Cutting out/reducing vitamin expense

[disneysteve]

Steve,
DH woke up in the middle of the night with screaming knee pains a few months back. We figured arthritis. He got an xray, doc said his patella was calcified. Sent him for bloodwork. It came back as hyperparathyrodism. Doc set him up to see a specialist. Specialist called his regular doc back and said he wanted DH to get his vitamin D level checked first so he did. Came back severely deficient in vit.D. So here we are. DH is supposed to get his blood checked again soon for vit.D level and hyperparathyroidism.

Looking back, DH was having alot of joint pain and fatigue and was slowly getting worse but he didn't do anything about it until the knee thing. He's finally starting to feel better and its nice to have him back to his old self again

Glad he's doing better. I sure hope vit. D turns out to be worthwhile for others. I just don't think we know enough yet to know who actually needs supplementation or how much to give them.

[aurielle]

Glad he's doing better. I sure hope vit. D turns out to be worthwhile for others. I just don't think we know enough yet to know who actually needs supplementation or how much to give them.

Thanks Steve

We happen to have a good friend who is also a doc. He was our family doc too until he went to work for a hospital. He is patient and kind enough to not mind being an armchair second opinion and didn't seem to see anything wrong with our current doc's treatment for DH.

I enjoy reading your posts and seeing your point of view of things. You have a good, commonsense way about you and I appreciate your opinions. Just wanted to let you know.

[disneysteve]

Thank you, aurielle.

[Scanner]

Well, Steve has a commonsense way about him and I have a kooky way about me so it's time for some kookiness on Vitamin D.

I think DS is right - we don't know enough. However, I think what we are witnessing from all the new research being uncovered on Vitamin D is that sunshine plays a role in health and something we have been neglecting as a people.

Think about it. . .all the "sun-a-phobia" going on out there with all the sunblock and skin cancer warnings, which yes, is a problem, I am not denying.

There's a funny thing about skin cancer though. . .did you know a large amount of it is found in the urogenital and torso region? Now, if direct sun exposure were the main culprit, you would think think arms and legs would be the highest area of discovery. Why is a lot of it found in the nether regions, assuming most of us aren't nudists?

Not only that, research is uncovering that skin cancer may actually be a pediatric disease with geriatric consequences. THat is, the childhood sunburns are more problematic than any sun exposure we as adults get. It simply doesn't seem to matter to us old farts around the forum here.

Finally, I was a beach lifeguard so I am intimately familiar with high sun exposure. I still keep in touch with the beach bums who have made a career out of it (now lieutenants). I swear to God, they don't look like they have aged at all in the 20 years I have known them.

At all.

They look exactly the same in skin appearance (I think one of them may be doing Just for Men in his mustache, lol).

YOu would think they would be looking like 80 year old prunes. Yes, they use block and umbrellas but their sun exposure has to be higher, I don't care what you say. . .there's a lot of reflection of UV rays at the beach.

So. . .my kooky advice? Get out of the office, forget the sun block today (if you are over 25 y.o) and go out and make some Vitamin D. It's good for what ails ya.

I"ll let DS follow this post up with some commonsense advice

[Radiance]

I think, all in moderation, I do take sun, no sun block by hiking and enjoying outdoors. I have never been a beach goer (is that a word?)
I avoid sun from 11am-3 pm (live in florida).

Now, my poor son is way too white,so I use some sun block on his cheeks otherwise he gets a type of ecsema, but is all, some in his cheeks (the ones on his face)

[disneysteve]

Scanner, I've never thought your advice was "kooky" (that word always reminds me of The Addams Family - they're creepy and they're kooky...).

I think you are right. Childhood sun damage is probably the cause of a lot of adult skin cancer. I think that a limited amount of unprotected sun exposure, perhaps 15-20 minutes/day, is a good idea. It doesn't take long to get the vitamin D your body needs. So take your lunch and eat it out on the patio or take a walk or sit out and read the paper. Use sunscreen when you will be out for an extended period.

[Radiance]

In any case, and going back to subject, my 'need' for vitamis is just a safety net for now while I devise a decent meal planning. I estimate in 2-3 months?

My family has a vitamin B deficiency problem for generations and I need calcium magnesium to fight restless legs sometimes. But that is all I plan to keep once I get on a meal plan I feel comfortable with. I notice the vitamin B issue when I get Sciatic pain.

My son is always on the low side with his iron, but that seems to be a normal level for him. You will not find a nore energetic, bold and happy 1 year old! He eats brocoli and chicken. He eats meat once a week.

