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Update: I followed up with other doctor (naturopath) who recommended 6000 IUs daily for 3 months then retesting. She further said that she considers the range of "normal" 60-80 and not 30-100 like the lab...

Precisely what I said..... glad you found a good doctor!

This is very interesting. I've had sleep apnea (diagnosed) for almost 10 years, but I'm pretty sure I've had it for much longer than that.

I also have low vitamin D levels and have been taking 2000 iu a day. After reading this I think I am going to raise it to 3,000. I also have had high cholesterol for years and was diagnosed with metabolic syndrome .The meds for it made me hurt so bad I quit taking them. . About 6 months ago I ordered a supplement called Pantethine and started taking it. When I went for my physical in January my doctor said "your blood work looks good"...I haven't heard that in years. My cholesterol was within normal limits, my good cholesterol was up and my sugar wasn't borderline. I can only think it's the Pantethine. I've had no side effects and it seems to work better than the rx cholesterol meds. Maybe more vitamin D and the new cpap machine I just got will get my energy up. I don't think however that higher levels of Vit D would cure my osa...maybe larger airways and weight loss...

Thought you all might find this interesting regarding dose timing:

http://blog.sethroberts.net/2011/11/28/ ... t-sunrise/

Jay

Hi, first post!

I too am wary of "cures" spoused by one or two voices out in the wilderness. That being said, there are many health benefits to taking vitamin D3. A podcast I listen to about computer security "Security Now" on the Twit Network http://twit.tv delved deeply into the topic of Vitamin D (D3) and levels and states of research. I found it very informative and insightful. One of the things I thought was interesting was for maximum absorption it seems it may be best to take large doses every several days instead of moderate doses every day. Anyway, here is the link for some further reading.

http://www.grc.com/health/vitamin-d.htm

The website looks like it's out of 1996, but he is more about substance than flash. Happy reading.

My sleep physician checked my vitamin D levels which were low. He had me take 50,000 IU once a week for 8 weeks. I retested in the normal range and have continued to take vitamin D3 daily. I noticed a subtle difference in my pain levels. I had much less pain the day after a day of hiking. Basically, heavy exercise no longer seems to take a toll on my muscles. I feel completely normal the next day.

@Passiflora -- remember that the 'normal range' is considered 30-100 by labs/doctors, but the recommended 'optimal' range based on the latest research is 50-80. Also if you are in the US, the 50,000 IU's by Rx is usually D2, but I am glad you are taking D3 daily now. Just get it rechecked every 3 or 4 months to be sure you stay in the optimal range.

Wow.... in today's VitaminDCouncil's newsletter, it is announced that Rx D3 is now available in the USA. If your doctor wants to Rx D for you, be sure it is D3!

http://us2.campaign-archive1.com/?u=f54 ... f9d150751c


Bio-Tech 50,000 IU D3 now available for prescription
February 27, 2012

Although the Vitamin D Council and I believe that vitamin D ought to be taken daily to mimic daily sun exposure, I understand the power and reasoning why some doctors prefer to write prescriptions at weekly, fortnightly or monthly directions. For one, it lets the patient know the importance in the recommendation. In turn, the patient is more likely to take vitamin D. And two, the placebo effect in writing a prescription is much more powerful than recommending an over-the-counter vitamin.

Many doctors in the USA prescribe vitamin D, with instructions to take one capsule every week, or every two weeks, or even one capsule per month. Up until that last few years, only one vitamin D -- vitamin D2, the less potent and less efficacious type of vitamin D -- has been available for prescription. I am glad to say that this is no longer true. 50,000 IU capsules of vitamin D3 are now available by prescription.

Bio-Tech Pharmacal has partnered with distributors to make 50,000 IU D3 available for thousand of US drug stores. That means unless your doctor writes “Drisdol, do not substitute,” then your pharmacist can give you human vitamin D, not plant vitamin D.

If you’re a medical professional, contact your local pharmacy to request they stock the product. If you’re a pharmacist, order the product and begin substituting Drisdol prescriptions now. If you’re a patient, print this story and take it to your pharmacy today and make sure you start taking D3, not D2. The list of distributors -- the information they need to know -- is below.

