Vitamin Information Center

Vitamin D is known as the “sunshine vitamin” because the human body naturally produces vitamin D when exposed to sunlight. A report in the Archives of General Psychiatry gives new meaning to the term. New research has shown that your risk for depression could be high if your blood is low in vitamin D and high in serum parathyroid hormones, says a report in . (Arch Gen Psychiatry. 2008;65[5]:508-512.)

More specifically, poor vitamin D consumption can cause an increase in serum parathyroid levels, which are frequently accompanied by symptoms of depression. And considering that nearly 15% of older individuals suffer from the blues this could be the relief that they’ve been seeking.

The findings may be important to patients because both low blood vitamin D levels and high parathyroid hormone levels can be treated with higher dietary intake of vitamin D or calcium and increased sunlight exposure. “Moreover, the clinical relevance of the present study is underscored by our finding that 38.8% of men and 56.9% of women in our community-based cohort had an insufficient vitamin D status,” researchers conclude. Additional studies are needed to determine whether changes in levels of vitamin D and parathyroid hormone precede depression or follow it.

The Anti-Aging Bottom Line: Almost 15% of older Americans suffer from depression, which can substantially decrease your quality of life. if you feel like you may be depressed, get your vitamin D levels checked. Recent research has found that vitamin D deficiency is much more common that was previously thought, and that most people need higher amounts of D than the current government mandated recommendations. Vitamin D supplementation has been proven very effective at correcting deficiency. Make sure you are getting at least 1,000 IU of supplemental vitamin D daily.

Higher-dose vitamin D supplements are now in demand. But consumers who take higher-dose vitamin D supplements and whose dietary intake of calcium is high may experience muscle cramping and other symptoms, which can be avoided by taking vitamin D in combination with muscle-relaxing magnesium - as provided in the new “30 Minutes of Sunshine™” dietary supplement by Lifespan Nutrition.

San Dimas, CA (PRWEB) March 28, 2008 — Americans don’t get enough sunshine and experts now suggest Americans need to supplement their diet to achieve optimal levels of vitamin D. 30-Minutes of Sunshine™ is the new vitamin D3 dietary supplement that does this safely and affordably.

30-Minute of Sunshine™, available from Lifespan Nutrition, is the all new mineral-balanced vitamin D3 supplement featuring 5000 international units (IU) of water-soluble vitamin D3 combined with magnesium citrate, vitamin B6 and ferulate from rice bran, all for less than 25 cents per day. Up to 5000 units of supplemental vitamin D3 is now recommended by The Vitamin D Council.

Health authorities recognize vitamin D deficiency is widespread and now advise the public to obtain 30 minutes of midday sunshine or about 5000 international units of vitamin D per day, for optimal health. [Expert Opinion in Pharmacotherapy 9: 107-18, January 2008 The Recommended Daily Value for vitamin D (400 IU) does not significantly raise blood concentrations of vitamin D to levels achieved by regular midday sun exposure.

This unique formula is designed to optimize vitamin D3 absorption and prevent muscle cramping that may be induced by high-dose vitamin D supplements that are now in demand.

Since vitamin D increases utilization of calcium and magnesium, and the American diet is overly rich in calcium (Americans consume about three times more calcium than magnesium), an unfavorable calcium-to-magnesium ratio may produce avoidable side effects.

Since calcium promotes muscle tightness and magnesium muscle relaxation, calcium dominance can produce symptoms such as muscle cramping and constipation. Other symptoms of excessive calcium include migraine headaches, heart flutters and anxiety reactions. In addition to dietary calcium, many Americans may be taking calcium supplements with vitamin D which may further exacerbate these symptoms. [Journal American College Nutrition 1994 Oct; 13(5):429-46

30 Minutes Of Sunshine™ provides 125 milligrams of elemental magnesium citrate per capsule along with water-soluble vitamin D3, both highly absorbable forms of these nutrients.

The 30-Minutes of Sunshine™ formula also provides an ample amount of vitamin B6 required for magnesium utilization, and rice bran ferulate, a natural antioxidant that may improve the ability of vitamin D to enter cells via enhanced sensitivity of the vitamin D receptor.

