Vitamin D deficiency

Ruthie Roo

Hi all,

Has anyone here ever had a very bad vitamin D deficiency.. My blood work came back last Friday and a Normal persons reading is 50, mine came back as 9.

The nurse rang me to tell me to go to the chemist and get some over the counter Vit D meds and take them everyday and they'll test me in 3 months again.

The reason I originally went to the doctor was because I was getting really bad pains in my bones, I googled Vit D deficiency and it says that it causes muscle weakness and bone pain which makes sense.

Has anyone had vitamin D deficiency and if so, have you had pain with it? And does the pain fade if you take tablets and raise your levels? The nurse was beyond useless when I tried asking questions.

RandolphEsq

If you drink coffee, cut it out straight away. It prevents your body taking in vitamin d.

Ruthie Roo

Hi Randolph,

Thanks for the reply. I only drink coffee every second weekend. Only when I'm in college which is every second Saturday and Sunday. Probably 2 cups each of those days, and that's only for about 5 weekends so I'm not sure if it'd have made much of a difference but I'll cut it out now. Thanks

RandolphEsq

Ruthie Roo wrote: »

Hi Randolph,

Thanks for the reply. I only drink coffee every second weekend. Only when I'm in college which is every second Saturday and Sunday. Probably 2 cups each of those days, and that's only for about 5 weekends so I'm not sure if it'd have made much of a difference but I'll cut it out now. Thanks

You're fine with that much coffee. Perhaps you get caffeine from other sources?

Ruthie Roo

I used to drink a lot of coke for years, but haven't drank it for about a year now.

re.mark.able

What is your diet?
I believe putting lots of vitamin D into your diet and lifestyle (get outside, especially now that the weather is improving and get up earlier in the morning to get as much sun as you can) is better than taking it in tablets - often times there's such a high concentration in tablets or there is a reason you are not absorbing/producing it properly that results it a lot of the tablet's store getting expelled later. And some tablets don't even have that much in them.
Maybe take the tablets now as a booster while introducing more vitamin D into your daily routine. Listen to your body - it is in pain now so do something about it now

Ruthie Roo

Hi re.mark.able,

Thanks for the reply.

My diet is pretty good, except sources of Vit D ( I probably should have put that in the post ) I don't eat fish, or have any dairy in my diet. Which I know are great sources of Vit D. My grandmother warned me years ago that I would have problems if I didn't introduce it to my diet, but milk makes me feel Ill and I really don't even like the smell of fish. Let alone eat it.

Otherwise my diet is very good, I eat healthy and I exercise a lot. Since the weather has improved I have been out walking everyday. The more sun the better!

That's why I went to the doctor now, because the pain was so bad I couldn't cope with it anymore. It was waking me at night and getting so bad I would actually be in tears.

LuckyLloyd

Go into the chemist and order a supplement. Go online and order some of this:

http://shop.purepharma.com/us/purepharma-vitamin-d3.html

It's a high quality D3 supplement. You can take what you get over the counter while you wait for it to arrive.

While I agree with above posters that adequate Vitamin D would ideally be received as part of your diet and activity, you have received a medical indication that you need this problem addressed artificially in the short term at least so get a good supplement and take it between now and your retest.

Best of luck.

Ruthie Roo

Thanks for the reply LuckyLloyd. I went to the chemist and am currently taking ' D1000 ' made by Sona.

SunnyDub1

RandolphEsq wrote: »

If you drink coffee, cut it out straight away. It prevents your body taking in vitamin d.

Really, I wasn't a ware of this, have you a link to reference?
I take a vit D supplement every morning then have a black coffee on the way to work

Oisinjm

You said you don't like dairy and don't eat fish. Would eggs be an option?

Otherwise Vitamin D supplements would be available from any Irish supplement store. No need to order from abroad.

http://bodyfirstnutrition.ie/shop/vitamins-minerals/now-vitamin-d-3-5000iu

http://www.discountsupplements.ie/vitamins-minerals/now-vitamin-d-3-2000-iu-120-gels-model-now-foods

Oisín

kevpants

LuckyLloyd wrote: »

Go into the chemist and order a supplement. Go online and order some of this:

http://shop.purepharma.com/us/purepharma-vitamin-d3.html

It's a high quality D3 supplement. You can take what you get over the counter while you wait for it to arrive.

