July 2021 Newsletter
It helps… absorb calcium and phosphorous, build and maintain strong bones and teeth, prevent rickets and osteomalacia. It is a mood booster, increases heart and muscle strength, and boosts immunity - especially against respiratory infections and pneumonia. Possibly lowers blood pressure, and can affect appetite, helping with weight loss. What is it?
Recently, I was urged to read a book written by Jeff T. Bowles. It documents his self-experimentation of taking very high doses of vitamin D3 with K2. He claims the D3/K2 combination has allowed his body to heal from several old musculoskeletal injuries. He thinks the currently recommended doses of 400 to 800 IU daily are not even close to enough to get some of the good that D3 taken with K2 can offer. He quotes an email from Mark Murphy who said, “The toxicity of D-3 has been greatly exaggerated by Big Pharma and the AMA.” The manufacture of three prescription drugs to fight cancer, Dalsol, Deltalin and Drisdol, are simply 50,000 IU doses of vitamin D.” This same author thinks the international unit (IU) was created to confuse the general public. Almost all other supplements are measured in milligrams (mg) or (mcg) micrograms (.1mg equals 50,000 IUs. In 1937, a nine-year study was commissioned with the University of Illinois Medical College to determine toxic dose levels of vitamin D2. The subjects were 773 humans and 63 dogs. Doses ranged upward of 200,000 IUs, for periods ranging from seven days to five years. One of the authors ingested 3,000,000 for fifteen days with no evidence of disturbance “of any kind”. D2 is one-fourth the potency of D3. Bowles says he has read 55,000 studies on vitamin D done between the years 1922 to 2011. His list of things mega doses of vitamin D3 with K2 will help include obesity, depression, arthritis, autism, MS, ALS, asthma, scleroderma, allergies, many types of cancer, tuberculosis, the “common cold”, toenail fungus, Types 1 and 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome, hypertension, rheumatoid arthritis, Crohn’s disease, alcoholism, ganglion cysts, subcutaneous cysts, acne, heart disease, COPD, lung disorders, lupus, macular degeneration, growing pains, kidney disease, ulcers, helicobacter-pylori related gastritis, learning disabilities, brain deformities in children, strokes, non-specific bone pain, excessive daytime sleepiness, ADHD, glaucoma, migraine headaches, Parkinson’s disease, UTIs, PMS, menstrual cramps, gout, cavities, psoriasis, plantar fasciitis, osteopenia, vertigo plus migraine, chronic wounds and ulcers that will not heal, knee degeneration requiring knee replacement, vision problems, severe hypoglycemia/hypogonadism, bone spurs, varicose veins, incontinence, and infertility. Mr. Bowles points out that the timing of these diseases increasing in our population coincides with when we started telling people that skin cancer risks increase from exposure to the sun without maximum sunscreen protection.
Vitamin D3 is different than D2. D2 is less potent and has a shorter duration of action than D3. Vitamin D is oil based and lingers in the fat cells. It does not flush out of the body like B vitamins. It is also a hormone and is used to treat kidney disease and hypoparathyroidism or pseudohypoparathyroidism. Remember the parathyroid gland activates to keep blood calcium levels optimal. Oral and/or intramuscular administration of 900,000 IUs annually can safely treat D3 deficiency. That would roughly be about 2500 IUs a day. Some studies suggest there is a U curve for optimal vitamin D3 levels. Deficiency is bad, but too much is also bad for you. If dose wasn’t hard enough to figure, Dr. Hollick notes that obese people have a very hard time boosting their D3 levels “because the fat cells act to sequester the D3 and prevent it from becoming a circulating hormone. Mr. Bowles writes that Dr. Hollick has an interview that’s been published in an eBook, it’s twenty-four pages and cost ninety-nine cents.
As far as helping with weight loss, there was one study that compared (an undisclosed number) postmenopausal women taking D3 supplements (an undisclosed amount) with a group that took a placebo. With adequate levels of D3, the group who took the vitamin saw a greater reduction of waist circumference, an increase in the loss of both body fat and pounds. For what it’s worth, that article said 600 IUs a day was a safe dose for adults up to age seventy and 800 for adults over seventy, but a safe upper limit was 4000 IUs daily.
It’s reported on www.verywellhealth.com that over a billion people worldwide have a vitamin D deficiency. Symptoms for that include: muscle weakness and aches, weak bones, fatigue, hair loss, depression, hypertension (high blood pressure), inflammation, arthritis, and eczema.
Symptoms for an overdose of vitamin D are: loss of strength, interference in heart rhythm, exhaustion, drowsiness, headache, appetite loss, nausea, dizziness, retching/vomiting, mood change, confusion, dehydration, dry mouth, excessive urination, general pain, and can lead to kidney stones.
If you put the overdose list next to the deficiency list you see similar symptoms. This can be disconcerting. Compare it to a long day in the sun that often leaves you dehydrated, might include dry mouth, exhaustion, drowsiness, decreased mood and possible confusion. In extreme cases, the nausea, dizziness, vomiting and decreased appetite easily clump together as symptoms. It is the addition of K2 that pushes most of these concerns aside.
