Are you getting enough Vitamin D from the sun? Think again!
I have been meaning to do a blog post on the topic of Vitamin D for a while now because it is arguably one of the most important health messages people need to hear about these days besides all that we already discuss about carbohydrate restriction. For people who are livin’ la vida low-carb and want to make their health even better than it is now, you’ll want to pay especially close attention to the information I’m about to share because it is crucial for you and your family. And this subject hits close to home with me because of my own personal connection to it as well as a unique circumstance with my wife Christine.
Last July I had a series of blood tests conducted to see how my health was doing after being on a low-carb diet for several years. Aside from the strange 5-hour glucose tolerance test results, everything seemed to be fine. But there was one number among my “normal” readings that was a little bothersome to me and my low-carb physician–25-HYDROXY D3. This is the best measurement of your vitamin D level in your body and my reading of 42 ng/mL was only average. This surprised me because I thought I was getting enough sun and eating the right kinds of healthy and nutritious low-carb foods like salmon and eggs to elevate my levels higher than they were. I was wrong to assume that my Vitamin D levels were okay because the reality is they showed a deficiency.
After conducting this podcast interview with Dr. William Davis from “The Heart Scan” blog in September 2008 where he noted that Vitamin D supplementation may be necessary to complement your healthy food and sun intake, I immediately began taking 10,000 IU per day–and I haven’t stopped doing it since. When I had Dr. Davis back on my show earlier this year, I told him what I was doing and that I didn’t “feel” any different taking the Vitamin D supplementation. He said I’m probably getting more benefits from it than I even realize. And that got me to thinking about my wife Christine who has dealt with some chronic pain issues for most of her life. Could it be something as simple as a Vitamin D deficiency?
As you may or may not know, Christine has been dealing with some nagging pain issues in her joints and muscles, chronic fatigue, and other health issues for most of her life. She’s been to see more doctors in the past year than I have in my entire life and they still don’t know what is wrong with her. She has a bulging disc in her neck that is causing some excruciating pain throughout her back and shoulder area where she’s been experiencing numbness in her right arm (in fact, she had to wear a sling the week of our low-carb cruise to Mexico in January because of this). We’re headed to see a neurologist at the end of the month to deal with that.
In early January, she went to see a rheumatologist about her health issues and he ran a battery of tests on her, including one to check her Vitamin D level. When the tests came back later that month, Christine and I both were SHOCKED by what we saw! Although my reading of 42 ng/mL was pretty low, Christine’s Vitamin D was a paltry 9. Not 39, 29, or even 19–it was in the single digits! The doctor said he had only seen one other patients in the many years of practicing medicine who had a lower Vitamin D level than that. Needless to say, she was placed on a high-dosage (50,000 IU) Vitamin D treatment in a prescription capsule weekly for one month.
But then what will she do? We decided that Christine would join me in taking a large dose of Vitamin D daily once the prescription ones ran out at the end of February. She’s been taking about 7,000 IU daily for the past three weeks and expects to continue on this dosage level indefinitely. Could this lack of Vitamin D be one of the major reasons why she has been dealing with chronic pain and fatigue all these years? Evidence certainly points in that direction and getting her Vitamin D levels up will certainly be a telling sign if she shows improvement.
Interestingly, Christine’s primary care physician is also my doctor and I told him about my 10,000 IU/day Vitamin D supplementation and his eyes bugged out like I had just told him I was taking crack cocaine. He advised that I stop taking so much Vitamin D because of the risk of toxicity, but I just bit my tongue like I did when he advised against me starting on the Atkins diet in 2004. There’s just too much compelling evidence in favor of adding MORE Vitamin D that I HAVE to do this for me–and so does Christine. But I sought out information to confirm I’m doing the right thing and I found PLENTY.
One of the most entertaining scientific lectures I’ve EVER seen in my life was this 20-minute presentation entitled “The Vitamin D Pandemic and its Health Consequences” by Boston University School of Medicine professor Dr. Michael Holick that took place in May 2007 at the 34th European Symposium on Calcified Tissues in Copenhagen. As you will quickly see from that lecture, Dr. Holick gets his point across about this complex issue by infusing humor and evidence from the medical literature to help you understand more about Vitamin D and why it is important better than most medial professionals do. I am currently working on booking Dr. Holick to appear on my podcast show to discuss this important topic.
