One in six dementia cases might be avoided with Vitamin D

Vitamin D3

Click to enlarge  |  Paper

Just imagine that 17% of dementia cases could be prevented with a new drug that cost five cents, had a huge safety margin, and virtually no risk?

The study from the University of South Australia looked at data from 294,000 people in their 60s in the UK, and followed them for a median of 11 years or so. Researchers even controlled for time spent outdoors, types of physical activity, and the amount of oily fish they ate to try to cover for other benefits from these activities.

Seems to me, that if Ministers of Health were interested in actual health, they might be offering free Vitamin D tests, free supplement bottles, lessons in school and public awareness programs. They might even offer testing clinics in shopping centre car parks or free bottles at the RSL and Bowls clubs. Crazy idea right? In the world you thought you were living in, the treasurer might be chasing them down to forecast savings on public health spending ten years from now by keeping 1 in 6 out of nursing homes. Instead our Departments of Health are apparently keen to approve patented drugs with few clinical benefits that cost $28,000 per patient (and that’s after the price was halved due to the outcry). How many taxpayers will die to save one Big Pharma shareholder?

Where are the journalists — probably not asking the Minister of Health any hard questions. This is not the first study to show Vitamin D reduces dementia. Like this one,  and this one, and this one. By some estimates more than a billion people worldwide don’t have enough Vitamin D.

Vitamin D deficit linked to dementia

The Australian

The minimum healthy level of vitamin D is 50 nmol/L, but an estimated 31 per cent of adults in Australia have inadequate vitamin D, increasing to more than 50 per cent in women during winter and spring in the southern states.

The UniSA study found that those with vitamin D of only 25 nmol/L had a 54 per cent higher risk of developing ­dementia than those whose ­levels were 50 nmol/L.

The researchers found 17 per cent of dementia cases could be prevented by increasing vitamin D levels from 25 to 50 nmol/L.

From the paper — there are three ways vitamin D could protect brains — it helps neurons grow, reduces blood clots, and is an anti-inflammatory:

A protective effect of higher 25(OH)D on brain health is biologically plausible and could be explained by at least 3 potential mechanisms. First, the presence of vitamin D receptors in the hypothalamus has suggested a neurosteroid function for active vitamin D, promoting the growth and maturation of neurons (4849). Second, there may be vascular mechanisms as active vitamin D has been associated with reduced thrombosis and regulation of the renin–angiotensin system (5). Third, replete concentrations of active vitamin D may act as a neuroprotectant through the suppression of excess inflammatory neurovascular damage caused by proinflammatory cytokines and attenuation of amyloid proteins, commonly observed in Alzheimer disease (34).

Flashback to June 2021 — FDA rushes through approval of Alzheimers drug which costs $56,000.

It reduces beta-amyloid but doesn’t yet show any benefit for memory:

The first new Alzheimer’s drug approved after almost 20 years

The drug, which is called Aducanumab but will be marketed as Aduhelm, has been shown to reduce levels of beta-amyloid, the sticky plaque that is the hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease, in the brain. HelloCare says the studies have not been able to show the drug slows declines in memory and thinking, and in fact, “two large recent studies have had opposite findings.” In November, a panel of the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advisers recommended the agency not approve the drug.

The FDA approved the drug through its ‘accelerated approval pathway’, a fast-track approval process designed to hasten access to drugs that could provide a “meaningful therapeutic advantage” over existing treatments for patients with serious or life-threatening diseases, and where a clinical benefit is “expected” – even if there is still uncertainty about the benefit.

Royal Australian College of GP’s warn that the drug trial results were not that promising, the side effects were significant and the costs prohibitive. The drug may even be dangerous.

Clinical symptoms of ARIA, such as headache, delirium, dizziness and visual disturbance, were present in 24% of those on high dose and remained unresolved in 12% over the study period. And while serious symptoms were only seen in 0.3%, many required hospital admission and treatment with steroids or antiepileptics. Professor Bush says there is growing evidence that ARIA ‘could be hazardous’. ‘It’s not just an imaging anomaly, it actually can be associated with a variety of neurological complications, which indicate that it might not be as safe as has been proposed,’ he said.

While beta-amyloid is associated with dementia, most drugs that reduce beta-amyloid don’t seem solve the problem.

This study was not a classic RCT (randomized controlled trial) instead they looked for small random gene changes using a technique called Mendelian randomization to test for causality. It sounds like an interesting way to get around the ethical dilemmas of doing long randomized controlled trials.