K2, discovered in 1929, first appeared in a German science journal. They called it “Koagulations” vitamin (that’s where the K comes from), and is not to be confused with potassium, which uses ‘K’ on the periodic table as its abbreviation. There is also ‘K1’ vitamin that comes from leafy greens, but doesn’t do much for D3 balancing. K2 comes from animal products and fermented foods. A dentist, Weston Price called it “activator X” and thought it helped defray tooth decay. K2 regulates calcium deposition. It promotes deposits in bones and prevents deposits in blood vessels and kidneys. It activates calcium binding actions of 2 protein; matrix GLA protein and osteocalcin. These proteins build and maintain bones. Studies of K2 are few, and none done with humans. Some observational studies are helpful, though. In a group of 16,057 women, the ones with the highest intake of K2 had lower rates of heart disease. For every 10 mcg of K2, heart disease risk decreased by nine percent. In another study (three-year), 244 postmenopausal women taking vitamin D supplements had a much slower decline in age related bone density. There were several trials. Seven of these trials included the data on fractures in their collection. The study found that spinal fractures were reduced by sixty percent, hip fractures by seventy-seven percent, and other non-spinal fractures decreased by eighty-one percent. Following the completion of these studies, Japan officially recommends K2 supplements for the prevention and treatment of osteoporosis. The system here in the U.S. does not acknowledge this. K2 is also linked to help liver cancer by reducing its reoccurrence and improving survival times. A high vitamin K2 intake is linked with a sixty-three percent lower risk of advanced prostate cancer (K1 has no effect). K2 is found in high fat dairy from grass fed cows, egg yolks, organ meats. To summarize, vitamin D3 ensures blood levels of calcium are high enough to meet the body’s demands, but doesn’t control where that calcium may end up. K2 promotes calcification of bones and reduces calcification in soft tissues to include the arteries and veins and little tubules in the kidneys. Blood vessel calcification is implicated in chronic disease (aka hardening of arteries); 500 mcg a day slowed BVC in rats by 6% percent. K2 also decreased Type 2 diabetes development by reducing insulin sensitivity and acting as an anti-inflammatory. The NIH says there are no known adverse effects of toxicity. It will potentially interact with coumadin, antibiotics, bile acid sequestrants (like Questran, Colestild and Orlistat), and a weight loss drug, Allia Xenical. There’s a lot more but I’m out of space here. Happy 4th!
It helps… absorb calcium and phosphorous, build and maintain strong bones and teeth, prevent rickets and osteomalacia. It is a mood booster, increases heart and muscle strength, and boosts immunity - especially against respiratory infections and pneumonia. Possibly lowers blood pressure, and can affect appetite, helping with weight loss. What is it?
Recently, I was urged to read a book written by Jeff T. Bowles. It documents his self-experimentation of taking very high doses of vitamin D3 with K2. He claims the D3/K2 combination has allowed his body to heal from several old musculoskeletal injuries. He thinks the currently recommended doses of 400 to 800 IU daily are not even close to enough to get some of the good that D3 taken with K2 can offer. He quotes an email from Mark Murphy who said, “The toxicity of D-3 has been greatly exaggerated by Big Pharma and the AMA.” The manufacture of three prescription drugs to fight cancer, Dalsol, Deltalin and Drisdol, are simply 50,000 IU doses of vitamin D.” This same author thinks the international unit (IU) was created to confuse the general public. Almost all other supplements are measured in milligrams (mg) or (mcg) micrograms (.1mg equals 50,000 IUs. In 1937, a nine-year study was commissioned with the University of Illinois Medical College to determine toxic dose levels of vitamin D2. The subjects were 773 humans and 63 dogs. Doses ranged upward of 200,000 IUs, for periods ranging from seven days to five years. One of the authors ingested 3,000,000 for fifteen days with no evidence of disturbance “of any kind”. D2 is one-fourth the potency of D3. Bowles says he has read 55,000 studies on vitamin D done between the years 1922 to 2011. His list of things mega doses of vitamin D3 with K2 will help include obesity, depression, arthritis, autism, MS, ALS, asthma, scleroderma, allergies, many types of cancer, tuberculosis, the “common cold”, toenail fungus, Types 1 and 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome, hypertension, rheumatoid arthritis, Crohn’s disease, alcoholism, ganglion cysts, subcutaneous cysts, acne, heart disease, COPD, lung disorders, lupus, macular degeneration, growing pains, kidney disease, ulcers, helicobacter-pylori related gastritis, learning disabilities, brain deformities in children, strokes, non-specific bone pain, excessive daytime sleepiness, ADHD, glaucoma, migraine headaches, Parkinson’s disease, UTIs, PMS, menstrual cramps, gout, cavities, psoriasis, plantar fasciitis, osteopenia, vertigo plus migraine, chronic wounds and ulcers that will not heal, knee degeneration requiring knee replacement, vision problems, severe hypoglycemia/hypogonadism, bone spurs, varicose veins, incontinence, and infertility. Mr. Bowles points out that the timing of these diseases increasing in our population coincides with when we started telling people that skin cancer risks increase from exposure to the sun without maximum sunscreen protection.