He brings out some rather startling points in his lecture, including why obese people have more trouble with Vitamin D absorption, why applying sunscreen is actually harmful to your health, and how many cases of fibromyalgia are misdiagnosed. It was on that final point that my ears perked up and I thought about Christine again. She’s been told she has fibromyalgia from several well-meaning doctors, but Dr. Holick seems to think people like her actually have a condition known as osteomalacia which happens as a result of Vitamin D deficiency. And thus my research has continued.
I am very proud of my fellow low-carb bloggers and writers because quite a few of them have addressed this issue of Vitamin D quite thoroughly lately. Check out the following:
- Jackie Eberstein–“Vitamin D: Not Just For Bones Anymore”
- Dr. William Davis–“Unique Vitamin D Observations”
- Scott Kustes–“Just How Important Is Vitamin D?”
- Scott Kustes–“Get Your Vitamin D Checked: Why And How?”
- Robin Plan–“Vitamin D Deficient – 1 in 7 US Teens”
For an excellent primer on Vitamin D, check out this dietary supplement fact sheet from the National Institutes Of Health for the lowdown on Vitamin D deficiency, foods that are rich in Vitamin D, and what levels of Vitamin D lead to toxicity. This web site will arm you with all the information you could ever need to know about Vitamin D. And while I’m working on the interview with Dr. Holick, be sure to check out his “Vitamin D Health” blog to stay up-to-date on all the latest studies of this critical hormone our bodies need so desperately.
So, you might be wondering how much Vitamin D YOU should be taking. That’s really up to you and where your Vitamin D level is. The best thing you can do is get your doctor to order a 25(OH) D level the next time you go in for blood work. You NEED to know this number and respond accordingly. For someone like me who had moderate levels of Vitamin D, I decided to take the action I did to begin taking 10,000 IU daily. If you’re like Christine who had single digit Vitamin D levels, then a more aggressive approach of 50,000 a week followed by high daily dosage may get your levels up there. Or maybe the Vitamin D in your body is perfectly fine. GET TESTED and see!
There’s a great public health organization called GrassrootsHealth that has started an ambitious 5-year project called DAction whose sole purpose is to “solve the vitamin D deficiency epidemic.” They’re holding seminars and conducting a long-term study on the impact of Vitamin D deficiency on health. As part of their program, they are offering blood spot test kits for $30 per person. The tests are to be conducted twice a year along with some basic health data. For more information on this affordable Vitamin D test, e-mail DAction Director Carole Baggerly.
Jimmy,
I have been doing Atkins for 3 months now. I have been thinking about my 6 month blood work check up. I would love to see recommendations for lab work to be done. I omitted the starting lab work due to finances and no health problems other than obesity. I will be adding a Vit D profile to the list.
Tricia, that’s an EXCELLENT idea and I’ve mentioned bits and pieces before. You should DEFINITELY get an NMR Lipoprofile test of your lipid particle size which will tell you the relevant size and total particles that make up your LDL. Your HDL and triglycerides are also included in that test. Vitamin D levels are important as is your HBA1C, Vitamin B-12, cortisol, and homocysteine. Getting a good baseline of tests done will show you how far you’ve come. And you’ve probably already improved your numbers DRAMATICALLY in just the first few months.
–Jimmy
Here are two more resources about this important topic.
http://www.vitamindcouncil.org/
http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2008/12/16/my-one-hour-vitamin-d-lecture-to-clear-up-all-your-confusion-on-this-vital-nutrient.aspx
I’m hoping Chrisitine sees some positive results with regard to her pain issues. Good luck and thanks again for sharing all this knowledge!
THANKS for the links! I knew Mercola had some excellent info on this and I have been to the Vitamin D Council site before, too. Information is power! Now I hope people use it!
–Jimmy
Jimmy,
I wanted to point out that Christine’s regimen of 50,000 IU/week is actually LESS aggressive than the 10,000 IU/day you are taking. Also, you said Christine is taking a prescription form–have you made sure she is actually taking the D3 form (cholecalciferol)? I believe the Rx form is often D2 (ergocalciferol) which does little or nothing to raise 25-OH-D levels in the blood, according to Dr. Davis. (Also important to note is that Dr. Davis has found that only oil-based forms of D3, such as gel caps, are effective–dry tablets rarely seem to work for people.)
Yes, I’m aware my 70,000/week IU of Vitamin D3 is more aggressive than Christine’s 50,000/week IU of Vitamin D2. But for Christine going from nothing to 50k was aggressive.
