Anyone know about Vitamin D levels?

[gower4]

I was told yesterday by receptionist that my levels have come back as too low (29). Everything else normal.

Does anyone medical know whether this level can be boosted by over the counter supplements alone, or would it require a boost from a prescribed dose? Doctor not available to discuss until next week.

Mine level was 19 so I had to have the high dose prescribed by the doctor for 7 weeks and then carry on with otc ones.i do forget to take them and my bones ache and hurt and I feel quite tired and even anxious

I feel a bit wobbly too - was it the same for others?

@StillMedusa @ibelieveinangels what level was the prescribed high dosage if you don't mind me asking?

Hi Gower4'
If you are an average responder , your blood level of Vit D will rise by 25 ( nmol/L ) for every 1000 IU of vitD3 supplement that you take daily.

Your level of 29 was pretty low. This is not surprising as it was measured at the end of the Vitamin d winter. None can be made in the skin from mid-Oct to mid-April at our latitude of 50 degrees north. The reason for that is that the sun's elevation does not go above 45 degrees for us during that period. When the sun's elevation is below 45 degrees , the pathlength through the atmosphere of sunlight is long , and the atmosphere absorbs the UVB radiation , which is high energy radiation , which makes Vit D3 , in our skin.

Even in summer , ( at our latitude ) you cannot make vitamin D3 in the skin outside of the hours 11 to 3 pm. Again , the sun's elevation is too low. This is all a matter of basic physics. The higher your latitude , the less UVB you get.

Pollution , and clouds , ( water vapour ) also reduces the amount of UVB that reaches ground level.

         Consequently , anyone living in the North West of Scotland , with heavy cloud cover , and high latitude  will mean you are most affected.  We in Britain, wherever we live, generally have a dearth vitamin d.   Our lifestyle , which is mainly indoors , for many of us ,  particularly  between the hours of  11 and 3 pm ,  means Vit D blood levels are around  30 - 70 ,      much below the level you would expect in an outdoor person, in plenty of sunshine.  
       That was how the human physiology  evolved,    at latitudes below 33 degrees ( in the tropics,)   and in sunshine which could make vitamin d3 in our skin every single day of the year.    

The NHS  normal level extends from 50   to 167 ... at least.  Some areas even higher.  Up to 200 .    Indeed, we humans when exposed to that kind of environment just described above generally go to levels of  120 - 140.        That is why many Vitamin D researchers consider that to be  the ideal level to aim at.   It is your natural level,  it has been for millions of years. Your body evolved to have those kind of levels. Some of us Westerners do reach those levels,  lifeguards , outside workers etc.   The majority of us don't.    Unfortunately we do not expose ourselves to a modest amount of sunlight , at the right time of day. We often use a suncream which blocks  UVB  .  for instance , factor 15 , reduces  UVB  by  97%  ,  and effectively prevents  manufacture of Vit D3  in the skin. 

 We do have to be careful,     now that we Northern Europeans have evolved white skin  ,  that can easily burn.     NEVER EVER BURN.  But   A few minutes , without sunscreen is very beneficial. 

Gower4 ,  in your position ,   you will need regular doses , in the region  of  3000 IU   to keep your level up above 100.   Some people are good responders,  and some are low responders.   After 3 months ,  you should check your blood level,  to see where it has got to.       On a regular daily dose ,  it takes  60   to 90  days ,  to reach an equilbrium.  That's when you should measure.       IF  your level is around 120 -140,    that's great , just carry on,     IF  your level is way higher,   cut down ,  IF  too low ,   then increase your dose.   

You may find  4000 IU oil filled capsules on Amazon ,  or  3000 IU  sprays.       These would  be a good source ,   if you choose to buy over the counter.        

 IF  you have any kind of intestinal problem which may limit your absorption of the oil based supplement ,  then  use a spray.   The spray is absorbed directly , and does not go through the digestive system.     

  The doctor might not want to re-test levels.   You can get tests at this  NHS  path Lab, in the  West Midlands.   A blood test  on blotting paper.   Send it to them,    and you will get your result within a week by e-mail.     <a class="break-all" href="http://www.vitamindtest.org.uk/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">www.vitamindtest.org.uk/</a>            unfortunately ,   they do charge  £29   IF  the test is not doctor ordered. 

Well.....I hope that is of some use ... !!

best of luck.

If you need any more information , re Vit D , then by all means do
get back to me.

BTBH.

@Bettertobehealthy thanks so much for this very helpful response. Would you agree with the previous posters that 29 is low enough to be causing joint and muscle pain?

I've just been diagnosed with vitamin d deficiency due to pain in my knees and hips.
Have appointment tomorrow with GP to discuss 'replacement therapy'.
I'd make an appointment to see your doctor to discuss. My dad has this too, and his spine started crumbling as it was left untreated.

@gower4 I was put on 40000 units for 7 weeks

I have for years on and off had Vit D deficiency and had to take supplements. But doc told me it was normal to almost everyone in UK at this time of year and isn’t a worry

Have you had your thyroid and b12 levels checked?

