Pump up your Osteopenia treatments with Vitamin D

Recent research reveals how important Vitamin D is in Osteopenia treatments! Recent studies place it 'center stage' in bone building.

Get the basic information.

1. Vitamin D is the key to calcium absorption. When there is a deficiency, there is always a negative effect on bone density.

   In children, such a deficiency can lead to rickets, in adults, to osteomalacia. Both of these are bone softening conditions. Both can be treated successfully with supplements.

2. Vitamin D has three main forms and all three are important:
   • First, is the form as it is absorbed - either from our intestines or from our skin through ultraviolet rays in sunlight.
   • Second is the form created in our liver from the first absorbed form. This second form is called 25 hydroxy-vitamin D5.Our bodies have more of this 2nd form than any other.
   • The third form is the most important. It is made in our kidneys from the 2nd form (25 hydroxy-vitamin D). This 3rd form is the active form and it is called calcitriol (1.25 dihydroxy-Vitamin D). This is the form that helps in the absorption of calcium.
   Note the importance of our liver and kidneys in the transformation from the first into the third form. The main reason that excess alcohol makes for poor bone building ( see: Osteopenia Risks ) is its negative effect on the liver.It is also the reason why kidney disease is often a precursor to Osteopenia or Osteoporosis.

3. Calcium supplements are only helpful if there is enough stage 3 Vitamin D in the body to ensure that the calcium can be absorbed.

Protect yourself with this information:

Why?

When we are in the process of converting stage 2 Vitamin D into its stage 3 form, it is pararthyroid hormone (PTH) that stimulates our kidneys to do this conversion. If you have too much stage 2 Vitamin D in your body, that can cause the release of too much parathyroid hormone (PTH).

Because PTH also stimulates osteoclasts - the cells that dissolve bone, releasing too much PTH can lead to bone loss. You do not want too much PTH in your system - especially if you have Osteoporosis or Osteopenia. It can sabotage your whole plan for Osteopenia treatments

If you take too much Vitamin D, you could stimulate a cycle of bone loss. Taking too much can backfire in Osteopenia treatments - Vitamin D usage.

How Calcitriol became a Bone building medication.

Direct supplementation with Calcitriol is a medical treatment. However. Calcitriol can cause problems also. It can raise calcium levels too much. And its long term use can damage our kidneys. Calcitriol has to be monitored. (This is another reason why you need your health care provider involved in monitoring your Osteoporosis and Osteopenia treatments.)

So, how much Vitamin D is enough?

Why? There are several reasons for this:

1. Some people have a genetic predisposition that prevents adequate absorption of Vitamin D from food or sunlight.

   In 1994, the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases News noted that researchers at the Garvan Institute of Medical Research in Sydney Australia, had discovered the gene that affected Vitamin D's action on bone and calcium metabolism.

   We now know that those with the BB version of the Vitamin D Receptor [VDR] gene have the lowest bone density and those with Bb version have the next lowest. Persons with the bb version of Vitamin D receptor gene have the best bone density. (This study may give us the reason why 'genetic factors' have long been included among the risks for Osteoporosis and Osteopenia. See:Risk Factors Osteoporosis.

   Persons without the negative genetic predisposition , can usually gain sufficient Vitamin D from sunlight exposure. The following apply to the uptake of Vitamin D from sunlight.

   • The lighter your skin, the more Vitamin D you make. If you have fair skin, for example, and live in a temperate climate zone, it takesjust 15 minutes a day to produce 100 - 200 units of vitamin D3. If your skin is darker, it takes longer.

   • If you use sun protector of SPF of 8 or higher, it will block the ultraviolet rays necessary for this process to take place. But ultravioletlight increases skin cancer risk. So, health care providers such as Leon Root M.D. recommend that their clients use no sunscreen for the first few minutes BUT THEN apply sunscreen with a SPF of 15 or better for the rest of their time in the sun as part of their plans for Osteoporosis or Osteopenia treatments. Others, such as Miriam Nelson, Ph.D. are more cautious and advise wearing sun protection with SPF of 15 on very vulnerable parts of the body such as the face but allow exposure of arms and legs for 10 - 15 minutes at mid-day but then apply sunscreen after that time is up. The sun can be part of a Osteopenia treatment plan.

   • Those who live North of the 42nd parallel in the Northern Hemisphere or South of the 42nd parallel in the Southern Hemisphere, can not get sufficient sunlight in winter to produce adequate amounts of viatmin D. This is significant for those living in Canada or in the USA eg. Boston, Minnesota etc. as well as those living in Argentina and Chile. They need some additional help in their Osteopenia treatments.

