Study shows to take more vitamin D than most people to prevent cancer successfully....

Today's Post: Monday, 2-28-2011

Recently a suggested amount for vitamin D intake was published suggesting that 600 to 800 iu a day was a better amount than the old 400 iu a day.

Most of the recent research shows this standard was set incompetently low.

But it’s always nice to have a specific study to look at to be sure this is the case.

Today we have one showing that you need to take in the range of 4,000 to 8,000 iu a day of vitamin D3 to prevent many cancers.

But they found doing so quite worth doing since the protection was substantial – up to 50%.

Breast cancer was one of the kinds included in this protection. That suggests that prostate cancer and ovarian cancer might also be reduced that much.

First a little background is in order.

4,000 to 8,000 iu sounds like a lot. But here is why it really isn’t.

On a summer day, your body will often make 10,000 to 30,000 from exposure to sunlight. That suggests rather strongly that taking up to 10,000 iu a day of vitamin D3 is extremely safe. Your body is set up to deal with a good deal more than that.

Second, a study was done showing your body will make use of at least 3,000 iu a day of vitamin D3 if it is available.

And, in one study I saw, the health benefit they looked at for taking vitamin D3 didn’t show up at all at a 1,000 iu intake but did at 1700 iu or more.

So, we already know that about 2,000 iu a day of vitamin D3 is the real minimum amount needed for health benefits and that the optimum level is between 2,000 & 10,000 iu a day.

Now for many cancers, we have a study confirming this.

“Higher Vitamin D Intake Could Cut Cancer Risk” was published on the internet on Sunday, 2-27-2011, yesterday by: (HealthDay News)

The researcher, Dr. Cedric Garland, a professor of Family and Preventive Medicine at the University of California at San Diego, was quoted as saying this:

"We found that daily intakes of vitamin D by adults in the range of 4,000-8,000 IU are needed to maintain blood levels of vitamin D metabolites in the range needed to reduce by about half the risk of several diseases -- breast cancer, colon cancer, multiple sclerosis and type 1 diabetes."

He was a co-author of the study and noted that he was surprised that the levels needed were so much higher than the 400 IU a day needed to prevent rickets in the 20th century. (Below, we’ll give the two likely reasons for that.)

This study also involved the Creighton University School of Medicine in Omaha.

They did a survey of several thousand people who took vitamin D3 supplements ranging from 1,000 to 10,000 IU per day.

The researchers then did blood tests to determine the levels of vitamin D metabolites in their blood. That way the researchers got a rather exact idea of how much vitamin D people needed to take each day to get their blood level of vitamin D to the levels that the researchers already knew to be protective.

The story also noted that there are studies showing that only 10 percent of people in the United States have the appropriate level of the vitamin D-related metabolites in their blood to prevent diseases linked to a deficiency of vitamin D.

Until recently, most of these people in that 10 % have worked outdoors, where their vitamin D levels were boosted through sun exposure.

Last year, a National Academy of Sciences Institute of Medicine (IOM) committee announced that 4,000 IU a day of vitamin D appears safe for adults and kids aged 9 and up.

(That’s on the very conservative side for adults. But it may be closer to the mark for children in the 9 to 12 range since they literally often weigh half of what they will when they adults. But even for them, 5,000 iu is likely quite safe.

Researcher Dr Cedric Garland also said this in the press release about their study.:

"Now that the results of this study are in, it will become common for almost every adult to take 4000 IU/day," "This is comfortably under the 10,000 IU/day that the IOM Committee Report considers as the lower limit of risk, and the benefits are substantial."

The study was published in the journal, Anticancer Research.

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My further comments:

When it was found that vitamin D prevented rickets, no one had TVs and most people spent time after work and on weekends outside in some kind of active recreation.

Far more people spent time walking as all or part of their daily commute than is common in the United States today.

And, many more people had jobs that were done outside.

So most people tended to get far more sun generated vitamin D than is true now.

In addition, rickets apparently only needs to prevent it just enough vitamin D to prevent severe deficiency.

But for the best protection from cancers and autoimmune diseases and for truly strong bones and a healthy heart, most people today need to take closer to the optimum daily intake of vitamin D3 as a supplement.

The good news is that 1,000 iu capsules of vitamin D3 are relatively inexpensive. Last time I checked you could get 100 such capsules from Carlson at a health food store for $8 or less – including state sales tax.

And, you can also get 4,000 and 5,000 iu capsules for similar prices per 1,000 iu of vitamin D3.

I decided some time ago to take a 400 and a 1,000 capsule with breakfast and the same again after dinner and to take a 5,000 capsule with my lunch. Since I also get 400 iu in my multivitamin that gives me 8200 iu a day of vitamin D3.

I spend most days inside in my job and currently my wife and I drive to and from work.

Given that and the total of a bit less than 10,000 I decided is about what I likely need to take for best results. And, it clearly is safe.

Some doctors who actually test the blood levels of vitamin D of their patients do give 50,000 iu a day at first until their patients get to desirable blood levels.

But that is close enough to the 100,000 iu a day at which some harm is reported according to Wikipedia that 50,000 iu a day may be a bit too much for some people if they keep doing it every single day.

But under such a doctor’s care, taking that much on a temporary basis is likely safe. And, a bit under 10,000 iu clearly is safe.

Now that this study has been done, I agree with its co-author, most knowledgeable people will take at least 4,000 iu a day of vitamin D3.