Is she a doctor or "a doctor like Dr. Pepper's a doctor"?

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  • tryett
    tryett Posts: 530 Member
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    I take more Vit d than that a day. But I am always deficient. At one time I was taking prescription for it, 100,000 units twice a week.
  • Cjmi427
    Cjmi427 Posts: 26 Member
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    @ketonekaren I'm working on the caffeine and will consider the alcohol if I don't see enough results.

  • geneticsteacher
    geneticsteacher Posts: 623 Member
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    My doctor prescribed a very high dose of Vitamin D when blood work showed mine was extremely low. It was cheap. You can also buy cheaper Vit D, Fish Oil, and probiotics (or yogurt for that matter), a lot cheaper than $240/month!
  • RodaRose
    RodaRose Posts: 9,562 Member
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    10,000 is beyond the safe limit of Vit D:
    https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/VitaminD-Consumer/
    Yes, when amounts in the blood become too high. Signs of toxicity include nausea, vomiting, poor appetite, constipation, weakness, and weight loss. And by raising blood levels of calcium, too much vitamin D can cause confusion, disorientation, and problems with heart rhythm. Excess vitamin D can also damage the kidneys.

    The upper limit for vitamin D is 1,000 to 1,500 IU/day for infants, 2,500 to 3,000 IU/day for children 1-8 years, and 4,000 IU/day for children 9 years and older, adults, and pregnant and lactating teens and women. Vitamin D toxicity almost always occurs from overuse of supplements. Excessive sun exposure doesn't cause vitamin D poisoning because the body limits the amount of this vitamin it produces.


  • geneticsteacher
    geneticsteacher Posts: 623 Member
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    10,000 IU/day is a lot! I was prescribed 50,000 IU once a week for 2 months, then OTC 1,000 IU daily.
  • tomteboda
    tomteboda Posts: 2,171 Member
    edited August 2016
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    I take 5,000 IU a day for VitD3 , but I have lupus. It's on a doctor's order's, I was running exceptionally low VitD.
  • andrea1kay
    andrea1kay Posts: 7 Member
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    She knows her stuff. If you want to reduce inflammation in your body, and feel your best, I would follow her recommendations. Doesn't even need to be all at once. Ease into it. Start with the Vitamin D. There are lots of ways to get probiotics without having to spend $$$ on them. I regularly drink Kefir, mixed with frozen fruits. It's a fermented milk. Sauerkraut, and other home ferments can help you achieve that recommendation with little cost to you. I'm learning how to make healthier versions of the foods I love. One example is making my own fruit leathers and granola bars and cookies for my kid. I know what goes in. Not a bunch of chemicals and colorants like on that processed boxed crap.
  • lynn_glenmont
    lynn_glenmont Posts: 9,969 Member
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    I would be concerned about a doctor who makes the same recommendations to "everyone" or even "often" without apparently any reference to your specific situation. Did she mention any symptoms or medical conditions you have that make the probiotics or fish oil advisable? Surely the hospital test results would have included blood chemistry tests indicating whether or not you have a vitamin D deficiency, but from the OP's account, that wasn't mentioned either.

    Every profession has people who aren't great at their jobs.
  • Orphia
    Orphia Posts: 7,097 Member
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    Cjmi427 wrote: »
    I went to see a new PCP to confirm that some symptoms I was having were anxiety related. She said they were and then suggested I try lifestyle changes before using medications. I don't want any meds unless I really need them, so that was good. However, then she started talking about how an important part of everyone's health is gut flora and that she recommends that everyone take a specific probiotic ($30 for a month's supply for 1 person) and cut out sugar and processed food. She added that she often recommends fish oil supplements and up to 10,000 IU of Vitamin D per day as well (we live in Michigan).
    Some of this sounds a bit like quackery to me, but I'm unsure of how to find out if there are peer reviewed studies demonstrating that her recommendations are evidence based. Furthermore, I am concerned that she is recommending such expensive supplements that aren't covered by health insurance. It would cost our family an additional $240 a month if we all followed her suggestions! Not to mention the inconvenience of removing all sugar and processed food from our diets. We'd have to make some serious (to us) sacrifices to make that happen.
    So, how would you go about fact checking what she's said?

