Tag Archives: Vitamin D

Could Vitamin D be the secret weapon against COVID?

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Dr. Afriyie Randle sits down with Eureka! host Tom Norton to discuss Vitamin D and COVID. (WKTV)

By Tom Norton
tom@wktv.org

For generations, millions of Americans grew up with the sing-song phrase of “an apple a day keeps the doctor away.” This was, of course because fruit contained its fair share of vitamins, complex carbohydrates and other nutrients the body needs to maintain healthy living. With the COVID pandemic still a force in our lives a full year after it’s beginning, researchers are taking a new look at the role nutrients play in slowing severe COVID disease which has now killed more than 530,000 Americans in just one year.

 

COVID virus (FDA.gov)

The nutrient that appears to be a significant weapon against severe COVID disease (and most respiratory diseases) is vitamin D3. Researchers now point to new findings that the high rate of deficiency in vitamin D3 in the American population could be playing a significant role in the high death rate Americans are experiencing, especially among the poor.

For millions of Americans who live in latitudes north of Tennessee, sunlight; one of the primary creators of Vitamin D in the body, is in short supply during the long, cloudy winter months. Research shows that Americans in these more northern regions combined with a diet high in processed foods that contain high fructose corn syrup and little available sunlight can create a vitamin D deficiency that only makes a population more vulnerable to the ravages of disease, especially one like COVID 19.

But if COVID finds an enemy in Vitamin D3, it appears the vitamin has an enemy in high fructose corn syrup. The National Center for Biotechnology Information has published a study that high fructose corn syrup, once it is metabolized by the kidneys, has the effect of reducing the amounts of Vitamin D3; critical to the body’s defense against COVID.

The linkage between severe COVID disease and a poor diet with the inherent health problems it brings is gradually being better understood. On the surface, this may seem like a foregone conclusion, but being a novel or “new” virus, researchers have followed the twists and turns that COVID-19 has led them on and, is often the case, the causes researchers seek take multiple paths and in some cases go back decades.

In 1973, the FDA began mandating that food manufacturers begin labeling the contents of all pre-packaged or processed foods. This regulation has allowed consumers to see what it is they’re actually eating. However in the 1970s, food manufactures primarily in the United States, introduced the artificial sweetener high fructose corn syrup, or HFCS into the American diet. At first, the long term effect in foods was unknown, but as an inexpensive sugar substitute, high fructose corn syrup HFCS became a darling of the food processing industry. Within a decade it was present in foods from bread to soft drinks to ice cream and countless other pre-packaged goods.

 

Researchers now point to the fact that one way of slowing the COVID death toll among these groups is education on a change in diet. (pxhere.com)

Researchers now point to the fact that one way of slowing the COVID death toll among these groups is education on a change in diet. To wean a sugar-saturated American population off of high fructose corn syrup and to increase consumption of foods either rich in Vitamin D3 or with supplements, is no easy task.

  

Of course there are the Vitamin D3 supplements, which are the easiest method for increasing Vitamin D3 intake, but with HFCS now shown to decrease the amount of D3 in the body, avoiding processed foods becomes even more important.  Unfortunately, most foods in their raw state, apart from salmon, trout and eggs, do not contain large amounts of Vitamin D, which is why dairy products for decades have been fortified with the nutrient. To increase your amount of Vitamin D3 during the less sunny months and during the time of COVID, supplements may be an important tool. Researchers caution however that too much Vitamin D3 needs to be avoided. As a fat soluble vitamin, it stores in the body’s fatty tissue and can build up over time.

It’s as simple as turning over the box or can and reading the label,” says Dr. Afriyie Randle, of Mercy Health. “I mean, the information is there. It’s not being hidden.  You just have to read it.” Dr. Randle also points out that the American diet that is high in processed sugars like high fructose corn syrup is also playing a huge role in the obesity epidemic in the United States. “And with obesity comes hypertension (high blood pressure) and diabetes.”

 

Combined with poor diet, which in many studies is tied to lower income levels along with occupations and life (such as many people living together under one roof), Americans, particularly minority communities, are weathering the perfect storm.    With all of this, it’s understandable why early conclusions point to just why COVID has wrought so much death at or near the bottom of the economic ladder. Prior to 1990, there was virtually no correlation in studies between obesity and poverty.  However by 2000, poorer regions of the U.S. showed a significant uptick in the levels of obesity and researchers were able to correlate an increase in fructose intake, but particularly foods and beverages high in HFCS that were underneath the growing obesity epidemic among the poor.

