Vitamin D to combat the cold weather blues?

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Ellastrong
Ellastrong Posts: 64 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Just wondering if anyone takes a Vitamin D supplement once the cold weather rolls around? I'm already noticing I'm feel 'blue' due to the lack of sunshine. Curious if taking Vitamin D would help? Thanks for any suggestions!

Replies

  • erinkelly2
    erinkelly2 Posts: 43 Member
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    Wondering the same thing. I am gonig to try it so I will let you know.
  • trailrider1963
    trailrider1963 Posts: 69
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    I just started 5000 IUs a few days ago and I think (maybe) I feel a slight difference. I'm going to give it a few weeks. I hope it works, so tired of losing 4 or 5 months out of my life every fall & winter. Have you tried a light box? I recently started that a few minutes a day also.
  • Ellastrong
    Ellastrong Posts: 64 Member
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    I just started 5000 IUs a few days ago and I think (maybe) I feel a slight difference. I'm going to give it a few weeks. I hope it works, so tired of losing 4 or 5 months out of my life every fall & winter. Have you tried a light box? I recently started that a few minutes a day also.


    I hope that it works for you too!! I haven't heard of a light box before! I should do some research about it, thanks for letting me know! And good luck!
  • Ashleysh22
    Ashleysh22 Posts: 209
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    I drink shakeology which has plenty of vitamin D.

    Also - milk is an excellent source of vitamin D. All milk actually. Don't buy the "Vitamin D" milk cause that usually means whole milk. Fat free, 1%, and 2% should contain the same amount of Vitamin D
  • spookiewon
    spookiewon Posts: 59 Member
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    Vitamin D is a fat soluble vitamin, so you can get too much and overdose on it, so be careful with supplements. Unless you have a deficiency, 10 minutes outside in natural light will produce all the vitamin D you need, and more will not make you fell better. Seasonal Affective Disorder is not caused by vitamin D deficiency, so supplementing D will not alleviate it. If you don't have a deficiency and drink milk or spend at least 10 minutes a day outdoors in the daytime you most likely won't benefit from supplements. If you believe you are deficient, get a blood test, and if you are, your doctor will prescribe the correct amount of vitamin D for you. Fat soluble vitamins like D and E are not something to mess with as you can become toxic with OTC doses.

    A deficiency WILL make you tired, though not necessarily "blue." I am severely deficient ( as in my levels are so low they are below the measurable limits of the test) and I feel exhausted literally all the time, but this is not typical, so get tested if you believe you are deficient, but don't take more than 100IU or so if you don't know your levels. My doc has me on 20,000IU every other day, but again, my levels are too low to even be measurable using current testing methods. That much could kill you in a short time if you weren't severely deficient.
  • spookiewon
    spookiewon Posts: 59 Member
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    I just started 5000 IUs a few days ago and I think (maybe) I feel a slight difference. I'm going to give it a few weeks. I hope it works, so tired of losing 4 or 5 months out of my life every fall & winter. Have you tried a light box? I recently started that a few minutes a day also.

    5000iu is not considered a safe dose unless doctor supervised. 10 min of UV, from a light box or outdoors, will provide all the D needed unless you have a [tested] deficiency.
  • bentobee
    bentobee Posts: 321 Member
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    Yup. I am on a prescription Vitamin D for a severe deficiency.

    From what I've been reading over the last several months, MOST Americans are deficient. And even if you are in a sunny location you are not "safe" from being deficient. For unknown reasons people are not absorbing enough Vitamin D naturally (from the sun) any longer.

    It's not as easy to overdose as being described, either. Your body is not going to absorb all the Vitamin D that is ingested.
  • Ellastrong
    Ellastrong Posts: 64 Member
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    I just started 5000 IUs a few days ago and I think (maybe) I feel a slight difference. I'm going to give it a few weeks. I hope it works, so tired of losing 4 or 5 months out of my life every fall & winter. Have you tried a light box? I recently started that a few minutes a day also.

    5000iu is not considered a safe dose unless doctor supervised. 10 min of UV, from a light box or outdoors, will provide all the D needed unless you have a [tested] deficiency.

    Thanks for the heads up! I appreciate the info!
  • sarahbeatty
    sarahbeatty Posts: 11 Member
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    I suggest talking with your doctor and getting a blood test to determine your levels, and what the plan of treament should be:
    where I live, most people are deficient because of lack of sunshine. I was tested and came in at a whopping 17! (low normal is 31) YIKES! so i was put on a prescription of 50,000 IU for 2 months, then 2,000 twice a day. At my last check up I was in the normal range and i feel SO MUCH BETTER! it is amazing what a little Vitamin D can do!
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
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    Absolutely. I take a supplement any day I'm not going to be in the sun much, which is a most days since I'm usually chained to this desk all day.
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
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    I just started 5000 IUs a few days ago and I think (maybe) I feel a slight difference. I'm going to give it a few weeks. I hope it works, so tired of losing 4 or 5 months out of my life every fall & winter. Have you tried a light box? I recently started that a few minutes a day also.

    Most medical recommendations are for no more than 2000 IU per day unless perscribed by a doctor.
  • mamaturner
    mamaturner Posts: 2,533 Member
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    I recommend taking it regardless. I was actually diagnosed with low Vit D back in Feb or March and was put on 50,000 units a week- now I'm to 2,000 a day. Vit D symptoms can be very similar to RA and fibermialgia (although I still have the pain so it could have just flared everything as well)

    Vit D should always be checked when you go in for the "winter blues" or muscle/joint paint. Also your thyroid!

    I also recently started taking a combo of fish, flax and borage (omega 3, 6, 9- 1200 mg) I felt great within days
  • Melanie_Robinson
    Melanie_Robinson Posts: 36 Member
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    Dr Mercola @ mercola.com has lots of info on this subject. He recommends taking D3, if you are going to use a supplement. (His info is not mainstream and some may find it controversial.)
  • mamaturner
    mamaturner Posts: 2,533 Member
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    Dr Mercola @ mercola.com has lots of info on this subject. He recommends taking D3, if you are going to use a supplement. (His info is not mainstream and some may find it controversial.)

    I know I take D3 and that's what my RA told me to take
  • trailrider1963
    trailrider1963 Posts: 69
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    Thanks, everyone, for the info. Looks like I should cut back to 2000 until I talk to a doctor about it. I do take fish and flax oil already and it helps my ability to concentrate.

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