With winter solstice coming up, this is the perfect time to give a review of what the medical literature had to say this year about Vit D.
I’ll tell you about the latest research and you can decide for yourself if you agree that Vit D is absolutely the ONE supplement you should be taking, even if you live in a sunny location.
1. Prevent and Recover from cancer
A HUGE meta-analysis looking at 25 different studies and 17,700+ cancer patients found definitively, yet again, that higher levels of circulating Vit D at time of diagnosis was associated with significantly better survival and remission rates in the future.
- Published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism on April 29, 2014, this is just another study in a long stream of studies that show the cancer fighting properties of Vit D.
- Colorectal cancer, breast cancer and lymphoma patients all had impressive, highly significant survival rates in patients who had the highest Vit D serum levels.
- They also had increased disease free rates afterwards (longer remission periods after cancer treatment.)
- The findings were favorable but less robust for other cancers as well, including lung cancer, gastric cancer, prostate cancer, leukemia, melanoma and Merkel cell carcinoma.
- Previous studies have also demonstrated that Vit D deficiency is a predictor of more aggressive forms of prostate cancer as well, leaving most physicians to see Vit D as an important strategy for preventing many forms of cancer (including prostate cancer) and preventing tumor progression and promoting a cancer free recovery in newly diagnosed cancer patients.
Laboratory studies have shown that Vit D inhibits the progression of cancer by inhibiting tumor cells as well as by giving the immune system a boost and protecting bone health during treatment.
Based on the incredible findings of this study — that one vitamin could not only help predict better recovery and survival rates but also support a cancer free future — the recommendation is that EVERYONE ensure they have serum levels greater than 75 mnol/L.
Even in sunny locations, the rates of hypovitaminosis D are high — for example, even in Australia there are very high rates of Vit D deficits in the general population.
So… have a family history of cancer or are newly diagnosed yourself?
1. Supplement with Vit D — this is the supplement I recommend to my private patients because it is so bioavailable: Biotics Bio-D-Mulsion
2. Walking — as I blog about here, one of the very best things you can do to help recover from cancer is to go on a walk, every day.
3. No alcohol and decrease or eliminate sugar — recent studies have shown that drinking alcohol and consuming sugar spurs on tumor progression and decreases your ability to recover from cancer.
4. Earthing — as I blog about here, the long term anti-inflammatory whole-body-soothing benefits from Earthing will soon show to be cancer preventive as well…
What else can Vit D do?
2. A recent study reveals Vit D is tied with our cognition.
- Patients with low levels of Vit D have a 122% INCREASED risk of dementia compared to those with higher levels of vit D.
- Low vitamin D levels “should ring alarm bells” that patients are at high risk for dementia, said Dr. David Llewellyn, senior research fellow in clinical epidemiology.
- He looked at 1,658 healthy patients in 4 different US communities (North Carolina, California, Maryland and Pennsylvania) and followed them for a combined 9,317 patient follow-up years.
The risk of all types of dementia AND Alzheimer’s disease was significantly higher in those who were Vit D deficient.
- This latest study makes an even stronger case than the 60% increased risk that his research group found earlier… this huge study found a 122% increase in risk!
- And these findings were not in older patients who stayed indoors or had a poor diet… the study was restricted to those who were active and healthy at baseline. No one had stroke, cardiovacular disease or any immobility — but they still suffered from new onset dementia at much higher rates when their vit D levels were low.
Vit D receptors are expressed in areas of the brain that deal with memory, and Vit D also regulates nerve growth factor and reduces cell death (apoptosis) in cortical neurons.
Published in Neurology on August 9, 2014, these findings show that the critical level to prevent dementia is greater than 50 nmol/L.
So… bottom line?
Vit D may be an extremely cost effective strategy for preventing dementia and cancer world wide.
- The recommended daily allowance for vitamin D is completely inadequate for correcting low serum concentrations of Vit D in adult patients with low serum levels.
- Studies have show that about 5000 IU vitamin D3 a day is needed to correct a deficiency.
- The maintenance dose should be 2000 IU/day in patients who have corrected an underlying deficiency.
What else can Vit D do?
3. How about… boost fertility!
In patients undergoing IVF, the chance of obtaining 3 or more healthy embryos with successful implantation and subsequent pregnancy was significantly greater if the patient had serum Vit D levels of greater than 20 ng/mL.
- The implantation rate almost doubles as well, jumping from 13% to a 21% success rate.
- The pregnancy rate jumped from 20% up to 31%.
Vit D does everything from prevent cancer, to help cancer recovery, to prolong remission after cancer, to protect the brain from dementia, to nurture new life and increase fertility.
In fact, some physicians think that the flu, and many other common viral illnesses, are predominantly a disease of Vit D deficiency as well.
As I blog about here, taking Vit D supplements is one of the best things you can do to prevent your illness load this winter and even protect against Ebola.
If you are in doubt, get your serum Vit D levels checked
and know that it is NEVER too late to get started protecting your health with Vit D supplementation.
xoxoxo, Laura
P.S. just a reminder that my annual Health Flow Unleash online class is going to be starting in two weeks!
I poured my heart and soul into designing this class so that you can start 2015 off on the healthiest foot possible!
Come join me!
Waiting for you right here… xoxox