While I agree with above posters that adequate Vitamin D would ideally be received as part of your diet and activity, you have received a medical indication that you need this problem addressed artificially in the short term at least so get a good supplement and take it between now and your retest.

Best of luck.

Or go outside? It's sunny out there today (in most places).

It's impossible for an Irish person to get enough Vit D from the sun between Oct and March so a Vit D defficiency in April is probably fairly normal.

Rather than propping up a supplement company you could go for a walk?

re.mark.able

I agree with above - the best source of vit D is your own body so stop procrastinating and spend every second you can spare in that sun

I'm not a big dairy fan and i can understand some people not liking fish so just eat any oils you can get - olive oil, nuts, seeds and meat - just because dairy and fish are high sources of vit D doesn't mean they're the only ones.

Danny_Lennon

Ruthie Roo wrote: »

Thanks for the reply LuckyLloyd. I went to the chemist and am currently taking ' D1000 ' made by Sona.

Considering how low your levels were, I'd say you would want a starting dose of at least 4-5000 IU/d.

LuckyLloyd

kevpants wrote: »

Or go outside? It's sunny out there today (in most places).

It's impossible for an Irish person to get enough Vit D from the sun between Oct and March so a Vit D defficiency in April is probably fairly normal.

Rather than propping up a supplement company you could go for a walk?

On a general level I agree with you. However, after an extremely low blood reading and medical advice indicating the need for supplementation, I'm not sure more time outdoors is the short term play in of itself.

Danny_Lennon wrote: »

Considering how low your levels were, I'd say you would want a starting dose of at least 4-5000 IU/d.

I'd agree. Just for a short period mind. Taper it down over the next few months.

RandolphEsq

SunnyDub1 wrote: »

Really, I wasn't a ware of this, have you a link to reference?
I take a vit D supplement every morning then have a black coffee on the way to work

I unfortunately don't have an online link but a doctor family friend said it. to be honest I think it is fairly negligible unless you drink coffee by the gallon and don't drink enough milk!

Danny_Lennon

LuckyLloyd wrote: »

On a general level I agree with you. However, after an extremely low blood reading and medical advice indicating the need for supplementation, I'm not sure more time outdoors is the short term play in of itself.

Yeah bang on. Looking at just how low the OPs levels are, going for a walk in April sunshine in Ireland isn't going to do a whole lot to address the problem.


Getting an initial large supplementation is needed. That's why I suggested the 5000 IU figure. One big bolus dose (say 50-100,000 IU) has also been shown to be effective in treating deficiency.

Just check blood levels every few months or so until your doc is happy that you've stabillised at a good level.

maringo

Just got blood results vitamin d depleted and advised to take 3000 a day for 6 months and get the sun on my skin. Have done a bit of research and it appears that lack of sun is probably the main cause as have been taking codliveroil 1000 over the winter. Also will have to force myself to eat some oily fish. Looking for a good quality capsule now but its quite confusing. Think i'll just go for the Seven Seas one unless anyone can recommend something better.

Zombienosh

I use Solgar, you can get Different strengths and different style capules. Find them in most health shops. You can even get Vitamin D in tecos own brand now, dunno what theyre like though.

Danny_Lennon

maringo wrote: »

Just got blood results vitamin d depleted and advised to take 3000 a day for 6 months and get the sun on my skin. Have done a bit of research and it appears that lack of sun is probably the main cause as have been taking codliveroil 1000 over the winter. Also will have to force myself to eat some oily fish. Looking for a good quality capsule now but its quite confusing. Think i'll just go for the Seven Seas one unless anyone can recommend something better.

Online is going to be cheapest place for a good quality product.

Personally I've used this and this from iherb.com and this from MyProtein.com

All do the job and are reputable brands. Probably handiest to get it from MP as shipping will be less cost and time. If you're getting more stuff then go with iHerb.

Really any supplement that is of adequate strength and comes as a softgel is going to be fine.