Vitamin D3 is the natural form of vitamin D, which is preferred over synthetic vitamin D2. Some vitamin D experts state that vitamin D2 is not suitable for supplementation or food fortification. [American Journal Clinical Nutrition 2006 Oct; 84(4):694-7

While natural vitamin D is free and amply provided by skin exposure to midday sun, most Americans are deficient, particularly during winter months or when living in northern climates. Many people living in sunny climates have also been found to be deficient. The best diet only provides a few hundred units of vitamin D and does not meaningfully raise vitamin D levels.

Concerns over excessive sun exposure and skin cancer are far outweighed by the benefits of vitamin D, which include improved cardiovascular, bone, muscle and cellular health and enhanced immunity. Now consumers have a way, using dietary supplements, to obtain vitamin D without concerns over excessive sun exposure.

Only recently have health authorities realized they have been unduly concerned over potential side effects from higher-dose vitamin D, given that an hour of midday full-body sun exposure can produce up to 10,000 units of natural vitamin D without side effects. Medical textbooks must now be rewritten.

A portion of the sale of 30-Minutes of Sunshine™ is donated to The Vitamin D Council. For more information about vitamin D and the 30-Minutes of Sunshine™ formula, including a free Family Guide For Vitamin D, please visit www.lifespannutrition.com or call Lifespan Nutrition at 1 800 247-5731.

For Immediate Release
Contact: Lucy Sardi 909 599-2009
Email: (lasardi1 @ aol.com)

Lifespan Nutrition
457 West Allen Avenue, Unit 117, San Dimas, CA. 91773 USA
www.lifespannutrition.com

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Cod liver oil, a long-used source of vitamin D, may have the unexpected effect of lowering bone mass, a new study suggests.Norwegian researchers found that among more than 3,000 middle-aged women, those who took cod liver oil as children generally had lower bone mass than women who had not used the fish oil.

Because sunlight is needed to trigger the synthesis of vitamin D in the skin, people in Nordic countries are at particular risk of vitamin D deficiency. Cod liver oil is a traditional source of supplemental vitamin D, and is still widely used in Norway, where few foods are fortified with the vitamin.

Many people also take cod liver oil as a source of heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids, or to ease arthritis symptoms.

Given the role of vitamin D in maintaining healthy bones, the new findings are “unexpected” and “paradoxical,” the researchers note in the American Journal of Epidemiology.

They speculate, however, that the high vitamin A content in cod liver oil could be to blame.

Vitamin A accumulates in body fat, and excessive levels may have a negative effect on bone metabolism and actually raise fracture risk, explained Dr Siri Forsmo, the lead researcher on the study and an associate professor at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology in Trondheim.

Too much vit A to blame
It’s possible that cod liver oil, on top of the traditionally vitamin A-rich Norwegian diet, provided some of these women with too much of the nutrient, Forsmo told Reuters Health.

Since 2002, Norway has required that cod liver oil producers cut the supplement’s vitamin A content by 75 percent - from 3,300 International Units per dose to 825 IU. Forsmo said she is unaware of any other countries that have made similar moves.

In the US, the recommended daily intake for vitamin A is 3,000 IU for men and 2,310 IU for women; for children, the recommendation is between 1,000 and 2,000 IU per day.

In contrast to the US and certain other countries, where milk and many breakfast cereals are fortified with vitamin D, relatively few foods in Norway have added vitamin D, Forsmo noted. Butter, margarine and one type of low-fat milk are the exceptions.

So cod liver oil remains a major source of vitamin D there, Forsmo said, adding that she still takes it during the winter.

Importantly, the researcher noted, the current study looked at bone mass, and not whether women who used cod liver oil as children actually had a higher rate of bone fractures. That is a question for future studies. - (Amy Norton/Reuters Health)

SOURCE: American Journal of Epidemiology, February 15, 2008.

The use of some vitamin supplements can be controversial, with scientists and manufacturers arguing over their usefulness. But they don’t spend much time arguing about the lowly and somewhat boring multivitamin.No one has ever argued that multivitamins might not be good for you. Until now.

The Harvard Men’s Health Watch, which once endorsed these popular supplements, now says that a reappraisal of that advice is in order.

The publication, in its March 2008 issue, notes that some recent studies have linked multivitamin use to prostate cancer. More convincingly, it says studies have linked high intakes of folic acid to colon polyps, the precursors of colorectal cancer.