 

REFERENCE

Navale et al (2022) Vitamin D and brain health: an observational and Mendelian randomization study, The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, nqac107, https://doi.org/10.1093/ajcn/nqac107. Press Release

 

9.9 out of 10 based on 55 ratings

96 comments to One in six dementia cases might be avoided with Vitamin D

  • #
    Jojodogfacedboy

    Here, fishy, fishy…
    Have I got a snake oil for you to try and buy.

    The FDA and CDC have a serious credibility problem.

    231

  • #

    Solarium used correctly increases Vitamin D, 40,000 mico units in about 8 mins, an amazing feeling. Personally I used Solariums once every two months for nearly 10 years. Fantastic feeling in the middle of Winter.

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    • #
      Ozwitch

      We have convinced people who stay in apartments, take a train to work and then stay in a building for 8 hours before doing the same in reverse, that sunlight causes cancer and to smother themselves in harmful suncreams, so they get even less of the vital D3. No wonder the population is deficient.

      I take Vit C D3 E and K2 every day plus some immune boosters. Never had a sniffle in 3 years let alone the Covid. I’d like to think my future health is also protected.

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      David Maddison

      Solaria are banned in at least one state in Australia, see my comment below.

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    Don B

    If the U.S. public health system were interested in the public’s health during the Covid pandemic, they would have been advising people to lose weight and take Vitamin D supplements – especially for dark skinned people.

    Instead they seemingly spent all of their time trashing inexpensive, off-patent drugs which worked.

    The FDA’s approval of an expensive dementia drug which may not work fits their Covid modus operandi.

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  • #
    GreatAuntJanet

    Silver lining from the covid hoo-ha – the ineptitude/motivations of the CDC/FDA and most other health organisations and government bodies have been revealed to those who want to see.

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    • #
      Ted1

      Where?

      I’ve been watching and hoping but I haven’t seen it yet. Did I not look hard enough?

      11

  • #
    ace

    Vitamin D3 is fantastically cheap; just over a Canadian penny for a 1000 IU pill.

    The test for 25(OH)D concentration is not covered by the health scheme here in British Columbia, unless ordered by your doctor. It costs more than $40 to test for your level.

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  • #
    Glen L

    Vitamin D goes waaaaay beyond dementia as a health supplement. See attached link to video to find out more. Think Covid-19, flu season, ect.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8LFkWiNP1wQ&t=1s

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  • #
    David Maddison

    People assume that in sunny places like Australia and Israel, where studies have been made, vitamin D deficiency is rare. But in both places, it is surprisingly common. How much more common must it be in less sunny places in parts of Europe and North America, especially in winter?

    And Jo has published many times the correlation between vitamin D deficiency and susceptiblity to severe covid disease and death. I am sure that many of those who died from covid, especially the elderly in nursing homes were vitamin D deficient. Vitamin D supplements should be routine in nursing homes at the very least. It may even be more effective than the covid vaccines.

    Not a single health department in the world that I am aware of warned of the indisputable link between covid and vitamin D deficiency and suggested supplementation, even though vitamin D is exceptionally safe.

    And darker skinned people in Europe and North America were particularly susceptible to covid. Of course, Leftoids blamed “racism” but it wasn’t racism but biology whereby people with skins evolved for the tropics don’t produce enough vitamin D in temperate zones.

    Also, in Canada during covid, some medical organisation threatened doctors with deregistration if they dared suggest that D supplements would improve resistance to covid.

    The recommended levels for D seem to be based around preventing rickets but are too low for other beneficial effects hence 1000IU per day might be too low for some people.

    Some years ago I remember a campaign against vitamin and mineral supplementation. I am not sure who was behind it, Big Pharma and Big Government I am guessing. The argument was that in Western countries, dietary deficiencies are rare. That may be so, but there are certain defiencies such as Vitamin D that can’t be corrected by diet, and others like vitamin K2 that are not likely to be, unless you eat fermented foods.

    As I said above, D supplemention should be routine in nursing homes, not only to improve robustness to covid but now, according to this study, to improve resistance to vitamin D deficiency related forms of Alzheimers.

    Incidentally, many argue that D shouldn’t be considered a vitamin but a hormone.

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    • #
      Yonason

      “… 1000IU per day might be too low for some people.”

      Oh yes.