    She's Dr Pepper alright!

    Cochrane Reviews are the best. Strictly evidence-based meta-studies on health.

    http://www.cochrane.org/evidence


    Awesome medical blog on all things pseudoscience:

    https://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/


    Another good site on supplements and nutrition:

    https://examine.com/
  • Angelajeanmcmahan85
    Angelajeanmcmahan85 Posts: 23 Member
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    You may need a Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor like I do. I take vitamins and other supplements and eat pretty healthy and still felt anxiety really badly. Went through a few trials w medications and zoloft has truly helped me. I know what a panic attack is like too well. But on this medication I really feel and live alot better
  • fishshark
    fishshark Posts: 1,886 Member
    edited August 2016
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    i have depression and anxiety and am very low in D (and i live in sunny san diego). when my levels are higher i do feel a bit better with my depression and anxiety. Its not magical but the little improvement is awesome. also just going outside and moving... getting sunshine fresh air and my blood pumping makes a huge difference. I also have crohns disease which makes absorbing nutritens almost impossible lol. Probiotics help with my stomach pain and bloating.. im not a dr but i personally think any good bacteria is good bacteria so i take them/eat feemented food

    edit- when my levels where an 8 i got perscriped 50,000 once a week. My levels at 20 i was given only 5k. (i actually never took the 50,000 because i was afraid it was too much haha)
  • MARILYNENA
    MARILYNENA Posts: 53 Member
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    It seems alot of people with weight issues are lacking on vitamin D. Here's the vitamins I am taking Multi vitamin mineral supplement, D3, Fish Oil Capsules, COQ10, Vitamin E for my fatty liver...I pick them up at COSTCO and they cost less than 50 dlls for a years supply. I feel great. Good Luck!
  • rainbowbow
    rainbowbow Posts: 7,490 Member
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    If i were in your shoes and experiencing "panic" level anxiety i wouldn't be faffing about with random supplements; i'd be getting real medication or finding the cause of said anxiety.


    Lifestyle modification should also include exercise, meditation, self soothing techniques, etc. Not just taking these supplements.

    In general, it's a good idea only to recommend these supplements based on medical necessity by means of a blood test. That being said, i know that vitamin d, fish oil, AND probiotics are on the list of "treatment" options for a whole slew of health issues ranging from anxiety, depression, to personality disorders.


    http://universityhealthnews.com/daily/depression/borderline-personality-disorder-treatment-research-promising-for-natural-omega-3/

    http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0015297/

    http://www.webmd.com/depression/features/fish-oil-to-treat-depression

    https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-breakthrough-depression-solution/201111/psychological-consequences-vitamin-d-deficiency

    https://www.theguardian.com/science/2015/oct/18/probiotic-bacteria-bifidobacterium-longum-1714-anxiety-memory-study






    So, honestly? It sounds to me like she's offering the best she can with what you asked of her. Again, if i was you i would have said "YES, PLEASE give me an actual anti-anxiety medication".
  • KiyaK
    KiyaK Posts: 519 Member
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    Cjmi427 wrote: »
    So, how would you go about fact checking what she's said?

    Read books, watch documentaries, consult experts in the field. These things are not "one size fits all." When it comes to nutrition there are a million different ways to think. There are a million "experts" and what works for one person fails for another. Get yourself educated. Try different ways of eating/supplementing. See how you respond to them.

    If you dont actually want to put in that time & effort, there's this awesome thing the Internet invented called "The Google." Thing is, you have to be smart and only pay attention to the sites that are reliable, intelligent & supported by knowledge/research. Ex: Mayo Clinic. I mean, Google is only slightly more horrifying than asking randos in an online forum anyway. You might actually stumble onto a reliable source through Google... maybe...

    Personally, if my doctor recommended I get on probiotics, eat whole foods, cut out sugar & take vitamin D, we'd be besties for life. Mostly because I have been interested in nutrition & alternative medicine (aka not solving all your problems with pills like in western meds) for most of my life & those recommendations line up with my knowledge & experience better than most of what my various doctors over the years have told me (we move often). Plus, I'm already doing most of that stuff...

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