High Dose Vitamin D

Has anybody had success with Vitamin D in controlling their colitis? Dr. Cicero Coimbra uses high doses of Vitamin D to control autoimmune disorders - his success rate is very impressive. Would be interested to hear your experiences with Vitamin D :)

Swisher21 said...
Dr. Cicero Coimbra uses high doses of Vitamin D to control autoimmune disorders - his success rate is very impressive.

Yes vitamin D can help IBD along with several other conditions including depression and arthritis. The best thing you can do is get your blood levels of vitamin D checked. Most people are deficient but on the other hand blindly taking 'high doses' can be problematic since D is one vitamin that can be overdosed.

Optimum blood levels are 40-60 ng/ml. Over 100 can lead to an overdose. Everyone is different but I need about 5,000 units of D/day to get my blood levels around 55.

I've wondered about the different ways of raising vitamin D and how that might effect colitis. I don't know the answer, but when reading study articles sometimes this is mentioned.

When raising vitamin D levels with vitamin supplements of D2 or D3 it raises testing levels but not everything is gained that could be when exposed to the sun.

Sun or UVB generated vitamin D has other effects on the body. Vitamin D will be raised when skin is exposed to the sun, but so will several hormone levels be raised. With endorphin levels also rise with UV exposure. As an example, there is a theory that Low Dose Naltrexone (LDN) raises endorphin levels greatly and that is why it helps many with autoimmune diseases such as colitis, Crohns, MS, etc.

Personally raising my vitamin D levels to above 50ng/ml with vitamin pills hasn't helped my colitis all that much. Sensible UV exposure, where I avoid being burnt, I suspect has been more helpful to improving my health, in my case.

One example of this, is it sun generated vitamin D or vitamin D pills that helps:

"Is it sunshine or vitamin D that helps multiple sclerosis (MS) patients?"

http://www.vitamindcouncil.org/blog/is-it-sunshine-or-vitamin-d-that-helps-multiple-sclerosis-ms-patients/

Tried it. Zero benefit for me.

But, every body is different.

I took vitamin D since pretty early on in my diagnosis, and while I think it's smart to take it, especially if you have an AI illness and you're deficient, it didn't notice it providing any benefit to my UC. I think it's good for our overall health regardless.

I have been taking fermented cod liver oil which is the best possible source of vitamin d - far superior to these synthetic vitamin d supplements.

I've been taking approx 2 teaspoons per day and its made a big difference. I was in remission but since I started taking the cod liver oil my poops have been amazing and perfectly formed - no problems at all. My latest stool sample came back with very good results, very little inflammation at all.

Thanks for your replies everyone! Vitamin D is not toxic if it is used properly - it is calcium that becomes toxic, causing hypercalcaemia and potential damage the kidneys. For this reason, Dr. Cicero (whom I mentioned in the post) follows a strict protocol that restricts calcium, increases hydration (among other factors) whilst increasing active Vitamin D (25 OH) in the blood.

It takes time to increase the blood level - hence small or one-off doses will not be beneficial. Daily dosing needs to be monitored according to the individuals absorption. Those with autoimmune diseases have a resistance to the biological effects of D, hence we require much higher doses to compensate for this resistance and bring any theraputic benefit on immune function.