      When I first became aware that my D level was low, mid to upper 30s (ng/ml) I started on 1k IU per day. The needle barely moved. I increased it to 2k, then 4k. Finally to 10k/day, and am now in upper 50-low 60 ng/ml. All that has taken roughly 7 years. Some people need more, some less. Highly individualized. Absolutely essential that blood levels are followed throughout!

      In that time the frequency and severity of my viral infections decreased to zero,… until 2 months ago when I had my first viral URI in about 4 years – a particularly nasty one. The whole thing lasted about a month, and some (most) food still tastes a little like I’m chewing on a latex glove.
      https://c8.alamy.com/comp/A3FWPX/sleeper-1973-ua-film-with-woody-allen-A3FWPX.jpg
      Yech.

      But it ended up fine. I wasn’t in a lot of pain (just tired), the infection didn’t go into my lower lungs, and best of all I lost 10 pounds! The only thing better would be if it was COVID, which would mean my natural immunity has had the best “boost” it could possibly get.

      I don’t want to think how sick I might have been if I hadn’t taken D3 supplements. Just fortunate I came across some literature on vitamin D, which reminded me that when I was in grade school, our family physician told my parents to give me cod lover oil pill once a day. No other doc since has ever mentioned it.

      Best source of K2 is reported to be Natto, if you don’t mind the taste. An American source…
      https://www.nyrture.com/
      (Probably can get it in OZ, if you have an Asian market nearby)

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    • #
      PADRE

      I am glad to say that my 99 year old mother-in-law, in a UK care home, is given a daily dose of vitamin D. Incidentally, she has just recovered from Covid. Although, like many elderly people, she occasionally repeats stories of the past, she is still, nevertheless, the ‘Scrabble’ champion.

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  • #
    b.nice

    “Royal Australian College of GP’s warn that the drug trial results were not that promising, the side effects were significant and the costs prohibitive. The drug may even be dangerous.”

    At least they tell us this time !

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    • #
      David Maddison

      Yes, I thought it odd they just didn’t parrot what they were told to say by Big Pharma. How did that one slip through?

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  • #
    David Maddison

    Apart from the relation of vitamin D deficiency and Alzheimer’s in certain cases, the disease has also been called “type 3 diabetes”, which is not yet an accepted medical term but relates to insulin resistance in the brain. See https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2769828/

    Just as some cases of diabetes can be cured with a ketogenic diet, it has also been suggested that such a diet will help prevent or improve Alzheimer’s. See https://lowcarbdownunder.com.au/news/ketogenic-diet-in-alzheimers-disease/

    Vitamin D may improve diabetes as well. See https://www.mcmasteroptimalaging.org/blog/detail/blog/2018/10/02/vitamin-d-a-possible-ally-in-the-fight-against-diabetes

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  • #
    Ted Ledner

    Good timing Jo. I have along with 15000 other Australian GPs just received a “nudge” letter from the Government. This is a bullying letter that informs me that my requesting of pathology services is considered too high. In particular looking at my request for iron stores thyroid test and vitamin D levels. Now the period in question was January 2020 through to December 2021. You will remember that a huge chunk of our population was house arrested and allowed out for 1 hr a day through that period. I treated over 500 patients with Vitamin D deficiency in that time. I have a blanket advice for all of my patients to take 2-3000 units a day and a zinc tablet. We locked people in their homes and many were so frightened they really became hermits and then we ignore the side effects on their health. Go figure. An Australian Gong for the guy who worked that all out.

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    • #
      David Maddison

      Utterly amazing Ted. Staggering. Detecting and correcting vitamin D deficiency represents an outstanding return on the health care dollar.

      And yet the authorities approve and spend huge amounts on pharmaceuticals of debatable efficacy or which are outright dangerous.

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    • #
      Doctor T

      I have reached new levels of despair over the last 2 1/2 years in my sports and exercise medical practice. Like you, I start with basic lifestyle measures such as exercise, diet, sufficient sun exposure, as the evidence is clear on the benefits in so may disease states.
      When a healthy lifestyle is prohibited by government under pressure from our so called “public health experts”, one really starts questioning the very basis for what the profession actually stands for.
      Regarding Vitamin D and Alzheimer’s, there is a growing body of evidence on shortened telomere length and susceptibility to aging and disease, as well as infections such as Covid.
      The role of Vitamin D, as well as B12 and folate on telomere length is becoming better understood.

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    • #
      David Maddison

      Hmmmm… Where else are people only allowed out one hour for exercise? Not only was it Australians under house arrest in Vicdanistan and elsewhere in Australia, it is also inmates of prisons. Vitamin D deficiency has also been studied in that population in Australia.

