Vitamin D dosage?

I recently ordered Doctors’Best Vit D 5000 IU from Amazon Germany. There is a label in German covering the original label, stating that the recommeded dosage is one capsule a week. However, the dosage on the original label is one capsule daily. Is there such a difference between recommendations in the US and Europe respectively? My latest vit D readings came back 30.9 ng/mL and should ideally be >50 according to doctor. No supplement has made that possible so far which is why I decided to give Doctor’s Best a try as it has been recommended here.

[Hibs1]

It 5,000 daily with k2 mk7 and magnesium. In Europe there is different rules as we can't buy anything online, Amazon for example, above 3,000, EU rules. You want to aim for 80 - 100ng/mL for good health and fight infections and help immune system

[Hidden in reply to Hibs1]

Thanks! Yes, that makes sense.

I really need to get my vit D levels up, as they are important for T4 to T3 conversion as well, but no supplement I've tried so far has made much of a difference. I have read in the past that supra physiological doses of fat soluble vits can be toxic, but it would seem I am far from that right now...or is that more true for vit A than D...?

[Hibs1 in reply to Hidden]

You can be toxic with vitamin A so better getting from diet. Can damage liver

[Hidden in reply to Hibs1]

Thanks again!

[SeasideSusie Remembering]

The Vit D Council recommends 50ng/ml - unfortunately their website is no longer live.

The Vit D Society recommends 40-60ng/ml:

vitamindsociety.org/

100-150nmol/L = 40-60ng/ml (you divide the nmol/L result by 2.5 to get ng/ml).

Grassroots Health recommends 40-60ng/ml:

grassrootshealth.net/

Their calculator for working out how much D3 to take:

grassrootshealth.net/projec...

Their disease incidence prevention chart:

grassrootshealth.net/docume...

They have lots of other interesting articles.

Here in the UK, the NHS lab which does Vit D tests for the public cautions that above 220nmol/L (88ng/ml) can lead to toxicity. There are probably lots of articles discussing this, here's one:

ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articl...

I use Doctor's Best softgels, I like the fact that has no unnecessary excipients, just D3 and extra virgin olive oil. It's the supplement that raised my severe deficiency of 15nmol/L to 202nmol/L in 2.5 months. I started off with very high loading doses for a few weeks then went on to a maintenance dose. I have discovered that my maintenance dose is 5,000iu all year round, it was 126nmol/L in December, I prefer it nearer 150nmol/L.

Don't forget that you need to take magnesium when taking D3 as this is needed for the body to convert D3 into it's active form. Also K2-MK7 so that the extra uptake of calcium when using D3 gets directed to bones and teeth and away from soft tissues and arteries.

[Hidden in reply to SeasideSusie]

Thanks, Seaside Susie, I think I've read it before but had honestly forgotten about it! Will make sure to add those as well.

My doctor told me to aim for at least 50 ng/mL and that's what I'm doing. I feel better since switching from taking Doctor's Best once a week to daily so I guess I'm on the right track.

I actually think it was you who originally recommended Doctor's best and I have to say it seems to be of the highest quality!

[willsie01]

Have you considered “Better You” oral spray? Also talked about on this forum, absorbed into the blood stream via inside of cheek. Claimed to enter the blood stream more readily as it doesn’t have to go through the digestive system.

[Hidden]

Yes, I've read about Vit D spray and it makes sense that it's better absorbed through the mouth. Will consider it next time I reorder

[Hidden]

I normally take about 8000 units, this is optimal for me. I take less, I end up with insufficiency. Everyone is different. Fat helps with vit D absorption, it's good to take it with the biggest meal of the day.

[Hidden]

Thanks, good point! This is bit of a problem for me as it would be best to take all my supplements incl vit D in the morning (easier to remember). However, vit D should be taken away from thyroid meds, and I always take the latter in the morning. It's a shame, since my usual breakfast consists of an omelette made with three eggs so plenty of fat. Now, I make sure to add some fat to my dinner as well (often in the form of olive oil or half an avocado), and I also take it with salmon oil capsules.

[penny]

I take between 5-10,00iu Vit D3 per day, with K2-MK7 and magnesium; I take the latter at night. Dr Coimbra recommends that we all take 10,000iu per day.

[Hidden in reply to penny]

Wow, that's very interesting info, thanks! It seems that under EU rules, the recommendation is to take no more than 3000 IU daily...which seems to be on the low side since vit D levels need to be optimal, not just above range.

[Marz in reply to Hidden]

There has been a drive to prevent large dose VitD being sold - behind the scenes of course !

[Hidden in reply to Marz]

Why am I not surprised to hear that...?!