As data shows, the United States has suffered a death toll disproportionally higher than many other countries and questions linger among researchers about how the role a high-sugar, highly-processed diet that many Americans have has played a role in that death toll.

Dr. Randle encourages the greater use of home prepared meals where the home cook has an enormous control over the content of what they eat. Perhaps it’s no surprise that researchers are drawing a connection between the high levels of severe COVID disease and diet. As Dr. Randle notes, “With lab work, I see patients with Vitamin D3 deficiency weekly.”

In Europe in the 1300s, the bubonic plague brought about a stunning death toll when aided by a population where a lack of personal hygiene provided the perfect breeding ground for the spread of that disease. Today, in one of the richest countries in the world where food is generally inexpensive, the obesity epidemic and its consequences can help us understand the disproportionate death toll among Americans from COVID disease and point to the roles that our American habits have been playing in this pandemic.

  

Tom Norton is the general manager of WKTV Community Media and hosts the podcast “Eureka!” which covers topics of science, health and historical role that both play in our society.

The not-so-sunny side of bone health

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What you don’t know about bone health may hurt you. Get in the know with a doctor’s expert information about osteoporosis. (Courtesy Spectrum Health Beat)

By Diana Bitner, MD, Spectrum Health Beat


The sunny days of summer are long gone, which means it’s time for all of us to start taking our vitamin D supplements.


Vitamin D is a necessary and crucial component of bone health. Unfortunately, we often don’t think about bone health until it is too late and the damage is done.


Osteoporosis, a condition in which the bones become brittle and fragile from loss of tissue, is often a silent disease. By the time a fracture occurs, there are usually several other bones already affected.


The good news is that osteoporosis can be prevented. And, if your bones are already weak, there are ways to keep more loss from happening and strategies to keep fractures to a minimum.

Bone mass reaches a peak

Our bones are constantly turning over and renewing. In fact, there are cells that build new bone and others that break it down to make way for new bone.


Our bone mass level and fracture risk depend on the rate of new bone growth compared to the rate of breakdown.


Most women reach a peak bone mass at age 32 and lose a small amount of bone mass every year. In the first five years of menopause, if a woman does not take estrogen, her bone loss will accelerate, increasing her risk for issues such as osteoporosis.


If we aren’t active enough, our builder cells don’t think they are needed and won’t make new bone. Osteoporosis can result, making our bones weak enough to increase the risk for a fracture from minimal trauma—like stepping off a curb awkwardly or a minor fall.


We also need to be aware of a similar but less severe disease than osteoporosis: Osteopenia can occur when the bones are thinner than they should be at a given age.


Osteoporosis has a staggering effect on women’s health.


The most common fractures occur in the hip, but can also occur in the wrist and upper leg bone, with a possibility of micro fractures in the spinal bones.


You may be surprised to learn that another, less well-known complication of osteoporosis is the loss or cracking of teeth and poor healing after dental procedures.


Unfortunately, the effects of osteoporosis impacts our lives in many different ways. There may be surgeries to repair fractures, time off work and physical therapy. Complications from surgery may also occur, including weight gain, muscle weakening, infection, pneumonia and even stroke. Chronic pain can become an issue as well, especially for spinal bone fractures.


The risk factors of osteoporosis are numerous, but the most common are aging, vitamin D deficiency, inactivity, oral steroid intake, cigarette smoking and poor calcium intake.


For women who are underweight, they are at risk of rapid bone loss due to not having enough stress on their bones. There are many other, less common risk factors, including the following: medical issues such as eating disorders and poor nutrition, excessive consumption of carbonated sodas, and poor absorption of nutrients due to colon problems (prior gastric bypass or Celiac disease).


A family history of osteoporosis, rheumatoid arthritis, early menopause due to surgery or chemotherapy, or lupus can also increase a woman’s risk of developing osteoporosis.

Options and opportunities

I had a patient I’ll call Sue several years ago who was diagnosed with osteoporosis. I saw Sue in my office just after she started menopause.


As I always do with my menopause patients, I asked about her risk factors for accelerated bone loss. Sue was at a healthy weight but only exercised occasionally. She didn’t have any medical risk factors and had never had a fracture before, but she had also never taken a vitamin D supplement. Because Sue was in menopause and had never taken vitamin D, I ordered a DEXA scan—an enhanced form of X-ray technology that is used to measure bone loss.