      “Vitamin D deficiency and segregation status in prisoners”

      This is the first Australian study of Vitamin D levels in a prison population. We found 46% (95% CI 37-55) of the population selected for testing to be deficient.

      https://researchonline.nd.edu.au/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1999&context=med_article

      Ted, refer them to that study and then (a) tell them to shove it into that part of the anatomy where the sun doesn’t shine or (b) get them to advise you in writing that testing for Vitamin D is medically inappropriate and there is no consequences for Vitamin D deficiency.

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    • #
      Ross

      TL, that’s heartening to hear there are still some sensible GP’s out there. I tried getting a Vitamin D test last year via my annual GP check up. I was communicating via email due to COVID restrictions, the receptionists didn’t pass on the emails and so it didn’t happen. When I finally got the chance to talk to the GP (for my test results) he dismissed the importance of Vitamin D anyway. Plus, I think a Vitamin D test costs extra, which is crazy.

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    • #
      Tel

      I thought it was standard to just tick a whole bunch of boxes on those blood tests.

      If you are going to the trouble of draining blood out of me, and sending it away to a lab … then might as well test as much as you can while it’s underway. Can’t imagine that an extra few squirts of reagent solution would cost much more than the initial human labour of the nurse and the blood delivery car.

      I agree with you about that Zinc tablet, and the other associated micro-dose minerals like Selenium, Manganese, Chromium, etc. I’ve been a lot healthier since taking those.

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      • #
        Ross

        In 2014, under changes to the Medicare benefits schedule, only high-risk patients were to be eligible to get a rebate when they get vitamin D levels screened. Eligible patients include those with deeply pigmented skin, osteoporosis or those with chronic lack of sun exposure.

        60

    • #
      Honk R Smith

      COVID19 was the 38th leading cause of death in Oz in 2020.
      Average 85.

      https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/health/causes-death/causes-death-australia/latest-release

      Tried half-heartedly to search iatrogenic causes.
      Here in America, iatrogenic is likely third.

      https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/news/media/releases/study_suggests_medical_errors_now_third_leading_cause_of_death_in_the_us

      My guess not much different in Oz.

      Hmm … third vs. 38th … no offense, there may be some MDs that should be sequestered and only allowed out an hour a day.

      The world has been seriously had.

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      • #
        Steve of Cornubia

        And that’s in spite of recording every death of a Covid-positive person as an actual Covid death, even if it was a heart attack or cancer that killed them. Also, many of the deaths that actually WERE due to Covid, were in already sick and elderly people with little left to fight with. Then there are those who received poor or inappropriate hospital treatment back when they weren’t really sure how to deal with it …

        Remove these cohorts and THEN tell me how deadly Covid is.

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  • #
    Bill+In+Oz

    On the ABC radio news at 7.00 am this morning :
    “That D3 helps prevent dementia in the elderly !”
    And it then cited the Uni SA study just as you have here !
    I almost fell off my chair… But I was driving and so could not.
    But the thought comes to me :
    Someone there been reading this post of yours Jo !!
    And that’s good news !

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  • #
    Yonason

    “Seems to me, that if Ministers of Health were interested in actual health, they might be offering free Vitamin D tests, free supplement bottles, lessons in school and public awareness programs. They might even offer testing clinics in shopping centre car parks or free bottles at the RSL and Bowls clubs.”

    I agree 100%!

    Also, vitamin (hormone) D is essential to so many aspects of our health. Here’s just one neurologist’s take on it…
    https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ugPB6jmw2nI

    And for it to work optimally, note that your “good” gut bacteria (for which Vitamin D is also essential) must be up to snuff, as well. They won’t be with inadequate vitamin D.

    For the more technically minded, see first 2 papers here…
    https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/?term=Gominak%20SC%5BAuthor%5D

    From repairing your body while you sleep, to keeping your immune system and gut in tip top shape, and more, vitamin D can’t be neglected. It works best, according to Gominak and others, when kept at between 60 and 80 ng/ml** (usa units). See here for conversion to different units….
    https://unitslab.com/node/84

    **(some think this is too high, but others don’t worry until you get over 100.)

    80

  • #
    John Hultquist

    ” . . .study from the University of South Australia looked at data from 294,000 people in their 60s in the UK, ”

    I think I need some D3 (or a beer), ’cause I don’t know why the OZ folks had to study UK folks. I can make a couple of guesses. However, where’s the money doing that.

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    • #
      yarpos

      so they didnt have to gather data that already existed?