@Alicewond I don't think they checked thyroid or B12 - why do you ask?

hi again Gower,
Yes , 29 nmol/L is low enough to cause aches pains, joint problems etc in some people.

Vit D is transformed in the body to Vit d hormone, which your body uses to read genes in almost every cell in your body. Over 2000 of your 23000 genes have vitd response elements. IF for any reason your cells cannot uptake enough of that hormone or its precursor from the blood , the cells will not operate as they should , and some kind of malfunction will occur. It may well be that your low level has hindered some process or other. We know that bone metabolism, and muscle metabolism is associated with some of these vit d processes.

 Amongst hundreds of different functions ,           Vit D enables your gut to regulate the uptake of calcium.  IF  you are low, you may not be able to absorb enough calcium from your food ,   especially if you eat a low calcium diet ( i.e. dairy free ).  Green veg etc contains calcium , you should ensure that you get sufficient calcium ,  and magnesium from your diet.     IF , this is your situation ,   then you may find that  your calcium reservoir in the body  i.e. your bones ,  donates calcium to your blood , to keep the blood level exactly where it needs to be. This may cause aches and pains in the bones,  it is a condition called osteomalacia.  Pressing on the sternum,  or  a few inches below the knee , on the front of shin might show this up as pain or tenderness.  

Over the long term , if the bones continue to donate calcium to the blood , then osteopenia , osteoporosis may develop.

Some recent research , in the U of Nebraska also Harvard , has found that ensuring that the diet contains enough protein will help in rebuilding bones. The current recommendation for 0.8 gram of protein per kilogram of body weight , does not appear to be sufficient to supply enough protein to rebuild the bone matrix. ( collagen ) Their results indicate that you may need 1.2 g of protein per kg.

               Although this may or may not be your particular problem ,  it is worthwhile ensuring you do have a good healthy level of vitamin d . It will protect you from many nasty diseases.      

Up above  someone mentioned  doses.

2.5 ug ( microgram ) of vitamin d is 100 IU
25 ug (microgram ) is 1000 IU

An average responder , will raise their vitamin d levels in the blood by 25 (nmol/l in UK units . ) IF they supplement by 1000 IU per day in the long term , daily , ie. 25 ug.

IF you simply take a large loading dose , for a few weeks, then stop all dosing , your level will spike up , then slowly come back to the original level, depending upon your lifestyle , food etc. That is why many people say that they have recurrent problems with low vitamin D.

 Your body requires  around  65 - 70    IU of Vit d   per kilogram of weight ,   per day .   That is from all sources.  Food , sunlight and supplement.    You will not get  much from food.   Vegetarian foods contain none ,   unless artificially fortified.  An egg contains just   40 IU .       enough for a chick.  

In the UK , food and sunlight does not really give you the chance to get enough. Wild oily fish, has some, but you would need to consume it every day to get enough. Meat has some , but not large amounts. It somewhat depends upon how the animal was kept , and/or supplemented. Sunlight ... at the times shown above is the best way to build vit d reserves. However, you must not burn, that is very detrimental to the skin. In strong sunlight any particular area of skin is saturated with Vit D , in 20 minutes. So there is no point in baking for long periods in strong sunlight. Overall, a healthy human skin can make 10,000 to 20,000 IU in about an hours sunbathing.

However in winter, other methods must be used.

 Is that useful.  Hope so  ! 

Best of luck
BTBH.
.

@gower4 only because the symptoms between hypothyroidism, b12 deficiency (pernicious anaemia in some cases) and vit D deficiency can all be similar. Oh and folic acid deficiency too. Quite often when you have one you can also have one or more of the others. You’ll only know if you take prescription level vit D and feel no better, or if they’ve tested for these already on a blood test. Ask your gp for a print out of your blood test results so you can see what’s been tested. Hopefully it’s all good and a high dose of vit D will see you well again

Thanks so much again @Bettertobehealthy and @Alicewond. Spoke to doc yesterday and apparently thyroid and everything else they tested all good. Forgot to ask about B12! I have the loading dose for 7 weeks so fingers crossed!

Hi again everyone
I was just wondering how long it took those who took loading doses to feel better?

For me it was quite gradually over two months, when I refilled the prescription for the 3rd and last month I realized I was feeling better.

Thanks - that's interesting. I've done 3 weeks so far. Joints are way better, but still feeling weak from time to time.

Are there any other experiences?

Not sure if this adds anything, but I was told by the nurse who took my blood tests that 0-100 was low and 100-200 was normal. Mine came back 18 just before pregnancy, which explains why i was feeling a bit whisht.

I take a 25microgram VitD from the supermarket, plus the 10micrograms in the standard pregnacare multivit, so 35mcg per day in total. I had a repeat blood test about two weeks ago (approx 8 weeks after starting the added supplement) and I'm now up to 69 which is within the NHS guidelines for okay, if still low, so i'm carrying on taking the combined dose for the forseeable. I suspect if i wasn't TTC they might have put me on a higher dose initially, but nobody actually said so.

@Bettertobehealthy - not sure if you are still following the thread, but on the offchance, do you have a view on how long it should take to raise levels from deficiency (29) on a loading dose of 40,000 per week?