[Scanner]

It's true about moderation - look how Dr. Atkins finally got us to re-examine fats in our diet having a role in good nutrition. For years, it was accepted mantra, the lower the fat content, the better. The FDA had it at the top of the pyramid to be only used sparingly.

Now, oils are good for you.

Unfortunately, it takes some kookiness like that to finally get Americans to sit back and say, "Wait a minute. . ."

Just saying, "Go forth and be moderate. . ." is kind of vague.

[Joan.of.the.Arch]

I started using sunscreen the month I found out (1974?) such a thing existed because I knew that otherwise I was looking forward to many painful burns. I was the kid who had blisters on her cheeks and nose, and huge bubbles of blister (like shoulder pads!) on my shoulders. I developed what seem to be sunspots on my back and shoulders by the time I was twelve. When I was in high school and PABA came out, I spent money from my first job to buy it. Those were hard times for my family financially, yet I even prioritized sunscreen purchases over deodorant and shampoo--which is a huge deal for a teenager, but that is how sun sensitive I am. To me it was a godsend.

Of course, now we know that that PABA was letting damaging rays through.

I still use sunscreen everyday and I am outside nearly every day except in winter. Being outside 25-30 hours a week, I think I probably get enough sun for vitamin D purposes, even with the sunscreen. But you know what, this is the first year I can remember EVER that I did not get a sunburn anyway by this time in the summer.

Ha-ha, I'm a queen of big straw hats, too, but that is as much because my eyes are also so sensitive as it is to protect my skin.

I have wondered if my friends whose only body parts to ever get sun are face and hands could be getting enough vitamin D. I know they grew up without supplemented dairy products, too. One of them has had disabling rheumatism since fairly young and that makes me wonder, too. She was just showing me her prescription bone building supplements a couple of weeks ago. I don't remember whether vitamin D was one of them.

[Scanner]

As far as your dietary approach, if you say you are not vegan and don't need your approach in supplementation to be vegan, and you have a Vit. B deficiency, how about a juicy cheeseburger 1-2x/week? Or even better, but less available, some salmon?

Seriously, you'll find your proteins contain Vit B (is it a Vit. B12 deficiency or some other?) barring any intestinal problems that affect absorption. I think clams have the highest. . .not a big clam lover but I love mussels. I am going to a mussel feast in about 4 weeks in NJ. Nothing like mussels and beer (which brewer's yeast is a source of Vit. B, also)

So. . .I drink beer for health reasons and to get my vitamins

[Radiance]

Scanner, for some reason I can never get enough from food. I love clams and seafood in general, I eat salmon very often (every week or every other week) and I can do stake once a week. No matter what I do, I end up needing some more. I noticed it is also stress triggered. When under stress my sciatic starts hurting and some vitamin B stops the pain. (it also repels mosquitos, hehe)
It runs in my family, on my dad's side.My dad takes it every day. I only consume it when I am reminded by the pain. Same with calcium magnesium for my legs.

As per my baby, I am just concerned overall whether I am giving him a good variaty of nutritious food. He doesn't consume any junk food or sugar. Nothing with preservatives. No Kids cuisine or Mac Donalds, That is a start.

[Scanner]

Scanner, for some reason I can never get enough [sic: Vit. B] from food.

If that's really the case, then you may just be resigned to needing the B12 shots (again, I am assuming it's B12). The problem isn't your diet/injestion; you just don't have the ability to transport it across your intestine.

I'd hate to see you stressing over your supplementation (and the $$) when it may be better spent on a 1x/month copay to your PCP. And be patient with your PCP. . .sometimes I know they have to fiddle around with the dosage until they settle in on what you need, or at least it seems from what patients have told me (too much, too little, etc.)

Good luck.

[MarketingMama]

I think vitamin/mineral supplementation is NOT a category to penny-pinch on. There are so many supplements out there that not only don't really work, they are flat out BAD for you. The binders and fillers that they put in there are horrible.

I take an awesome liquid supplement that is $80 a month and worth every penny. My naturopathic doctor recommended it a while back. I have Lupus and am prone to lots of fatigue. When I started taking this, I noticed an increase in my energy right away. So my mom tried it and now she's hooked. Then she introduced it to a friend at work and now SHE's hooked!

The only problem is you have to have a doctor recommend the product. The company doesn't sell it to just anyone "off the street" because there is a protocol for taking it correctly and they want doctors who will explain it. (Not that it's difficult or anything, but I guess they want to make sure everyone's getting the most out of it, not overdoing or underdoing it, etc.)

Anyways, I am all for saving money but you couldn't pay ME to give up this supplement! LOL

~Lisa~

[Joan.of.the.Arch]

What binders and fillers? Off hand, magnesium stearate seems the most common. Surely you don't find that horrible.