Researchers speculate that high intakes of folic acid, which was first added to grain products in the 1990s, may have contributed to an increase in colorectal cancers in the mid-1990s.

What does all of this have to do with multivitamins?

Now that folic acid is added to so many grain products, it’s easy to see how a healthy diet, combined with a multivitamin, could boost a person’s daily intake to 1,000 mcg or more, potentially increasing the risk of colorectal and possibly prostate and breast cancers.

In light of this research, Harvard Men’s Health Watch editors suggest that the average man give up the multivitamin, at least until scientists solve the puzzle of folic acid and cancer.

However, if you stop taking a multivitamin, the authors suggest you consider taking a vitamin D supplement. The typical diet for most men and women doesn’t supply enough of this crucial vitamin, and while sun exposure boosts vitamin D production, it has health risks of its own.

Last month, a study suggested some multivitamins might increase cancer risk.

“Our study of supplemental multivitamins, vitamin C, vitamin E and folate did not show any evidence for a decreased risk of lung cancer,” wrote the study’s author, Christopher G. Slatore, M.D., of the University of Washington, in Seattle. “Indeed, increasing intake of supplemental vitamin E was associated with a slightly increased risk of lung cancer.”

Findings of the study of 77,000 vitamin users were published in the first issue for March of the American Thoracic Society’s American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.

SATURDAY MARCH 1, 2008 (Foodconsumer.org) — University of Cambridge researchers found those who had the highest level of vitamin C in their blood were much less likely to have a stroke, suggesting that intake of vitamin C ma help reduce the risk.

The study published in the Jan, 2008 issue of American Journal of Clinical Nutrition showed those who had the highest level (greater than 66 micromoles per liter) had a 42 percent reduced risk for stroke compared to those who had the lowest level (less than 41 micromoles per liter).

The study did not mean that increasing vitamin C intake through one’s diet or a supplement would definitely reduce the risk of stroke or increased levels of the vitamin was the cause for the reduced risk although the possibility could not be excluded either.

Phyo Myint and colleagues suggested that vitamin C in the blood may be a good biomarker of lifestyle. A high level of it indicates that one follows a healthy lifestyle, minimizing their risk for stroke.

For the study, the researchers followed 20,649 men and women participating in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer for 9.5 years to record their health status such as incidence of stroke.

Their dietary habits and other lifestyle parameters were surveyed at the entry of the study using a health and lifestyle questionnaire and vitamin C levels in the blood samples were measured. During the follow-up, 448 stroke cases were identified.

The association between the plasma vitamin C level and the risk of stroke existed after a series of other factors were considered including age, sex, smoking habits, alcohol consumption, blood pressure, cholesterol, BMI, physical activity, and use of supplements.

The researchers said the association was probably not due to the supplemental vitamin C because when those who used vitamin C supplements were excluded, the link still held, suggesting that the possible benefit could come from vitamin C-rich foods such as fruit and vegetables.

The US government recommends in dietary guidelines adults should take at least five servings of fruit and vegetables per day to maintain health. But often vitamin C supplementation is not encouraged.

The researchers said although the study did not mean to say taking vitamin C supplements would render this protective effect and trials of vitamin C supplements in preventing cardiovascular disease unlikely occur, the association was substantial and independent of known major risk factors for stroke.

Sebastian Padayatty and Mark Levine from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) said in their commentary accompanying the study report that “Vitamin C is an attractive marker of fruit and vegetable intake because these foods are the primary sources of dietary vitamin C.” and the take-home message is to use five to nine servings of fruits and vegetables.

Vitamin C has proved controversial. Some experts notably Noble Prize laureate Dr. Linus Pauling had been advocating for years that people should use HIGH doses of vitamin C to prevent a whole spectrum of diseases from colds to cancer. But trials proved that vitamin C at low doses does not help prevent diseases.

Dr. Pauling had worked with a doctor to test how vitamin C affects the survival of cancer patients and they found that cancer patients subject to conventional treatments, but using high doses of vitamin C often lived a few more years than those who received only conventional treatments.

Vitamin C is non-toxic and many people use more than 5 grams per day, according to The Vitamin C Foundation, a not-for-profit organization advocating use of vitamin C.