   • As we age, it appears that our ability to make Vitamin D from sunlight exposure decreases. Again, this may mean that we need supplements as part of our Osteopenia treatment plan.

2. Liver and kidney disease can interfere with the Vitamin D processing cycle ...as can alcohol, anti-convulsive drugs etc. And so someone with any of these conditions may need greater supplementation.

For all these reasons, it is important to discuss your requirements for Vitamin D with your health care provider. He or she may even recommend a blood test to determine your current levels and then make recommendations after reviewing the results.

These things are important. You can take lots of calcium but if you do not have sufficient (and not too much) Vitamin D, it will not work as an Osteopenia treatment.

The Harvard School of Public Health offers a guideline:
"The current recommended intake of vitamin D is 5 micrograms up to age 50, 10 micrograms between the ages of 51 and 70, and 15 micrograms after age 70. Very few foods naturally contain vitamin D. Good sources include dairy products and breakfast cereals (which are fortified with vitamin D), and fatty fish such as salmon and tuna. For most people, the best way to get the recommended daily intake is by taking a multivitamin."

NOTE: If your supplement uses IU instead of microgram, 40IU = 1 microgram. So the Harvard recommendation for those between 51 and 70 would be 10 X 40 or 400 IU.

Recently the Mayo Institute has issed guidlines of 400 - 600 IU for those between age 51 and 70. Those at least 71 years old should take 600 -800 IU a day. No one, according to the Mayo Clinic should take more than 2,000 IU of Vitamin D a day.

Do check your various supplements to see how much Vitamin D you are taking in total. AND do check as to the form of Vitamin D. D3 is particularly important for those of us wanting to build strong bones.

Food sources? Egg yolks, fatty fish, fish oils - especially cod liver oil, liver and often store bought milk is fortified with Vitamin D.

Enhance your Osteopenia Treatments with good sources of Vitamin D

Food sources high in Vitamin D.:

• Halibut - 3 ounces gives 680 IU
• Pink Salmon - 1/4 cup gives 400 IU
• Tuna - 1/4 cup give 130 IUli>Shrimp - 4 oz. gives 162 IU
• Milk - 1 cup [8 oz] gives 100 IU
• Fortified rice or soy beverage 1 cup 100 IU
• Orange juice fortified with vitamin D and calcium - 8 oz gives10 IU.
• Yogurt - 6 oz - gives 80 IU

NOTE: Although cold water fish is a good source, this needs to bebalanced by recent reports that fish now contains significant amountsof mercury. And mercury is detrimental to the nervous system.

Another good resource can be found at vitamin D .

For those who are over age 50. Remember that as we get older, it seems that our ability to utilize Vitamin D decreases.There are a number of studies that show that Vitamin D has both a positive affect on bone density AND on the prevention of fractures.

Research about Vitamin D and Osteoporoiss and Osteopenia treatments

J Clin Invest. 1985 October; 76(4): 1536–1538. "Aging decreases the capacity of human skin to produce vitamin D3." J MacLaughlin and M F HolickRead the full article at Aging...Vitamin D

"Vitamin D insufficiency in a population of healthy western Canadians." Diana Rucker, Jane A. Allan, Gordon H. Fick, David A. Hanley. Read complete article Healthy Western Canadians - Vitamin D .

More articles about Vitamin D and Osteoporosis and Osteopenia treatments:

Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1982 May; 79(10): 3325–3329. 1,25-Dihydroxyvitamin D3: short- and long-term effects on bone and calcium metabolism in patients with postmenopausal osteoporosis . J C Gallagher, C M Jerpbak, W S Jee, K A Johnson, H F DeLuca, and B L Riggs.

Effect of vitamin D on bone mineral density of elderly patients with osteoporosis responding poorly to bisphosphonates . George A Heckman, Alexandra Papaioannou, Rolf J Sebaldt, George Ioannidis, Annie Petrie, Charlie Goldsmith,and Jonathan D Adachi.

References used about Osteoporosis and Osteopenia treatments:

Allan R. Cook [ed] Osteoporosis Sourcebook . Omnigraphics, 2002.

Harris H. McIlwarin, M.D. and Debra Fulghum Bruce, Ph.D. Reversing Osteopenia Henry Holt, 2004.

Miriam E. Nelson, Ph.D. and Sarah Wenich, Ph.D. Strong Women, Strong Bones . G. P. Putnam, 2000.

Leon Root M. D. & Betty Kelly Sargent. Beautiful Bones without Hormones. Gotham. 2004

Stepehen Schettini. The Osteoporosis Remedy Penguin Putman, 2001. pp. 85-87.