–Jimmy
I hope the vitamin D helps your wife. Another issue she may want to look into is thyroid–some people think fibromyalgia is connected to low thyroid function. To test for this you would want to test for “Free T3″ and “Free T4″, rather than the usual TSH that is tested for thyroid function. Dr. Davis has had a few articles lately on thyroid hormone supplementation, too.
Now you need to find out what caused the malabsorption of vitamin D:
? vitamin D–resistant rickets (refractory rickets, familial hypophosphatemia) from an inherited impairment of renal tubular reabsorption of phosphate (from vitamin D insensitivity)
? conditions that lower absorption of fat-soluble vitamin D, such as chronic pancreatitis, celiac disease, Crohn’s disease, cystic fibrosis, gastric or small bowel resections, fistulas, colitis, and biliary obstruction
? hepatic or renal disease, which interferes with the formation of hydroxylated calciferol, necessary to initiate the formation of a calcium-binding protein in intestinal absorption sites
? malfunctioning parathyroid gland (decreased secretion of parathyroid hormone), which contributes to calcium deficiency (normally, vitamin D controls calcium and phosphorus absorption through the intestine) and interferes with activation of vitamin D in the kidneys.
http://www.wrongdiagnosis.com/v/vitamin_d_deficiency/causes.htm
Jimmy, I read somewhere (probably on Dr. Davis’s blog, but maybe on Drs. Eades’) that presecription vitamin D is D2, which isn’t as effective as D3 (cholecalciferal). It was also noted that the prescription D2 is very expensive, while the D3 is not. Dr. Davis also is adamant that the D3 be taken in gelcap form to be sure that it is absorbed.
D3 gelcaps is exactly what we use on Dr. Davis’ urging.
–Jimmy
Mine was level was also a 9. They wanted to put me on 50k of D2/week and I refused. Instead I started doing cod liver oil, working up to 2tbsp/day and also sitting in the sun for 30 minutes daily at noon with as much skin exposed as possible.
If you take D2, it makes testing impossible. You will not get an accurate level again on your Hydroxy Vit D because D2 has slower metabolism and isn’t handled in the body like D3. It is a plant hormone, not the real deal.
Listen to Amy, she has good info on this.
After 3 mos they retested and in that 3mo period I went from 9 to 49. I still take clo daily and sit in the sun during summer. I haven’t been retested but need to. My pain level has improved but I am still in overall joint and muscle pain.
That’s awesome, Pooti! Plus, taking cod liver oil gives you the double bonus of omega-3 fatty acids along with high levels of Vitamin D3. I appreciate your story on this and look forward to seeing the difference the supplementation and a little more sun will have on Christine. Take care and thanks for writing!
–Jimmy
As usual another really Excellent blog.
May I suggest to those who have the time watch the series of excellent videos on the Grassrootshealth.org site.
If you haven’t time for that, then download the slides to those presentations, under the Documentation Tab. Just skimming through those gives a summary of the evidence supporting higher Vitamin D status for Diabetes, cancer, heart disease prevention.
Those people concerned about the possibility
Risk assessment for vitamin D
Those who prefer to watch a video presentation of this scientific information may like to go to
Contemporary Diagnosis and Treatment of Vitamin D-Related Disorders This is a collection of Vitamin d conference presentations and in session 4 you can watch Reinhold Vieth, Ph.D. If you use windows media you can fast forward to his talk, but the others are interesting if you have the time.
For the last 20 yrs or more I’d suffered chronic pain resulting from the late effects of polio. Nothing seemed to reduce it except at dose levels that adversely affected quality of life even more than the constant pain. It was only after I raised my Vitamin D levels above 60ng 150nmol/l that the pain levels subsided so I can now ignore it. More information about Vitamin D and Pain here.
Vitamin D Chronic Pain pages
I’d also like to thank you Jimmy for your interview last year with Dr Annika Dahlqvist that put me on to losing weight by eating an easy low carb diet. I lost 2.25lbs each week for over 20weeks to reach my target and as I continue to eat low carb I haven’t regained weight. Losing all that weight has made a huge difference to my mobility and I’m sure that has also had a huge beneficial effect on my quality of life
OUTSTANDING PERSONAL STORY, Ted! Thank you for sharing and keep it up!
