCL Betaine with Pepsin? It's supposed to be amazing if you have low stomach acid x

[Clutter]

Lindsaydawson603,

You're not likely to feel improvement until vitD levels improve. What was your vitD level when you started supplementing and how long have you been supplementing?

[Inaquandary in reply to Clutter]

Hi.. It was 42 but I can't remember the ranges. Been taking 5000iu for 8 weeks.

[Clutter in reply to Inaquandary]

Lindsaydawson603,

42 was not deficient but was sub optimal. I would expect low vitD symptoms to have improved on 5,000iu after 8 weeks so perhaps the symptoms are due to something else. What are the symptoms?

[Inaquandary in reply to Clutter]

Fatigue, no energy, my cancer has been staged as pT3bm so don't know if that would be linked. Consultant always said that thyca doesn't have fatigue as a symptom

[Clutter in reply to Inaquandary]

Lindsaydawson603,

ThyCa may not cause fatigue but surgery and adjusting to thyroid hormone replacement does and I doubt you are optimally dosed yet.

VitD low levels are more likely to cause joint and bone pain than fatigue.

[Inaquandary in reply to Clutter]

I had the fatigue before the op, just so tired all the time. Joints do ache, especially hips and knees.

[Clutter in reply to Inaquandary]

Lindsaydawson603,

What are ferritin, B12 and folate levels like?

[Inaquandary in reply to Clutter]

B12 was good, no idea about the others, they were all tested but the only thing flagged up was D x

[Clutter in reply to Inaquandary]

Lindsaydawson603,

It may be worth getting a printout from your GP receptionist and posting the results and ranges in a new question.

[Mamapea1 in reply to Inaquandary]

Hi Lindsay! I agree with clutter ~ may not be the only cause of your symptoms, but still needs to be optimal ~ I can highly recommend the better you D3 spray as suggested by seaside susie ~ I was very deficient, and it worked better than Vit D injections. Very easy on the system too.

Best wishes for your continued recovery Mamapea x

[KimberinUS]

My vitamin d was originally 20. I took 5000 iu of vitamin D, plus A and K for 16 months and it only raised to 39.

Started taking magnesium and it shot up to 70.

easy-immune-health.com/vita...

And i didnt find out until later that i had h pylori, so i had a gut problem but that wasnt what wasnt effecting my d level as it went up once i started magnesium and before h pylori diagnosis.

[LilacLilly in reply to KimberinUS]

I agree with you. Vit D must be taken alongside K2 and magnesium. I get the Vit D3 with K2 as MK-7. I understand it must also be taken with good fats like olive oil, salmon, sardines, etc

Really good your Vit D levels shot up x

[Inaquandary in reply to LilacLilly]

Do you take the magnesium at the same time as D and K2? X

[LilacLilly in reply to Inaquandary]

Yes. Absolutely. I have my evening meal with the good oils (around 7pm) and I take the magnesium and D3 with K2 straight after. I understand turmeric which has wonderful anti inflammatory and healing properties is helped to absorb with oils. Seems to be a running thread. Do look into Symprove as well. If you ring the company (same name) they're lovely and they'll discuss it with you. Gut health is vital to absorption as you know x

[Inaquandary in reply to LilacLilly]

All this has got worse since TT 5 weeks ago due to cancer. Acid reflux worse too x

[LilacLilly in reply to Inaquandary]

I agree with Clutter too about getting a copy of your blood tests. I did that and took them to my nutritionist who understands them and is helping me. Do look at the benefits of taking HCL Betaine with Pepsin but with the help of a doctor as you have cancer. The thing about acid reflux is it can be that your stomach acid is too low. Doctors assume it's too high but reflux can be the stomach telling you it doesn't have enough. As someone said earlier this could be a reason for not breaking down the vitamin capsules. Sorry to be thick but what's TT? X

[Inaquandary in reply to LilacLilly]

Total Thyroidectomy.. With 59 lymph nodes removed too. Also getting hot flushes and I KNOW its not menopause. Glad for all advice x

[LilacLilly in reply to Inaquandary]

Yes hot flushes are not always menopause. I've had the same problem with doctors contributing mine with menopause but I suffered from them for years before I was anywhere near menopause. Your body is going through so much and it doesn't surprise me you're having sweats. For one thing our livers cause hot flushes as they're working harder due to hypothyroidism and also taking meds. I agree that I would wait until you're more recovered before seeing anyone else and making big changes. The most important thing is to be kind to yourself x

