A VERY interesting article on Vitamin D and chronic pain

Half the trick is getting tested. Most insurance companies balk at paying for a D level unless you have osteoporosis.
But it's probably worth paying for yourself if you live in the north or don't spend time in the sun on a daily basis.

I had mine tested in the winter and it came back 17. According to a study in Medscape, you need 100 units of D for every 1 ng you are low on the blood test. That meant for me I needed to take 4000 units a day to get to the bottom of the new normal of 50 to 90 I have read in some places. I take 2000 in the morning, and if I don't garden or stay out during the day another 2000 at suppertime. Since the toxic level is 10,000 units a day over a long time, what I'm taking isn't enough to worry me, and I hope it is helping my bones.

My result is that a good bit of my fibro muscle pain went away. It didn't help my arthritis or pinched nerve pain though.

I got my husband had brown spots on his shins for many years, wherever he bangs them. I got him to start taking 2000 a day and most of the brown spots started disappearing in a month. It is quite a dramatic difference!

My D was low and I'm now taking 5,500 IU of D3 a day.  I do have less pain than before.  It didn't get rid of the pain but helped ease it.  I also have more energy, too.  My doctor knows how much I'm taking and we periodically check my D levels.

 

Because of my low D, I wasn't absorbing calcium and now have osteoporosis.  I started taking calcium years BEFORE menopause just to prevent osteoporosis but didn't realize my D levels were so low.  Now I have to take medication for that, too.  Bummer! 

 

Vitamin D is an important vitamin.  We aren't in the sun like people used to be and, when we do go out in the sun, we wear sunscreen so we still aren't getting vitamin D.  There are very few food sources for D, also.  So, I take the supplements.  I have read that adults should take 2,000 IU of D a day but be sure to talk with your doctor first.  For the newbies, there is a link all about this in Fibro 101.

 

Sherrine

hi all, this has really worried me as i hardly ever leave the house rain or shine , i only go out to visit the dr or go to hospital and thats about 1 time per month. i dont sit outside as i feel very uncomfortalbe, my eyes are very sensitive to the light even tv can hurt them. maybe once evry 6 - 8 weeks i attempt an outing but always have to come home after maybe 1 hr. i wonder if its worth my time asking my gp to test my levels. mm !! i think ill ask and see what he says as iv got an app on thursday. do they they not check the levels when you get a blood test that asks for a fbc ? as iv had a lot of them recently. it wont hurt to ask him.
thanks for the info. i learn so much here.
shana