When I called Sue with the results of her DEXA scan, she was not pleased. Her results showed that she had osteoporosis, and she had a greater than 20 percent risk for an osteoporotic fracture in the next 10 years. She also had a greater than 35 percent risk of a hip fracture during the same time period.


Sue’s reaction was very typical of many others when they are told they have osteoporosis. She was angry at herself, but she was also angry at the medical community because, at that time, we were not yet routinely recommending vitamin D supplementation.


She had always been told to wear sunscreen, which she did, whenever she went outside. And now she was being told a lack of vitamin D possibly contributed to her osteoporosis diagnosis? It just didn’t seem fair.


Once Sue’s anger subsided, we discussed what she should do next. I tested her for thyroid disease, vitamin D deficiency and parathyroid disease. Since Sue was in menopause, we discussed estrogen patches and pills that are FDA-approved for the prevention of osteoporosis. Sue chose not to take estrogen, but she was open to other options.


Although the tests showed Sue’s vitamin D level was very low, her other tests were normal—good news! So, we came up with a plan to keep Sue’s bones as healthy as possible.


I explained that the most important factors for keeping bones strong and preventing fractures is to eat a healthy diet and exercise regularly. I recommended Sue start on a prescription vitamin D tablet of 50,000 IU per week for two months and then 2,000 IU per day after that. I also suggested calcium-rich foods such as dairy products, almond or soy milk, and dark, leafy greens.


For exercise, we created a routine that included walking, jogging, Zumba classes and weight lifting. On days when Sue simply couldn’t fit in a workout, I advised her to jump up and down 50 times as a way to remind her bones to stay healthy.


In addition to diet and exercise, we discussed a few different prescription drugs, such as Raloxifene or Bisphoshonates, that help treat and prevent osteoporosis.


In the end, Sue chose to look at the situation as a gift. She strove to maintain the bones she already had and make them as strong as possible.


Reprinted with permission from Spectrum Health Beat.


The shadowy side of sunshine

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Patients need to be informed about the risks of unfettered use of vitamin D, researchers warn. (Courtesy Spectrum Health Beat)

By Robert Preidt, HealthDay


Vitamin D is the healthy “sunshine” vitamin, but it can have a dark side, one Canadian man discovered.


A team of Toronto physicians reported on the case of a 54-year-old man who developed kidney damage after taking extremely high doses of vitamin D.


It’s a cautionary tale for consumers, medical experts say.


“Although vitamin D toxicity is rare owing to a large therapeutic range, its widespread availability in various over-the-counter formulations may pose a substantial risk to uninformed patients,” said study co-author Dr. Bourne Auguste. He’s a clinical fellow in home dialysis at Toronto General Hospital and the University of Toronto.


As reported recently in the Canadian Medical Association Journal, the man was seen by doctors after he returned from a holiday in Southeast Asia, where he spent much of his time sunbathing. Vitamin D is naturally synthesized by the skin upon contact with sunlight.


Testing showed that the man had elevated blood levels of creatinine, a marker for kidney damage or malfunction. The patient was then referred to a kidney specialist and underwent further testing.


Doctors learned that the man had been prescribed high doses of vitamin D by a naturopath—even though he did not have vitamin D deficiency and no history of bone loss.


Over 30 months, the man had taken eight to 12 drops of vitamin D—a total of 8,000 to 12,000 International Units, or IUs—per day.


The typical recommended daily allowance of vitamin D is 400 to 1,000 IU, with a higher amount (800 to 2,000 IU) recommended for adults at high-risk of osteoporosis, and for older adults.


The patient far exceeded those dosages, however, and that led to extremely high levels of calcium in his blood. It’s those high blood calcium levels that triggered his kidney damage, Auguste’s team said.


“Patients and clinicians should be better informed about the risks regarding the unfettered use of vitamin D,” the study authors concluded.


Dr. Maria DeVita directs nephrology—kidney medicine—at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City. Reading over the case report, she said that “overuse of the vitamin, as is true of many supplements, may have dire adverse effects.”


DeVita said, “Vitamin D is necessary for the development and maintenance of strong bones, (but) the take-home message is too much of a good thing is not good.”


Reprinted with permission from Spectrum Health Beat.