Vitamin D3 is different than D2. D2 is less potent and has a shorter duration of action than D3. Vitamin D is oil based and lingers in the fat cells. It does not flush out of the body like B vitamins. It is also a hormone and is used to treat kidney disease and hypoparathyroidism or pseudohypoparathyroidism. Remember the parathyroid gland activates to keep blood calcium levels optimal. Oral and/or intramuscular administration of 900,000 IUs annually can safely treat D3 deficiency. That would roughly be about 2500 IUs a day. Some studies suggest there is a U curve for optimal vitamin D3 levels. Deficiency is bad, but too much is also bad for you. If dose wasn’t hard enough to figure, Dr. Hollick notes that obese people have a very hard time boosting their D3 levels “because the fat cells act to sequester the D3 and prevent it from becoming a circulating hormone. Mr. Bowles writes that Dr. Hollick has an interview that’s been published in an eBook, it’s twenty-four pages and cost ninety-nine cents.
As far as helping with weight loss, there was one study that compared (an undisclosed number) postmenopausal women taking D3 supplements (an undisclosed amount) with a group that took a placebo. With adequate levels of D3, the group who took the vitamin saw a greater reduction of waist circumference, an increase in the loss of both body fat and pounds. For what it’s worth, that article said 600 IUs a day was a safe dose for adults up to age seventy and 800 for adults over seventy, but a safe upper limit was 4000 IUs daily.
It’s reported on www.verywellhealth.com that over a billion people worldwide have a vitamin D deficiency. Symptoms for that include: muscle weakness and aches, weak bones, fatigue, hair loss, depression, hypertension (high blood pressure), inflammation, arthritis, and eczema.
Symptoms for an overdose of vitamin D are: loss of strength, interference in heart rhythm, exhaustion, drowsiness, headache, appetite loss, nausea, dizziness, retching/vomiting, mood change, confusion, dehydration, dry mouth, excessive urination, general pain, and can lead to kidney stones.
If you put the overdose list next to the deficiency list you see similar symptoms. This can be disconcerting. Compare it to a long day in the sun that often leaves you dehydrated, might include dry mouth, exhaustion, drowsiness, decreased mood and possible confusion. In extreme cases, the nausea, dizziness, vomiting and decreased appetite easily clump together as symptoms. It is the addition of K2 that pushes most of these concerns aside.
K2, discovered in 1929, first appeared in a German science journal. They called it “Koagulations” vitamin (that’s where the K comes from), and is not to be confused with potassium, which uses ‘K’ on the periodic table as its abbreviation. There is also ‘K1’ vitamin that comes from leafy greens, but doesn’t do much for D3 balancing. K2 comes from animal products and fermented foods. A dentist, Weston Price called it “activator X” and thought it helped defray tooth decay. K2 regulates calcium deposition. It promotes deposits in bones and prevents deposits in blood vessels and kidneys. It activates calcium binding actions of 2 protein; matrix GLA protein and osteocalcin. These proteins build and maintain bones. Studies of K2 are few, and none done with humans. Some observational studies are helpful, though. In a group of 16,057 women, the ones with the highest intake of K2 had lower rates of heart disease. For every 10 mcg of K2, heart disease risk decreased by nine percent. In another study (three-year), 244 postmenopausal women taking vitamin D supplements had a much slower decline in age related bone density. There were several trials. Seven of these trials included the data on fractures in their collection. The study found that spinal fractures were reduced by sixty percent, hip fractures by seventy-seven percent, and other non-spinal fractures decreased by eighty-one percent. Following the completion of these studies, Japan officially recommends K2 supplements for the prevention and treatment of osteoporosis. The system here in the U.S. does not acknowledge this. K2 is also linked to help liver cancer by reducing its reoccurrence and improving survival times. A high vitamin K2 intake is linked with a sixty-three percent lower risk of advanced prostate cancer (K1 has no effect). K2 is found in high fat dairy from grass fed cows, egg yolks, organ meats. To summarize, vitamin D3 ensures blood levels of calcium are high enough to meet the body’s demands, but doesn’t control where that calcium may end up. K2 promotes calcification of bones and reduces calcification in soft tissues to include the arteries and veins and little tubules in the kidneys. Blood vessel calcification is implicated in chronic disease (aka hardening of arteries); 500 mcg a day slowed BVC in rats by 6% percent. K2 also decreased Type 2 diabetes development by reducing insulin sensitivity and acting as an anti-inflammatory. The NIH says there are no known adverse effects of toxicity. It will potentially interact with coumadin, antibiotics, bile acid sequestrants (like Questran, Colestild and Orlistat), and a weight loss drug, Allia Xenical. There’s a lot more but I’m out of space here. Happy 4th!
