Vitamin D

[beaubeau1121]

Hi!

Needing guidance on how to best boost Vitamin D & immunity?

Thx!

[SeasideSusie Remembering]

Beaubea1121

First thing to do is Vit D test, post result and unit of measurement on the forum. Once we know your level suggestions can be made for how much D3 you need to supplement with, if necessary.

[beaubeau1121 in reply to SeasideSusie]

When last tested 45…. but taking no supplements since. Feeling ok… until rounds of zithromax…. wondering if that played a role..

[SeasideSusie Remembering in reply to beaubeau1121]

Unit of measurement?

When was last test done?

[beaubeau1121 in reply to SeasideSusie]

Sorry…. “ ng”. ref 20 to 120a year ago

[SeasideSusie Remembering in reply to beaubeau1121]

So that's 45ng/ml. The Vit D Society and Grassroots Health both recommend a level between 40-60ng/ml. I'm guessing you're in the US, here in the UK we generally use nmol/L unit of measurement and the recommended level is 100-150nmol/L. I keep mine at the top of the range.

As your test was done a year ago then you need to retest and see what your current level is, then you can base your dose of D3 on that with the aim of reaching wherever you wish in the recommended range. Come back with new result and I can point you in the right direction of what dose you may need and will give you information about the important cofactors needed when taking D3.

Feeling ok… until rounds of zithromax…. wondering if that played a role..

Zithromax is known as Azithromycin here in the UK. I am on it permanently (not daily but 3 times a week) and have been for a few years. It hasn't made any difference to my Vit D levels. I was severely Vit D deficient with a level of 15nmol/L (6ng/ml) and raised my level to the top of the recommended range and keep it there with a daily maintenance dose. I don't know whether the reason you needed Zithromax has played a part rather than the medication itself.

Do you have a thyroid condition (this is a thyroid support forum)? That can play a part in nutrient levels being low, so if Vit D is low then check B12, folate and ferritin as well.

[beaubeau1121 in reply to SeasideSusie]

Interesting! Yes…. 85mcg Levo & 20 mg generic cytomel daily… levels mid range but suppressed TSH.Any brand D3 that you like?

Thx!

[Marz in reply to beaubeau1121]

A gel capsule with olive oil works well. VitD is fat soluble. There are also under the tongue sprays.

When you get your results you will need 1000 iu's for ever 10 units under 60. At 45ng/L a suggested dose would be 1500 iu's. I would go for 2000.

grassrootshealth.net

[beaubeau1121 in reply to Marz]

Thank you!

[SeasideSusie Remembering in reply to beaubeau1121]

beaubeau1121

I like Doctor's Best D3 softgels. They only contain D3 and extra virgin olive oil, no excipients. They are very small, easy to swallow and as they contain the olive oil there's no real need to take them with dietary fat. They are also budget friendly for such a good quality supplement.

When taking D3 it's important to also take Vit K2-MK7 and magnesium. As I said, come back with new result and I will make further suggestions about those and help with the dose of D3 you may need.

[beaubeau1121 in reply to SeasideSusie]

Thank you! Just ordered… will ask to be tested. Drs seem to believe that magnesium is never an issue so do not test. Should I ask for K2, Magnesium, D , Ferritin & ?

I want to coordinate all now while asking to be tested..

Thxxx

[SeasideSusie Remembering in reply to beaubeau1121]

beaubeau1121

Thank you! Just ordered… will ask to be tested.

Well, you may have jumped the gun. How do you know you need to take D3? How do you know which dose to order? You should test first then buy the dose you need. If you need 5,000iu a day and you've only ordered the 1,000iu dose then it would have been much cheaper to order the 5,000iu dose. If you've ordered the 5,000iu dose and you only need 1,000iu per day then you wont be able to ake 5,000iu daily.

Drs seem to believe that magnesium is never an issue so do not test. Should I ask for K2, Magnesium, D , Ferritin & ?

Testing magnesium is unreliable. About 99% of magnesium is stored in bone, muscles and soft tissues, leaving about 1% in the blood. So testing what's in the blood isn't giving an accurate picture of our magnesium status.

A red cell magnesium test is the better indicator of magnesium status, not the standard serum magnesium test.

Here in the UK K2 is not tested for.

You should test the key nutrients:

Vit D

B12

Folate

Ferritin

[beaubeau1121 in reply to SeasideSusie]

Thank you!The drs have had me taking D3 over the years… & seldom test…

For whatever reason… I ran out & never reordered.

Will hold off…

[SeasideSusie Remembering in reply to beaubeau1121]

We should retest twice a year when taking Vit D supplements, to ensure we are taking enough and also to ensure we don't take too much and reach toxicity level. Here in the UK if a GP prescribes for Vit D deficiency then as soon as the level reaches the "adequate" range of 50nmol/L-75nmol/L or 20-30ng/ml then they no longer prescribe, it's down to us to keep an eye on it ourselves and supplement if necessary.

[beaubeau1121 in reply to SeasideSusie]

Exactly what happened…. tested 45 twice… & stopped testing. Same w ferritin once raised… to “ adequate “Thx so much!!!

[Hidden in reply to SeasideSusie]

What if you bought 5000 and took it once every five days. Would that be the same thing? I have been doing every other day with mine.

[SeasideSusie Remembering in reply to Hidden]

Ayorkor

That would probably be OK for most people on a maintenance dose.

I'm not medically qualified, that is just my own personal opinion.

[beaubeau1121 in reply to SeasideSusie]

Thank you!

[HashiFedUp]

My gp prescribes me a vit d supplement as hashimotos patients are often low in vit d.

[beaubeau1121 in reply to HashiFedUp]

Thank you!

[userotc]

There's obviously more to improving your immune system than vit D but it's a good start. Re testing, we are currently focusing on D, C and zinc.

[beaubeau1121 in reply to userotc]

Thank you…. will add zinc & C… to the test request… as never have

[userotc in reply to beaubeau1121]

No problem. Last December, we researched various options to test/measure the health of our immunity (at the height of covid), key outcome outlined below:

(i) Considered immunoglobulin test and noted Medichecks Immunoglobulins IgG IgM IgA Blood Test which included then "to assess the strength of your immune system".

However, after checking directly with them, the Medical Officer removed that statement from their website and kindly replied "The immune system relies on many components besides antibodies, and whilst this test can help to establish whether levels of a particular class of antibody are low it does not provide enough information to assess the strength of the immune system".

(ii) We spoke with a local hospital immunologist who stated there is no test for immunity.

(iii) A great BBC1 programme last January stated that neutrophil/lymphocyte count is a good indication of immunity and ideally should be <3.

So I think the above ratio is also worth checking via a full blood count.

Note: For reference, mine and my father's is <3 so fingers crossed.

[lawrencesmith667 in reply to userotc]

Be careful with vitamin D. It's conversion requires magnesium.

naturalcalm.ca/dont-overdos...

[userotc]

Thanks. That's fine for me and dad as we supplement magnesium (and vit k) too in addition to diet. But mum doesn't take magnesium as she has kidney disease so is reliant on dietary magnesium which we think/hope is enough eg green leafy veg.....Her serum magnesium is ok but don't know what's in cells. Any advice?