VitD and Folate supplements

[Welly73]

Hi everyone,

I’ve been advised to supplement my VitD and folate and I was wondering if all brands are the same or is there any certain brand that’s better.

I only need 400g and 400 units per day of each

[SeasideSusie Remembering]

Welly73

Who has advised those amounts?

It would be best if you could post your test results, with reference ranges, for us to understand whether the recommended amounts are appropriate.

If the 400g is for Folate, that is not the right amount as it comes micrograms (mcg) and if 400 units is for Vit D then that is a child's dose and wouldn't actually raise the level of a sunburnt flea.

Do you have Hashimoto's, that may influence the form of Vit D.

[Welly73 in reply to SeasideSusie]

Hi Seaside Susie,

My mistake i should have said 40mcg doe folate.

I’ve updated my post with my results. They’re not dramatically low but after taking advice from here o spoke to my GP who said to increase my levothyroxin but to also increase my folate and VitD

I don’t have hashimotos

[SeasideSusie Remembering in reply to Welly73]

Welly73

Definitely increase your Levo, 25mcg now and ensure you are retested in 6-8 weeks' time. The aim of a treated hypo patient on Levo, generally, is for TSH to be 1 or below with FT4 and FT3 in the upper part of their reference ranges, if tht is where you feel well. You may need a further increase.

**

Vit D: 55.7nmol/L

This is just into the "Sufficiency" category, i.e. >50. However, the Vit D Council recommends a level of 125nmol/L and the Vit D Society recommends a level of 100-150nmol/L. As doctors are not taught nutrition, and have no idea about optimal levels, it's a good idea to follow the recommendations of the experts and aim for their recommended levels.

400iu D3 will not, under any circumstances, raise your current level.

To reach the recommended level from your current level, based on the Vit D Council's suggestions you could supplement with 4,000-5,000iu D3 daily. If your level was 62nmol they suggest 3,700iu, if it was 38nmol/L they suggest 5,000, so ideally you need somewhere in between but you can't get a 4,500iu dose. If you were to take 4,500iu daily that would be 31,500iu per week. So maybe buy some 5,000iu dose and take 6 days a week (30,000iu), perhaps have Sundays off

Retest after 3 months.

I did very well on Doctor's Best D3 softgels, they are a nice, small, easy to swallow softgel with just 2 ingredients - D3 and extra virgin olive oil - no excipients. The oil aids absorption which is good, D3 is a fat soluble vitamin so needs fat to be absorbed. I buy mine from Dolphin Fitness (online), they seem to usually have the best price.

Once you've reached the recommended level then you'll need a maintenance dose to keep it there, which may be 2000iu daily, maybe more or less, maybe less in summer than winter, it's trial and error so it's recommended to retest once or twice a year to keep within the recommended range. You can do this with a private fingerprick blood spot test with an NHS lab which offers this test to the general public:

vitamindtest.org.uk/

Doctors don't know, because they're not taught much about nutrients, but there are important cofactors needed when taking D3 as recommended by the Vit D Council.

D3 aids absorption of calcium from food and Vit K2-MK7 directs the calcium to bones and teeth where it is needed and away from arteries and soft tissues where it can be deposited and cause problems such as hardening of the arteries, kidney stones, etc.

D3 and K2 are fat soluble so should be taken with the fattiest meal of the day, D3 four hours away from thyroid meds if taking D3 as tablets/capsules/softgels, no necessity if using an oral spray.

Magnesium helps D3 to work. We need Magnesium so that the body utilises D3, it's required to convert Vit D into it's active form. So it's important we ensure we take magnesium when supplementing with D3.

Magnesium comes in different forms, check to see which would suit you best and as it's calming it's best taken in the evening, four hours away from thyroid meds if taking magnesium as tablets/capsules, no necessity if using topical forms of magnesium.

naturalnews.com/046401_magn...

drjockers.com/best-magnesiu...

afibbers.org/magnesium.html

**

Folate: 2.8 (2.4-26.8)

This is very poor. But see comments about B12 below.

Folate is recommended to be at least half way through range.

B12: 397pg/ml (191-663)

This is low but your GP isn't worried because it's within range.

According to an extract from the book, "Could it be B12?" by Sally M. Pacholok:

"We believe that the 'normal' serum B12 threshold needs to be raised from 200 pg/ml to at least 450 pg/ml because deficiencies begin to appear in the cerebrospinal fluid below 550".

"For brain and nervous system health and prevention of disease in older adults, serum B12 levels should be maintained near or above 1000 pg/ml."

Besides improving your folate level it would be a good idea to improve your B12 level too.

A good, bioavailable B Complex containing methylfolate and methylcobalamin should increase both of these.

I did very well with 1 x Thorne Basic B capsule daily, it contains 400mcg methylfolate and raised my bottom of range folate to top of range in 2.5 months, as well as increasing my B12 level as it also contains 400mcg methylcobalamin.

Some members like Igennus Super B as they're small tablets compared to Thorne's larger capsules, but you'd need 2 tablets to give you 400mcg methylfolate and then that would give you 900mcg methylcobalamin which might be too much. The balance of the doses in Thorne might be better for you.

You might, at some point further down the line, wish to do an Active B12 test. The test you've had is Total B12 which measures the total amount of B12 both bound to proteins and unbound (free/active). The Active B12 measures just the unbound/free B12 which is what is available to be taken up by the cells. We can have a good Total B12 but a poor Active B12. I don't think the NHS offer the Active B12 test but you can do it with Medichecks as a fingerprick test for £39 (less 10% with code THYROIDUK), but don't do that until your B12 level is much higher, it wont be worth it.

**

Don't start all supplements at once. Start with one, give it a week or two and if no adverse reaction then add the next one. Again, wait a week or two and if no adverse reaction add the next one. Continue like this. If you do have any adverse reaction then you will know what caused it.

[Welly73 in reply to SeasideSusie]

Oh my your knowledge is immense and very much appreciated.

Which would you recommend I start on first?

I had to read your reply several times just for it to sink in haha.

I’ll have another read again tomorrow before making any purchases.

Thank you once again you’ve been amazing! Xx

[SeasideSusie Remembering in reply to Welly73]

Sorry, there is a lot of information as the Vit D and B12 supplements have companion supplements that are important. However the B Complex will do both jobs of raising Folate and B12 so just the one supplement is necessary there.

I've tried to break it down by separating them. Maybe concentrate on one section at a time, just keep re-reading and eventually it will click.

I think that because your Folate level is so dire maybe start with the B Complex. Providing there are no adverse reactions then:

7-14 days later add in the Vit D. If all is well then:

7-14 days later add in magnesium. If all is well then:

7-14 days later add in Vit K2-mk7.

[Stanleydoggy]

Hello

I Believe you need to take a supplement which includes vitamin K MK7. I was recommended on here a mouth spray by BetterYou which is more easily absorbed. I am currently taking Vitamin D and K MK7 in drop form which I take with water at meal times. It is by Nutri. I know this is a good brand as my therapist uses their products. I buy online from amazon. There are loads of articles online about the importance of taking K with your D.