–Jimmy
Hey Jimmy, My chiropractor suggested I add vitamin D to my supplements because it would help the calcium I am taking to absorb better.
That’s right, Ed! One of the BIG functions that Vitamin D plays is calcium absorption. That’s why they fortify milk with Vitamin D…although the amount they put in most dairy is woefully inadequate. Kudos to your chiropractor for understanding the significance of this vital hormone.
–Jimmy
Hi Jimmy,
Very cool to see a post about vitamin D on your blog. We’ve tested hundreds of patients in the past 2 years at our clinic and are running at about 99% of them abnormally low. We’ve also had numerous patients with undetectable levels too!
Keep up the good work!
It’s my pleasure, Darcy, and keep up the great work at your outstanding blog.
–Jimmy
NATURAL!!!!!
Our bodies were designed or evolved into utilizing sunlight as a component to our health as much as food, water and air!!
Pills??? We know that most Vitamin pills don’t tell the truth on its components and even if they did, are you getting the right mix or are some of the “other” nutrients harming you??
As well, I hope you are aware that there are 2 types of Vitamin D produced… D2, which is the far inferior type made from (and really for) plant extract and D3 which is made from the lanolin is sheep hair!
A typical 15-20 minute exposure in a tanning bed or naked under noon hour sunlight will have your body producing 12,000-18,000 international units of naturally produced, fully digestible Vitamin D. You can overdose on pill form but not on natural form.
Take your money and lease a tanning bed for your home, or visit a local (but reputable!) tanning salon for year long NATURAL tanning and Vitamin D production.
You’ll be that much more healthy…NATURALLY!
Mori Goldlist,
Toronto Canada
Watch the video presentation from Dr. Holick I shared in my blog, Mori. You can’t get enough Vitamin D from the sun if you live above Atlanta, GA.
–Jimmy
Hi Jimmy,
I finally got my D-3 level up to 50, which took many months to do. I now take 4,000 IU/day.
Best of luck to Christine
THANKS for sharing your testimony, Matt!
–Jimmy
So glad to see this blog on Vitamin D. I recently had me and my husband tested through the Grassroots organization, and I’m so glad I did. I was at 20, hubby at 31. Waaaay too low! That would certainly explain why I have SAD every winter and struggle with mild depression now and then during other times of the year. By the time you pay a doctor’s copay and blood test copay, it may well be cheaper to go through Grassroots (it was for us), AND you are helping them to build up a large body of data for assessing widespread vitamin D deficiency.
Also worth mentioning is that some experts believe up to 80% – 80%! – of all cancers (even skin cancer) may be preventable with optimum Vitamin D. There’s also a Type I diabetes connection, an autism connection, and more. Well, duh. The sun is essential to life on this planet in ways we never realized.
I ordered my Vitamin D testing kit yesterday PROUDLY for $30, Eileen, because it is MUCH cheaper than going to the doctor. I’ll be interviewing a representative from D-Action on my podcast show very soon. I encourage everyone else to get in on this, too!
–Jimmy
Excellent gathering of resources! My dad is in his 80s and has been telling me about Vitamin D now for some time – I’m going to point him in the direction of this post. Thanks!
I am confused. In one reply you say Christine is taking 50,000 IU prescription D2 and in another you say she is taking D3 in gel cap form. Which is it? As others have said prescription D2 is basically worthless per Dr. Davis.
BTW, I just got my D results back from grassroots. It was 44 ng/ml which is the result Daction is looking for but not the 60-70 ng/ml Dr. Davis recommends.. Took about 2 1/2 weeks from time of ordering to getting the results back. I was taking 2,000 – 4000 IU/day Carlson D3 gel caps prior to getting tested.
Rule of thumb is 1000 IU per 10 ng/ml so your intake seems a bit on the high side. Also, Dr. Eades sells 5,000 IU D3 via his website as well as 50,000 IU D3.
Sorry for the confusion, JD. When Christine got her reading of 9 ng/mL in January, she was placed on the 50,000 IU prescription Vitamin D2 pills once a week. Since that prescription ran out, she’s been taking 7,000 IU Vitamin D3 capsules daily. She’s on the D3 that I’ve been taking 10,000 IU of for over six months at my urging for her because the D2 is useless. THANKS for letting me clarify.
I too signed up for the D-Action program and am anxious to see if my 42 number has improved any after such an aggressive approach since September 2008. The kit is on the way to me now and I’ll definitely blog my results when I get them back. I appreciate you sharing your baseline number and will be interested in seeing how the numbers change for you through the addition of more Vitamin D3 and getting more sun.
