If you haven't seen it yet, the NIH (National Institute of Health) has just come out with some research questioning whether or not it truly is good or needed to take higher doses of Vit.D. The gov't current recommendations are around 400 IU (international units) per day. It is currently being considered to be increased from 400 to 600. (i think it's funny, cause they still can't agree on what a good amount is to recommend, but they question/criticize others for trying more...)
Basically, the current thought is that if we are only getting 400-600 IU of Vit-D per day, whether through food or sun, then we are already in the category of Vit-D deficient (we are not getting enough). They site studies that show populations of people who have high & low levels of Vit-D, and those with lower levels have a significantly higher risk of heart disease, cancer, flu infections, and a host of other diseases. Obviously, this doesn't prove correlation, since there are many other variables, including the activities of these same people (exercise, diet, etc...)
VIT-D PREVENTS CANCER & HEART DISEASE?
The newer articles and discussions on the web that just came out, have questioned the claims that high doses of Vit-D will PREVENT said diseases. I would agree that it would be difficult to make that claim and have good evidence from dbl-blinded, clinical-controlled trials (since there's not much done yet, but they are working on some now...), however I feel that it is a very important correlation that needs to be looked at closely. I've read quite a few peer-reviewed research articles on the correlation between Cancer rates & Vit-D deficiency. Basically, we don't have a population of Americans who have cancer, but we have a population of Americans who are Vit-D deficient who have cancer. Just google "Cancer & Vit D" and see for yourself.
SO, HOW MUCH DO WE NEED?
They also question the total amount of Vit-D we should be getting. I feel strongly that the gov't recommendations of only 400-600 IU is not enough, but I also recognize that there is a toxic level of Vit-D that we need to be aware of. When someone refers to taking 'Large' doses or 'high' levels of Vit-D, they can be taking up to 50,000 IU/week, for long period of times. This still isn't near the level of toxicity.
OKAY, SO WHAT DO I DO?
Well, this is just a quick glance down some of the articles I've seen on NPR, Mercola, specifically this new article/video, and other mainstream media sites. I am still currently taking 5,000 IU almost daily (i'm human, and I forget some days!), especially during the winter months, when I hardly get any direct sunlight on my skin for more than a minute or two. Please take some time to read some of those articles yourself, and research, research, research. If there are any special circumstances or health concerns, you can easily get tested for Vit-D levels by a simple blood test. If there is any concern for extreme deficiency or toxicity levels, it's always a good idea to know for sure by getting tested. Besides that, know your body, and pay attention to how you feel, eat really well, get enough sleep, and have fun. Here's to your health.
Dr. Nick
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