[Mamapea1 in reply to Inaquandary]

Lindsay ~ poor you! Two steps forward and one back! It's a constant struggle to keep on top of everything isn't it? I hope things will improve soon and you will find some answers. While your stomach is in a worsened state I would try to use as many oral supplement sprays as possible. My absorption is hopeless and I have Vit B12 as well as the D3 and have recently found a Better You turmeric spray. We have to swallow so many supplements, any short cut helps I think! I agree re the hot flushes are automatically the menopause ~ they always seem to have an answer for everything ~ nine out of ten times, the wrong one! You'd have thought the law of averages...... but no.

Look after yourself. Mamapea x

[LilacLilly in reply to Inaquandary]

My Vit D levels were 42 as well and I also suffer from fatigue. Have you ever thought about going to a Kinesiologist? They can test you for everything from all foods, products to vitamins to the hair dye or deodorant you use (for example!) I say this because we all have individual gut and gut bacteria and therefore the same protocols don't necessarily work for everyone in the same way. Over the years when I've kept to what I've been told it's worked like a dream. I really hope some of this is helpful to you x

[Inaquandary in reply to LilacLilly]

Thats interesting. Maybe when i have recovered from surgery a bit more and had RAI next month. Its all tsking a bit longer than I'd hoped x

[Nanaedake in reply to Inaquandary]

Lindsay, I hope I can encourage you that you will eventually begin to feel a little better but it takes time. I had a partial thyroidectomy, most of my thyroid due to cancer and it took a couple of years to start feeling better but none of the doctors seemed to be able to give any help or guidance. It's taken many years to get back on track due to many setbacks and seeming total lack from doctors saying contradictory things. I hope you have some good doctors to give you help and advice.

Most of all look after yourself. Try to enjoy one nice thing each day, even if it's only a nice cup of hot chocolate or a stroll in the garden. Big hugs.

By the way, I got terrible hot flushes too.

[Inaquandary in reply to Nanaedake]

As soon as I mentioned hot flushes its put down as menopause but I know damn well it isnt! Im 51 and been through that already. Been researching homeopathy to find an answer...x

[Nanaedake in reply to Inaquandary]

Well, I wasn't menopausal either so there has to be another reason. I don't think anyone knows. The thing I've found is it takes ages to get thyroid hormone balanced. I've also found it has to be very fine tuned for me. I do notice the difference between a 12.5mcg change. So it could take a while to get thyroid levels balanced, especailly when having RAI. That in itself could cause temperature fluctuations and changes. I found it was worse when eating hot food and drinking hot drinks but at night time, no reason I could discern. I used to get so thirsty I kept water by the bed and it was gone in the morning.

It seems common to have stomach acid problems. It's very unpleasant. Not sure what the solution is but I found organic apple cider vinegar helped. Even if it doesn't help, it's good for other things. There has been some research on it to show it helps to stabilise blood sugars after a meal.

[Inaquandary in reply to Nanaedake]

I have just been reading about AC Vinegar. May have to go shopping! X

[Nanaedake in reply to Inaquandary]

ACV definitely worth a try, I take a tablespoon with a glass of water before my main meal (or every meal if necessary) until it settles down. You'll soon know if it helps, I found it helped in a couple of days and in fact directly after taking a little with a meal I noticed a difference.

You could use ACV in food, on salads and in stir frys etc. I hope it helps.

I've found a small amount of yoghurt helps to calm the gut.

I now eat a low carb diet as I find it helps to keep a comfortable stomach and steady weight. I've cut out refined carbs like potatoes, pasta, bread and noodles. But I do eat starchy vegetables including sweet potato in moderation, cheese, meat, fruit and dairy products.

I've cut out sugar and don't use sweeteners but I do use a little Manuka honey in yoghurt now and again.

I thought it would be difficult to maintain but it seems fine. I find if I have to eat lots of refined carbs (like when visiting or eating out) I get acid reflux back again and have to start with ACV all over again.

Apparently, 5 prunes a day is supposed to protect from osteoporosis. As we are on higher doses of levothyroxine it might be a good thing to try if you can cope with prunes. It's the boron in them that is good.

If you're still taking NSAIDS they can be quite tough on the stomach so things that are calming and nurture your stomach are good.

Big hugs and I hope you get a good nights sleep, also very important for us all!!