At the end of my Carb Night Solution experiment, which is a type of cyclic ketogenic diet, right before we went to Italy, I obtained a panel of labs which I plan doing a series of posts about.
My Vitamin D levels are what I’d like to talk about first, but before we get into my results, here is a little background.
Basics of Vitamin D
- It is a hormone derived from cholesterol
- It can be made in the skin with exposure to sunlight
- It can also be ingested with food or supplementation
Effects of Vitamin D
- Maintains calcium levels in body which is important for bone health
- Regulates gene expression
- Helps immune function
- May provide anti-cancer effects
- Vitamin D levels need to be in the 50 -70 ng/mL range for thyroid hormone receptors to respond properly
- Low Vitamin D levels are seen in obesity, although I’m not entirely sure if it’s known whether obesity causes low vitamin D levels, or if it’s the other way around.
Optimal Range of Vitamin D Levels
- Most sources I’ve come across recommend 50 – 70 ng/mL
My Vitamin D Levels
31.3 ng/mL (Normal range provided by the lab 30.0 – 100.0 ng/mL)
While my levels qualify as being ‘normal,’ as you can see I’m definitely not in the optimal range of 50 -70 ng/mL. I can attribute this to a couple of factors. Firstly, I work as a desk jockey and spend the majority of my day indoors in front of a computer. Also since I work the graveyard shift I very rarely get to go outside.
Secondly since I spend much of my time in the mid-west, if I do go outside I probably wouldn’t be getting much sun since it’s so cloudy throughout the fall and winter seasons… especially now, when the weather is in the 20s-40s, every inch of my body is pretty much covered.
Thirdly, I’ve been pretty lax in terms of my supplementation regimen. The main sources for my supplemental Vitamin D come from:
- Damage Control Master Formula
– 2000 IU per serving
- Primal Blueprint Vitamin D
– 2000 IU per capsule
Since I’m largely at the mercy of the weather and can’t really do much sun bathing now, I think the best course of action for me is to:
- Be more rigorous with my supplementation with a goal of taking 4,000 – 10,000 IU of Vitamin D per day.
- Recheck my labs in 2-3 months.
Sources:
http://www.archevore.com/panu-weblog/2009/8/9/vitamin-d.html
http://www.marksdailyapple.com/deconstructing-vitamin-d/#axzz2osU8h6y0
http://www.marksdailyapple.com/vitamin-d-sun-exposure-supplementation-and-doses/#axzz2osU8h6y0
http://www.marksdailyapple.com/vitamin-d-confounding-factors/#axzz2osU8h6y0
http://www.marksdailyapple.com/vitamin-d-loose-ends/#axzz2osU8h6y0
http://www.vitamindcouncil.org/about-vitamin-d/testing-for-vitamin-d/
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-mark-hyman/vitamin-d-why-you-are-pro_b_585311.html
http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/589256_7
http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2011/11/21/how-to-get-your-vitamin-d-to-healthy-ranges.aspx
Vitamin D deficiency is basically an undetected epidemic. My father has ZERO D. My D has also fallen to below 20. I have been supplementing with 5000 iu every other day or so. Always with a meal, usually in the morning. I have not followed up to see where I am at or if I am absorbing it.