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    • #
      Kalm Keith

      There’s a special name for that type of study, but since I haven’t been out in the Sun this morning it won’t come to the surface. Maybe later.

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      • #
        Annie

        What sun?

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      • #
        Hanrahan

        It’s a “meta study” and while it sounds great, inconclusive or -ve studies are not included.

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        • #

          Not a meta-analysis. They were the first to do a long Mendelian randomization on this big dataset. That’s some kind of alternative way to randomize when Randomized Controlled Trials are unethical / difficult / expensive. I wish I could explain it better. The paper discusses the methodology.

          I’m glad to see there is some alternative to RCT, which always seem rather brutal to me.

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          • #
            Hanrahan

            It has always been my contention that an RCT studying IVM and WuFlu would be unethical. Who could, in conscience, give half the group a placebo?

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            • #
              NigelW

              The same people, in conscience, that would require the injection of a “vaccine” that kills/maims more people than the WuFlu….of course

              30

          • #
            Peter C

            long Mendelian randomization

            What is that? Mendel studied sweat pea plants, not statistics.

            30

          • #
            Yonason

            “I’m glad to see there is some alternative to RCT, which always seem rather brutal to me.”

            Yes. Especially the way Fauci insists on doing them.

            Years ago I was taught that, in the midst of a drug trial, if some in a study were either doing noticeably better or noticeably worse than those not in the study, then the study would be unblinded. If most in the treated group were benefiting, then the treatment was offered to everyone. If the treatment was causing harm, it was stopped. Aside from that being the moral/ethical way to handle it, for some reason I used to think it was also the law. Silly me.

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        • #
          Kalm Keith

          🙂

          Whatever, study or analysis, the operative word is “meta”.

          In plain English that means, as John above may have indicated, they’ve used someone else’s data and so can’t really vouch for the accuracy. But it’s certainly

          Cheap.

          10

    • #
      Yonason

      “ I think I need some D3 (or a beer),…”

      Better yet, take your D3, and wash it down with a beer. 😁

      Win – Win

      30

  • #
    Yonason

    It’s not just vitamin D, it is, as I’ve commented here and/or elsewhere before, the truth will never be easily accessible about anything that will affect the profits of large companies, mostly involving pharmaceuticals and foods.

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  • #
    Ross

    Vitamin D supplementation aside, where is the co-operation with the BOM on sunny periods of the day, particularly during winter. The BOM are now manic about all sorts of warnings, why not issue a forecast for sunny periods of the day, so that people could go out in Winter especially and do a little sun baking. For most people this is the best way to increase those Vitamin D levels, particularly if you can get the arms and legs out. But, the trouble is, the health authorities have now become so obsessed with skin cancer. Even solariums are now banned or discouraged in Victoria.

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    • #
      David Maddison

      Yes, solaria were banned in Vicdanistan because one woman of Asian ethnicity spent vast amounts of time in the solarium to get a “tanned” skin, despite her natural skin colour and she got skin cancer. She obviously had a body dismorphic disorder, but despite that, the government went and banned them anyway, thus increasing vitamin D deficiency and related diseases in the population.

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    • #
      Yonason

      If I remember correctly, the UV that causes slin cancer is blocked by glass. I’ll look it up and get back to you.

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  • #
    David Maddison

    I guess government “health” authorities don’t support vitamin D testing or promotion of use because it would invalidate emergency authorisations or “accelerated approval pathways” for covid vaccines and now also Aducanumab.

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    • #
      Ross

      I think the FDA approved aducanumab in the US, contrary to some of their advisors recommendations, so I am assuming the rubber stampers at the TGA will also approve aducanumab for Australia.

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  • #
    David Maddison

    If your GP has been told not to test you for Vitamin D, here are some options.

    There are at home Vitamin D tests you can do in Australia. Google “home vitamin d test australia” without quote marks. You use a lancet to obtain a blood sample for the test kit.

    There is also another place I saw who will do the test at one of their facilities for $55. There are probably others, this is just one I randomly saw. I know nothing about the company.
    https://www.i-screen.com.au/tests/vitamin-d-test

    That’s medicine in Australia today. DIY tests for basic deficiencies. I can’t wait until we have DIY surgeries.

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    • #
      mc

      If your GP has been told not to test you for Vitamin D, here are some options.

      Find a doctor who will.

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      • #
        David Maddison

        Ted Ledner above said he was questioned by the Australian Government for ordering such tests.

