From Lauren: Today’s post comes from Kristin Savory, a licensed acupuncturist, who recently discussed the difference between food based and synthetic supplements on Empowered Sustenance. Like Kristin, I believe that vitamin D is better absorbed when it comes in a biodynamic food source, which is why I supplement with fermented cod liver oil (a supplement that Kristin discusses in this post). Another source that may be helpful to you as you consider vitamin D supplementation is Chris Kresser’s discussion on vitamin D here. He touches on the research suggesting that the optimal vitamin D level might be much lower than is currently recommended.
Seems like everyone is shouting about the benefits of vitamin D these days.
A lot of people are testing low for it, smart docs are recommending it and even more folks are taking high-dose vitamin D therapies on a regular basis.
High-dose vitamin D therapy might feel good in the short term. You might experience an increase in energy or a shift in your mood. Maybe you’ll feel a little stronger, or even more resilient.
Most people feel better with high dose therapies in the short run because of severe deficiencies in our diets and lifestyles.
But is the high- dose vitamin D you’re taking working well for your body?
Problems with Synthetic Vitamin D Supplementation
Over the long haul, dosing with a synthetic nutrient- in particular vitamin D- may have unwanted consequences (read more about the differences between whole foods and synthetic supplements here.)
When considering supplementation, it is wise to understand a few critical points about vitamin D.
- The RDA for vitamin D is between 200 and 400iu. Doses of 50,000iu can be toxic. These days, it is common practice for professionals to recommend 4,000- 10,000iu units on a regular basis. Now, I’m not one to throw around RDAs because those numbers generally reflect isolated compounds. But when it comes to the miracles of vitamin D, more is definitely not better because of factor number 2.
- Your body stores vitamin D. You’ve got a smart body, yes, you do. You can make this nutrient in the sun and you can also get some D’s from food. Yet, your body “knows” that vitamin D is not always readily available due to cloudy days or a deficient diet. To even things out, your body stores vitamin D in fatty tissues like your liver, skin, brain and bones [note…vitamin D is not stored in blood]. That’s good news if you’re getting your D from food sources, but if you’re taking high doses of D that means you’re at risk for toxicity over time.
- Vitamin D does not work alone. In foods, nutrients work synergistically and vitamin D is no stranger to this kind of partnering. Foods that are high in vitamin D often contain vitamin A and lots of essential fatty acids. All of these nutrients work together to get your D’s to work more effectively. To read more about how vitamin D and A function together read this article by Sally Fallon and Mary Enig and this article by Chris Masterjohn.
Vitamin D toxicity is nothing to joke about.
Vitamin D is a big helper in calcium absorption and metabolism, so it goes to follow that too much vitamin D often leads to symptoms involving too much calcium. Symptoms can include, nausea, loss of appetite, headache, kidney stones, calcium deposits in the soft tissue (i.e. kidneys, heart, and lung), as well as hypercalcemia. [Hypercalcemia is a fancy word for too much calcium in the blood, which can put unnecessary strain on the kidneys.
Because vitamin D is stored in fat, toxicity is going to vary from person to person. Unfortunately, young kiddos and babies are most at risk.
Research has indicated that your body reacts differently to synthetic and food sources of vitamin D. According to Judith DeCava, CNC, LNC, author of The Real Truth About Vitamins and Antioxidants:
One of the effects associated with taking excessive amounts of the chemically isolated, synthetic vitamin D is high blood pressure. Yet studies with cod liver oil, a source of natural vitamin-D complex, report a reduction in blood pressure if previously elevated.
After comparing synthetic and natural sources of D, researchers-Barnes, Brady and James- have concluded: “It would seem that we are not justified in considering rat units of vitamin D in irradiated ergosterol [a synthetic form of vitamin D] as being equivalent to the same number of rat units of vitamin D in cod liver oil [a natural source] as a curative or prophylactic remedy for rickets.”
Food-Based Vitamin D Supplementation
Does this mean that you should ditch vitamin D?
Heck no, D is critical for mineral metabolism, bone growth, proper cell permeability, and a healthy nervous system. And, as it turns out, vitamin D may also have a critical role in hormone production through the thyroid and parathyroid glands.