–Jimmy
Just a couple of additional points for those looking at this blog and not having read Dr. Davis.
1. The level of vit D to see prevention benefits is 50 ng/ml
2. After 40 it may be difficult to get your vit D levels up via the sun. http://heartscanblog.blogspot.com/search/label/vitamin%20D
One other thing I found difficult to do with the grassroots test was to get large enough blood drops using their instructions. I found the following instructions I got with a home lipid test to be better. Both tests had the same finger lancets in their kits.
1. After washing your hands, rub your hands together for 15 seconds to stimulate blood flow.
2. After lancing your finger and with the lanced finger pointing down, GENTLY squeeze the lanced hand with your other hand using the thumb to squeeze from your wrist to the puncture site. You get 2 lancets with the Grassroots’ kit and you are supposed to fill 2 of the 4 spots on the card till almost full using two drops of blood each.
GREAT INFO, JD! Thank you again!
–Jimmy
Living at 7500 ft in New Mexico with an average of 300 sunny days per year, Vitamin D is not something I worry about anymore. And I use no sunscreen, just a hat and UV protective sunglasses year round. When I lived in further north, I did take supplements. Growing up in Oregon, I distinctly remember taking that nasty cod liver oil. Blech!
Vitamin D is soo important and I was taking 10,000 IUs a day for a while after my youngest baby was born. It was Dr. recommended, too. Dr. Mercola has some great information out there on vitamin D. My osteopath (who is all for low-carb) recommends solaray brand chewables.
Plus lots of cod liver oil, raw milk (or cream if low-carb), grass-fed butter, and pastured egg yolks.
I’m not only concerned about D, I’m also concerned about A and K2 (that’s vitamin K in K2 form, not the chemical symbol for potassium, which is also K). I’ve been ever since I started reading about Weston A. Price, DDS. You’d like his work, Jimmy–it’s an eye-opener. All the expensive mineral supplements won’t do you any good unless you’re getting enough fat in your diet AND the fat-solubles. The fat-solubles help with mineral assimilation. I’ve heard that diabetes has a link with certain mineral deficiencies, among other things.
It’s not enough in the case of vitamin A to get beta carotene, either. There is no guarantee that you will convert enough of the beta carotene to get all the A you need, especially if your health has been suffering. (Hypothyroids in particular will not be able to make the conversion, and I believe diabetics also have trouble.) And there is no such thing as a plant food with vitamin A in it–the A they mention on the food labels is what you’d get if you converted all the BC.
K2 is important not only for blood clotting but also to make sure the calcium you intake goes into your bones and not into, say, your arteries. It is also implicated in dental health and in facial development in children. I’m about to start my daughter on a daily regimen of it because she’s only four and has already had to have nearly all her molars drilled and filled and one front tooth pulled as well. She had been on antibiotics for a year and a half for urinary reflux, but I was also malnourished during my pregnancy (not something I could really control–I was in extreme poverty at the time, at least extreme for the U.S.) and I think that had an effect as well.
Cod liver oil’s an excellent source of at least the A and D. I have heard of CLO preparations that include grass-fed butter oil as well, for the K2. But you can find K in other foods too, including ground beef.
I’m well aware of Weston Price and I’m interviewing Sally Fallon from the Foundation in April for my podcast! THANKS for your comments.
–Jimmy
Here is another good web site on vitamin D
http://www.vitaminD3world.com
They also offer a free newsletter which is quite good.
It has information on a safety study done in MS patients where they showed doses as high as 40,000IU per day are safe. Amazing how often we see folk telling everyone that vitamin D is toxic, they just dont know the facts
hi jimmy.
the D3-vitamin-wave flushed over sweden too =)
since 1,5 years i eat 4000IE (100 mcg) D3-vitamin every day. i call it my temper-vitamin.
if i feel sad = forgotten the D3-vitamins.
its as easy as that =)
exactly as easy as if my legs cramp i forgot to eat magnesium (or green/yellow bananas).
(magnesium works for restless legs too)
thanks a lot for sharing your information.
it´s always interesting to read what people “over the pond” thinks about things =)
i like that i don´t hear an aggressive tone in your writing.
in sweden the tone in lchf debates often are aggressive. so aggresive i often thought that lchf make people angry *lol*
Great posts! i must say im so impressed, where’d you get the idea of getting the title “Livin’ La Vida Low Carb” i really went out laughing out loud! the diet tips was so informative, and very helpful. I’ll keep on reading the rest of the posts here to learn more.