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  • #
    Kalm Keith

    “One in six dementia cases might be avoided with Vitamin D”

    And, a bit of brain stimulation from;

    – exercise, preferably away from the T.V. to raise blood pressure; flushing is good.

    – actually using the brain, challenges beyond switching the T.V. on and off, helps to maintain and extend neuronal links and networks.

    – and social interaction with real humans, not just the “smartphone”.

    If you don’t use it you l____e it!

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    • #
      Hanrahan

      – actually using the brain, challenges beyond switching the T.V. on and off, helps to maintain and extend neuronal links and networks.

      Probably an old wives tale.

      20

  • #
    BernardP

    Concerning Alzheimer’s,

    Years ago, I found this book, “Alzheimer’s Solved”. It presents the hypothesis that beta amyloid plaque is not the cause of Alzheimer’s but rather a symptom. The plaque is a defense mechanism of the brain against, notably, lack of cholesterol.

    https://www.amazon.com/Alzheimers-Solved-Condensed-Henry-Lorin/product-reviews/1419616846/ref=cm_cr_dp_d_show_all_btm?ie=UTF8&reviewerType=all_reviews

    More than interestingly, Alzheimer’s incidence has skyrocketed in parallel with increased use of statins.

    One doesn’t even need to read the book to understand its main message. Simply looking at reviews provides the general concepts and rationale.

    The review by Duane Graveline MD is especially worthy of interest.

    Dr Graveline is a former astronaut, aerospace medical research scientist, flight surgeon, and family doctor. He has written a few books on statins and cholesterol:

    https://www.amazon.com/s?k=Duane+Graveline+MD&crid=1RLEU7VXUHVQS&sprefix=duane+graveline+md%2Caps%2C64&ref=nb_sb_noss

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      Ross

      Which is why aducanumab was not supported by some FDA advisors. There was no clear link between beta amyloid plaque suppression and alzheimers outcomes. But, they went ahead anyway and approved it because it will be a money spinner for the industry.

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      • #
        BernardP

        Exactly. They see amyloid plaque and think it must be the cause, so it has to be eliminated. Web searches on the causes of Alzheimer’s turn up a lot of results saying that it’s caused by amyloid plaque. The plaque itself remains unexplained.

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  • #
    David Maddison

    I can see a similar campaign evolving against Vitamin D as there was against IVM and HCQ.

    It wouldn’t surprise me if the more extreme Nanny States such as Australia make vitamin D a prescription drug.

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  • #
    David Maddison

    Sorry if this is off topic but now the RACV, a motoring interest organisation in Australia is promoting and normalising the consumption of insects instead of meat. I have been warning about this UN-FAO agenda for a long time.

    https://www.racv.com.au/royalauto/sustainability/insect-food-and-bug-protein.html

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      MP

      Seems appropriate considering the state of most windscreens. Drive a kilometer, feed a child. Every K over is one life saved.

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  • #
    William Astley

    Here is evidence from Israel. Patients who had Vit D blood serum levels less than 15 ng/ml (prior to getting covid) were 14 times more like to have severe or critical covid than those who had Vit D blood serum levels greater than 30 ng/ml (80 nmol/l) prior to getting covid. Optimum Vit D is above 60 ng/ml which reduced women’s breast cancer incidence by 80%. Vit D should be taken every day with Vit K2 (min. 1mg/day) and magnesium (max. 450 mg/day) every day. Vit K2 activates a Vit D produce molecule MGP that removes calcium deposit from all blood vessels. It is this calcium build up that causes, atherosclerosis. The MGP molecule does not work without Vit K2.

    The general population’s atherosclerosis (80% to 90% of US young adult have atherosclerosis) is caused when the protein cholesterol transport capsule presses against the sharp calcium crystal and breaks open… …releasing the cholesterol which sticks against the calcium. The atherosclerosis plaque occurs only in arteries (does not occur in veins) at change of flow regions which is required to create the force to break the natural Vit D build cholesterol capsule that normally transports the cholesterol without cholesterol breakout. An observation to support this is there is a large increase in the incidence of heart attacks for those who take calcium supplements. It is not safe to take calcium supplements without first correcting the three most serious deficiencies.

    We are all severely Vit D, Vit K2, and magnesium deficient. Correcting a single variable does not work biochemically. Correcting three deficiencies Vit D, Vit K2, and magnesium enables the calcium, in blood vessels and organs, to be removed. The long term calcium build causes most of the old age problems. The first change noted, is in the eyes which become moist. The next is urine flow and bowel movements. Taste improves. Eye sight, hearing, balance, and so on improve week by week as the calcium build in the small blood vessels is removed.