If they want to know why they should switch, the following reasons make it clear:

• Vitamin D3 is the type of vitamin D the human body produces in response to sun exposure. Vitamin D2 supplements are produced by irradiating fungus.
  Research has shown that the body prefers vitamin D3 over D2 when both forms are readily available in the body (Heaney 2011)
  Research has shown that vitamin D3 is more efficacious in reducing mortality risk than D2 (Bjelakovic 2011). Research has also shown than vitamin D3 is more efficacious in reducing the risk of fractures and falls than D2 (Bischoff-Ferrari 2009).

I must recommend, however, that if 50,000 IU is going to be prescribed, they ought to prescribe it to take weekly, which equates to 7,000 IU/day. Once every two weeks might do the trick (equivalent to 3,500 IU/day). Once a month is not enough in my opinion (equivalent to 1670 IU/day).

Bio-Tech D-3-50 (50,000IU)
NDC# 53191036201
Domestic Distributors

• McKesson Drug Company
  Cardinal Health
  Emerson Ecologics
  Dakota Drug
  HD Smith Wholesale Drug Company
  Gulf South Medical Supply
  Smith Drug Company
  National Drug Source

International Distributors

• Pharmaceutical Trade Services-US based distributor serving Europe, the Middle East, Asia, Australia/Oceania, Africa and South America
  Symbion Pty- Australia
  Al-AHD Drug Store- Jordan
  Al-Omair International Trading- Kuwait
  Biotech Pharma Services- UAE
  Trans Arabia Drug Store- UAE
  Riyadh International Corporation- Saudi Arabia
  Taiba Pharma LLC- Sultanate of Oman

There seems to be some indication that Vit D supplements don't work very well at all and its hit or miss if you will absorb any of it into a useful form. The real sunshine works best but that can take hours (not the 15 minutes some people seem to think)

Further update: after taking 6000 IU daily of Vitamin D3 as LiquiD3 for almost 3 months, I have raised my Vitamin D levels from a measly 11 to 51 pg/mL, almost normal. My doctor likes to see it between 60 and 80, but I'm almost there.

Why not just get in the sun?

We're forgetting, many of the worlds peoples live in cloudy environments and they work most of the sunlight hours.

They have kids to take care of, cook dinner for. The window for excercising (if they have the energy) is before 7 am or after 7 pm.

Then, many people live in congested areas, busy roads, overpopulation. So they go to gyms.

Perhaps the Russians were not so crazy after all using sunlamps.

And perhaps Michael Jackson was actually ahead of his time with the hyperbaric therapy.

I have been taking D3 since january, first 1000 IU pr day, then after reading more, I started taking 5000 IU/day.

This went well for about a month, then I started to get very thirsty. I was drinking up to 5 liters pr day. Then in the next month I dropped 10 kilos in weight. After reading more, I found out that this dehydration and weightloss are signs of vitamin D poisoning. I went to my doc and got tested, the result was 111 mmol/l. The lab says that the normal range is 50-150, but I still have strong symptoms of poisoning at 111. I have quit taking D now and I am getting better, I am less thirsty. If left untreated, vitamin D poisoning WILL wreck your kidneys.

So a word of caution from me is to allways get tested before you start to take vitamin D supplements, at least if you are thinking about taking more than 1000 IU/day.

On the other hand, with a sollid amount of vitamin D in my system and dropping 10+ kilos in weight, my sleepapnea is much better, which shows up clearly in my CPAP data. When I don't use my CPAP, my bedpartner says my snoring is much better
With a lot of testing, I hope to find the dose that keeps my vitamin D level optimal.

Here is more information:
http://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/vitami ... fessional/
http://www.vitamindcouncil.org/about-vi ... -toxicity/

Well i have been taking 5000IU a day and I am puting on weight. There you go. My levels are in normal range. Wish I could lose some weight.

If you take it, its D3 or D2. Both work differently.

Sunlight makes D3 but somehow thats different than injected D3.

Blood tests only find some D3 and no D2.

Your body needs the derivatives which come from D2 or D3.

Milk used to contain D... it may not any more unless its added since the new pasteurisation processes seem to break it up.

What an interesting thread! I will be doing a lot of extra reading today. Those of you that have increased their intake of D3 and haven't posted recently, how's it going? Still doing it and has it improved how you feel and/or maybe helped reduce the pressure you are using? Would love to hear more feedback.

Suz