Instead of relying on a high-dose vitamin D therapy, consider siding with Mother Nature and get your D’s in with these 3 low-cost alternatives:
- Eat foods high in vitamin D: Our bodies can’t make vitamin D on it’s own, but we can get significant amounts from our food. Higher levels of vitamin D are found in fish, butter, cheese, pastured lard, liver and pastured eggs. Fatty fish, like tuna and salmon, rank the highest in vitamin D.
- Take a break in the sun: A young, healthy body can make up to 10,000iu of vitamin D in one day of sun exposure. For most of us, plenty is made within 10 minutes of sitting in the sun on a daily basis. Skip the sunscreen, peel off the sunglasses, and give yourself the gift of 10 glorious minutes of vitamin D therapy in the sun. [Note: Depending on age, angle of the sun, and tissue health the amount of vit D made from sun bathing can vary. Always pair a sun break with other food sources of vitamin D.]
- Supplement with cod liver oil: If you’re still not convinced on the amount of D that you’re getting in any one day, cod liver oil might be your best bet to cover your bases. Look for an oil that is not tampered with or processed with peroxides, with a ratio of 10:1 vitamin A to D. You can find a high-quality, fermented cod liver oil here. Follow the dosage on the bottle or consider these recommendations.
When making changes in how we think about a particular supplement (especially one that is touted as often as vitamin D), it can be helpful to seek inspiration and reassurance. Weston A. Price, DDS, author of the revolutionary book, Nutrition and Physical Degeneration wrote:
“Nature has been making normal birds, butterflies, and animals for millions of years. If wild animals can do it why cannot we? Is it because they, by their instinct, select the right foods and do not meddle with Nature’s foods by changing them?”
Switching the high-dose Vit D to low-dose-but-works-like-a-charm cod liver oil may not seem like a big deal, but your body undoubtedly knows the difference.
Now, I’ve got a question for you. I want to hear your story. How do you get vitamin D? Have you been taking a high-dose supplement or are you already a fan of natural sources?
Sources:
DeCava,CNC, LNC , The Real Truth About Vitamins and Anti-oxidants, pp. 97-106. D.R. Fraser, “Vitamin D,” The Lancet, Vol. 345, No.8942, (14 January 1995), pp.192-198. D.J. Barnes, M.J. Brady, and E.W. James, “Comparative Value on Irradiated Ergosterol and Cod Liver Oil as a Prophylactic Antirachitic Agent When Given in Equivalent Dosage According t the Rat Unit of Vitamin D,” American Jounal of Diseases in Children, Vol.39, (1930), p.45. R.A. Buist, “Vitamin Toxicities, Side Effects and Contraindications, “International Clinical Nutrition Review, Vol. 4, No.4, (1984), pp.159-171.About the author: Kristin Savory
Kristin Savory, LAc, helps women heal their thyroids and balance their hormones so they can live their most vibrant lives. She does this naturally through acupuncture and the wisdom of whole-food nutrition. Hop on her newsletter by clicking here and find delicious Recipes to Heal Your Thyroid and learn the first steps towards Balancing Your Hormones Naturally at www.kristinsavory.com
I’m curious if you’re familiar with the work of Dr. Trevor Marshall from The Marshall Protocol who talks about vitamin d being a negative steroid especially in relationship to auto immune disease. I have no idea if he’s way out there or on to something.
Justin, Trevor Marshall has been pilloried for his theories on vitamin D which is not a vitamin but a precursor hormone. There is still too much unresolved on vitamin D which indicates much more research needs to happen. For me personally, everything that Trevor Marshall has published is relevant to me. I followed his protocol for 5 years and went from bedridden to a quality of life I never expected.
This is a recent paper on Inflammation and Vitamin D – The Infections Connection
http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00011-014-0755-z
i followed all this advice…literally. sun exposure, cod liver oil, lots of vit d rich foods for several years and still have a vit d level of 23.
i’m supplementing with some D3 and will see if my levels go up.
are you saying that blood levels are not a good measure at all?
There is some disagreement about Vit D in regards to blood testing. Note that Vit D is not stored in the blood. Some people seem to transfer it at different saturation levels.
Chris Kressers’s article/podcast found here (http://chriskresser.com/surprising-new-vitamin-d-research-the-myth-of-multi-tasking-and-how-the-internet-is-rewiring-our-brains) does bring to light some of these inconsistencies.
The most important piece to remember is that nutrients found in a nature are not isolated. Vit D is always balanced with other components. A synthetic supplement will never beat good old fashioned sunshine and cod liver oil.