    Vitamin D Strong evidence from Israel (Campbell’s explanation of the Israel paper which is linked to below.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=unaG99XbsKk&t=7s

    https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0263069&fbclid=IwAR26lI_5VOvhVmWB2QO7cwk79PfGMR3ugdbViUWratievsoZZoHHKFsYT5k

    https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.7556/jaoa.2018.037/html?lang=de
    Role of Magnesium in Vitamin D Activation and Function

    “The standard diet in the United States contains about 50% of the recommended daily allowance (RDA) for magnesium, and as much as three-quarters of the total population is estimated to be consuming a magnesium-deficient diet. 23,48”

    “Magnesium activates more than 600 enzymes and influences extracellular calcium levels.

    Over 200 Scientists & Doctors Call For Increased Vitamin D Use To Combat COVID-19

    https://vitamind4all.org/letter.html

    This is a safety review of taking Vit D supplements. The study confirms that it is conservatively safe to take up to 10,000 IU/day of Vit D supplements. Based on research 5000 IU/day to 8000 IU/day (based on weight for non-obese people) is sufficient to reach close to physiological saturation for cell Vit D use. Every cell include brain cells require Vit D to produce biochemicals. There are 1000 known genes in the cells that have Vit D receptors on them.

    Risk assessment for vitamin D
    https://academic.oup.com/ajcn/article/85/1/6/4649294?searchresult=1

    https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4566462/
    Proper Calcium Use: Vitamin K2 as a Promoter of Bone and Cardiovascular Health
    “In particular, Vit K2 deficiency seems to be responsible of the so-called “calcium paradox” phenomenon, characterized by low calcium deposition in the bone and its accumulation in the vessel wall.”
    “An adequate intake of vitamin K2 has been shown to lower the risk of vascular damage because it activates matrix GLA protein (MGP), which inhibits the deposits of calcium on the walls. Vitamin K, particularly as vitamin K2, is nearly nonexistent in junk food, with little being consumed even in a healthy Western diet. Vitamin K deficiency results in inadequate activation of MGP, which greatly impairs the process of calcium removal and increases the risk of calcification of the blood vessels.”

    “Osteocalcin, matrix Gla protein (MGP), and possibly Gla-rich protein are all inhibitors of soft-tissue calcification and need vitamin K–dependent carboxylation for activity. …
    …A common characteristic is their low molecular weight, and it has been postulated that their small size is essential for calcification inhibition within tissues. MGP is synthesized by vascular smooth muscle cell and is the most important inhibitor of arterial mineralization currently known.”

    “Remarkably, the extrahepatic Gla proteins mentioned are only partly carboxylated (William: 70% of the Gla proteins produced by Vit D deficient people in the general population) in the healthy (William: The general population is not healthy) adult population, suggesting vitamin K insufficiency.”

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    Clem Cadiddlehopper

    “One in six dementia cases might be avoided with Vitamin D” We should all be trying to encourage some of our leftist acquaintances to get out in the fresh air and sunshine more often, it might not work but its well worth a try.

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      crakar24

      Vitamin D has been banned and de legitamised to ensure covid spreads and has maximal impact especially amongst the locked down elderly , we cannot now simply reverse course and start plying them with Vitamin D now can we!

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      Hanrahan

      If they got out more they may even see the beautiful, healthy earth we inhabit and rid themselves of their pessimism.

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    I have personally used vitamin D since early 2020 when Jo alerted on the potential benefits of it with covid. I do also use Quercetin and zinc. I also eat oily fish and swim in the sun throughout the year on weekends.

    I would urge all here to get their blood levels tested and act to boost if deficient. Mine was 97, which is extremely high.

    Since then the only issue I have had was pneumonia immediately after I recovered from covid (the covid I had was v mild). Any flu infections have been very mild whilst others around me have had significant infections.

    Vitamin D, for me, works v well. As Jo points out the evidence is clear – but of course our politicians and “health leaders” have no interest in simple cheap remedies, instead their solutions must involve large payments to Pharma companies for remedies which are not safe and not effective.

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    John Connor II

    Looming events have passed. Weren’t they fun. More early July. Back to posting.