THANKS so much for your positive comments, Dr. John! I like your site, too, because it looks like you’re helping a lot of people as well. LLVLC just came to me while listening to Ricky Martin one day and it’s stuck. Today it’s the name of most of the projects in my business. I’d love to talk to you sometime about the work I do. E-mail me!
–Jimmy
Hi Jimmy. Some more anecdotes on Vitamin D3 supplementation.
Since our family has been supplementing, we really don’t get significantly sick anymore. It’s more of an annoyance than anything. Prior to supplementation, we’d have the kids at the dr. at least once a month during the winter. It’s now been over two years and no doctor visits, not even a significant fever.
My wife was pregnant with my daughter during the winter before we were supplementing. My daughter wound up having underdeveloped enamel on one of her molars, something that is apparently known to be correlated with Vitamin D deficiency during pregnancy. I started her on Vitamins D, A, and K2. The dentist was sure this tooth would need a root canal. The expression on her face once the X-rays came back was priceless: the tooth had basically re-enamelized itself, which is precisely the way it’s supposed to work (though dentists in general don’t seem to know this). As a family, our oral health has improved considerably since going low-carb and supplementing. No more cavities, not even really any scraping during dentist visits.
I have a neighbor who’s situation sounded a lot like Christine’s. She had chronic pain and fatigue, and was basically bed-ridden during the winter (she was subsequently diagnosed with Lyme disease). I finally got her on the Vitamin D wagon. The effect was dramatic and rapid. Both pain and depression were drastically reduced, where she cut out a good chunk of her meds.
THANKS for the encouragement, Dave! We’re excited to see what impact this is going to have on Christine’s health, too. She needs SOMETHING BIG to happen.
–Jimmy
No one has yet mentioned the series of You tube videos at Grassrootshealth.net What’s a Vitamin D Deficiency? by Robert Heaney, MD
Dose-Response of Vitamin D and a Mechanism for Cancer Prevention by Cedric Garland, Dr. P.H.
Skin Cancer/Sunscreen – the Dilemma by Edward Gorham, PhD
Vitamin D Deficiency: Analysis and Approach in a Comprehensive Cancer Center by Donald Trump, MD
Vitamin D and Diabetes-Can We Prevent it? Frank Garland
Vitamin D & Cardiovascular Disease- New Frontiers for Prevention
D-Lightful Vitamin D: Bone & Muscle Health & Prevention of Autoimmune &Chronic Diseases
by Dr. Michael Holick
they all have a lot to offer but some will make you very angry. The diabetes prevention and the skin cancer one are the ones that made me despair. All that evidence and no one does anything about it.
All they are asking is that we try to attain the vitamin d status humans would have had before we invented clothes.
What could be more natural that mothers breast milk being naturally vitamin d replete?
THANKS Ted! I’m working on an interview with someone from that organization as well as Dr. Holick.
–Jimmy
I’m coming to this a bit late, but a lecture that I really enjoyed was “Prospects for vitamin D nutrition,” by Reinhold Veith: http://wildhorse.insinc.com/directms13oct2005
I sent my grassroots blood test back last week. Even the south of England is further north than Vancouver, so I’m pretty sure it will be low, and have already started taking vit D.
Lemme know how your numbers turn out, Liz!
–Jimmy
The results came back: 36 ng/mL. That’s actually better than I expected, but I’ll try to get to 60-ish for the next test.
20 minutes in the sun accompanied by a (small) glass of a milk and maybe vitamins will undoubtedly provide ample vitamin d for promoting sun growth and keeping the body’s circadian rhythms in balance
I am just out of hospital..stayed 1 week for a stroke !The MDs are calling me a poster boy for the stroke program. I attribute my fast FULL recovery to daily VitD3 since last autumn. I already mentioned using iodide (SSKI) which cleared up my lifelong psoriasis,and that may have helped as well. The Primal program has me down from 196 to 149 since Jan and I feel energetic. I was annoyed at the high carb diet the hospital ‘pushed’,as well as using statin drugs when my cholesterol was fine with Great LDLs !!Let’s hope the hockey team will get more people being sensible!! Philip
CONGRATULATIONS, Philip!