Talk more with your doctor about your lab results. If everything else is fine….then maybe a lower blood count of Vit D is ok for you. Just something to consider.
In response to the statement in Eat Foods High in Vitamin D, all the literature I’ve read states the body can make its own Vitamin D from 7-dehydrocholesterol through exposure to the sun.
Otherwise, great article! A good reminder to get out in the sun, and to make sure we’re eating a balanced diet.
Hello. Thanks for your article. I appreciate many of your points, especially food based source vitamins, and questions regarding blood tests. I think it would be good to make a distinction with vitamin D3 here. As a previous commenter mentioned it is not food based, and people are commonly deficiant regardless of sun exposure. If one tests as deficiant of D3, has symptoms of low D3, and has a condition that commonly presents low D3, start D3 vitamins. The decision to start high dose therapy is based on a combination of factors from my understanding and is not done for everyone with low D3 test results. It is also my understanding that for some people, D3 is just not absorbed and retained, regardless of the normal storage of it in fat. Doctors take the fact that it is stored in fat into account when prescribing doses. Also high dose therapy is temporary. Once a patient completes it they go down to a more normal dose that is determined by one’s own special needs. I say all this because I have a vitamin D3 deficiency and have been on high dose therapy and it did exactly what it was supposed to do. I have taken a maintenance dose 3 or 4k a day for 9 years now with no negative side effects. 2 to 4 hundred is ineffective for me. Twice I have stopped taking D3 to see if I would feel a difference. After about four days I became less able to think clearly, my mood was lower, and everything seemed more difficult to deal with. I already eat a clean diet and eat healthy fats and take fish suppliments. High quality D3 supplementation is necessary for me. My body just does not process and retain it for optimal health. I agree that one should always use nature’s source first, but for a myriad if reasons it seems many people need more (I say this after hearing from many others in the autoimmune community).
The year I developed Ulcerative colitis coincided with a plummet in my vit D level. (I have been taking part in D-Action’s vit D study). I also had a decent tan. I kind of wonder if it’s the auto immune disorder that somehow messes up the vitamin D level. Regardless, I now have difficulty maintaining a decent vit D level. I take Green Pastures Fermented CLO/butter oil at the recommended 2 capsules per day but the bottle does not say how much D or A you are getting. While on this dose I have also developed osteoporosis, so I am really really concerned. I’m considering buying safe tanning lights to get better UV exposure. (I live in Canada) Overdose risk is gone then. I won’t have to rely on my messed up digestion for my D vitamins anyways.
I trust Dr. Mercola and his advice on taking Vitamin D supplements. I think that taking none is not good and you should have a reliable source that you can trust with what you need to know about the needs of your body.
I have tried a few things for nature vit D – even very occasional use of sun beds as often in Scotland in winter there is very little sunlight especially when you work indoors and when you are outside you have not skin on show! I also try to eat raw organic egg yolks and organic butter and am trying to sneak more liver into my diet where i can!
none of this mentions living in the north….anywhere above Denver, from November to March the sun’s angle is wrong for the right UV rays for our skin…..rickets was VERY common, a vit. D deficiency based illness, of soft bones in kids….. also from my nutrition instructor, contrary to this article, it is VERY difficult to OD on vit, D. in order to consume enough Vit D for the short comings, the amounts are extraordinary…
I take fermented fish oil along with ghee but also in late winter supplement d3 from lanolin. I wonder if I put lanolin on my skin, I could absorb vitamin d that way.
I don’t recommend FCLO since polyunsaturated oils are VERY unstable, oxidizing quickly when exposed to oxygen, light and heat—even just sitting in a bottle, but also when they go into our bodies—and turning rancid. (including omegas) Also Fermented foods require a glucose source to create (metabolize) a by-product e.g. lactic acid that prevents the food from decomposing. The result is a pleasant sour taste that one would find
with sauerkraut, pickles, yogurt, etc. Cod liver oil has no glucose and cod livers have very little glucose (mostly protein, fat, water and some minerals). The livers and the oil simply go from fresh to rancid in a short period of time. If left to continue decomposing the oil will become putrid leaving a foul smell and taste. Rancid fish oil no thanks.
You might get an omega 3 RBC count to make sure it’s getting absorbed properly rather than relying on speculation on the internet about rancid oils..