    Anyone know how much a 44 gallon drum of vit D3 would cost to ship to the whitehouse? 😅

    No doubt a lot of people are overdosing on D3.
    30 minutes of decent sun exposure to your upper body (eventually, via the synthesis process) produces around 10,000 IU of D3, and that alone is more than adequate.
    In the northern climes your needs can be met from the sun even in winter.
    Southern climes – eat more fish & eggs 😉
    Consuming Turmeric is quite effective in preventing sunburn too and I can testify to that so you can increase your exposure time.

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      Hanrahan

      I was an outdoor kid in the tropics always losing my hat so burnt regularly. I have only had two minor basal-cell carcinomas removed. My face has not been cut up. Obviously I am not a red head or peaches ‘n cream Englishman. They cannot do as I did. I suspect that they can get the same benefit I do from half the exposure that I need, being tanned.

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    Hanrahan

    Note that the header says “One in six”. Vit D is not a wonder drug for Az. My lady has been supplementing it for many years. At best it may have slowed the decline but after a point of incapacity you ask if that’s a blessing or a curse. My Lady no longer enjoys her life and I no longer enjoy her company.

    A couple of points about Az: It cannot be reversed EVA [brain cells never come alive again] and it probably starts long before anyone has any suspicion that anything is amiss, the afflicted person can be productive at work for years, I believe from experience.

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    Hanrahan

    While we are covering old ground, which many comments are, a reminder that D3 and K2 REVERSE osteoporosis, another curse of the elderly.

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    Dr K.A. Rodgers

    D3 or D2 or total of both? Not clear from summary of article here

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      The paper is about 25(OH)D. Calcifediol. D3. There is no mention of D2. Hardly anyone even mentions D2 these days…

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        Yonason

        Yes. I’ve read that D2 is for nocturnal critters that can’t make D3, for which sunlight is required. They get the D2 from the mold/fungus on the seeds they eat.

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      Fran

      D2 is found in plants. It is the vegan alternative. A bit less active dose for dose.

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        Yonason

        As with my comment, that’s true, but incomplete, as are also many articles on the topic. Thanks, though, for increasing my knowledge base.

        One of my sources on that.
        https://drgominak.com/2018/10/26/food-sources-of-vitamin-d3/

        I think it was in one of her videos that I learned about the d2 in mold/fungus on seeds eaten by nocturnal animals, like the rat. It was in the context of why d2 is given to humans, allegedly because the initial research was done in a rat model, and the results were erroneously extrapolated to humans.

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    John Hultquist

    This for the USA, as I (not a doctor) understand it:
    My wife’s cardiologist, when questioned about chemicals and doses, explained that companies test their drugs in controlled trials using specific doses and within selected populations, that is, folks of certain ages and genders. When the trials indicate the chemicals work, then they may be approved in light of those parameters. The company can then market the pill in a manner for which it has the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved packaging label.

    Off-label:
    “Off-label” means the medication is being used in a manner not specified in the FDA’s approved packaging label, or insert. Doctors are free to prescribe a drug for any reason they think is medically appropriate. And do.

    Vit D3 and other things:
    Because of the many suspected benefits of D3 (apparently) it has not been studied/tested/approved in the manner needed for FDA labeling – that is, for a specific malady/population/dose. As suggested by the prior comments, there are many issues for which certain people think Vit D3 should be promoted.
    Because the issues are many and the cost great, the trials, testing, and approvals are not done.

    Who pays:
    Your insurance coverage may not pay for off-label use and/or tests for things not studied. Besides, Vit D3 is cheaper than wine, beer, or clean water.

    Bottom Line:
    Most of us (northern parts of the USA) ought to supplement with 5,000 units a day. If you want to do more, ask for and (maybe) pay for the test.
    If you are not in a similar group – talk to your doctor.

    Be prepared for authoritarian regimes to muck things up.

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    dennisambler

    Very pertinent to this posting,today:
    https://dailysceptic.org/2022/06/14/the-crimes-of-the-pharmaceutical-industry/

    A very worthwhile read.

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    Steve of Cornubia

    So is the currently accepted ‘healthy range’ still 50 – 80, or is a higher level recommended?

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      Hanrahan

      Why accept guidance from liars? DYOR

      AFAIK recommended daily supplement is still 400 IU/day. Ya kiddin! That was what was found to prevent rickets in children who, as you may have noticed, have a fraction of the body weight of adult men.

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        Steve of Cornubia

        I was asking the folks in here, some of whom know more about this than many so-called ‘experts’.

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    Hanrahan

    A short clip to add to the debate:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9cuPAcGBSPw

    The drug mentioned in the OP.

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