Vitamin D Council Newsletter Tuesday, March 6, 2012 3:23 PM Vitamin D Newsletter
March 6, 2012
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This newsletter is in part made possible by the support of our sponsors
Vitamin D and risk of CVD in overweight and obese women
March 1, 2012 -- John Cannell, MD
One of the most replicated findings in vitamin D research is that the higher your vitamin D, the less you weigh; the lower your vitamin D, the more you weigh. Conventional wisdom says that fat-soluble vitamins, like D, dissolve themselves in fat and disappear from the blood.
Another explanation is even simpler: if you dissolve a teaspoon of sugar in a glass of water, it will be sweeter than if you dissolve it in a quart of water. That is, anything (vitamin D) dissolved in a limited mass (fat) will be more concentrated.
Body weight and vitamin D blood levels
But what about the possibility of vitamin D playing a causative role, not just an associative role, in obesity and body mass? That is, to a limited extent, does vitamin D act like a diet pill? Last week, Dr. Selehpour of the Tehran University of Medical Sciences found some interesting results in her randomized controlled trial.
Salehpour A, Shidfar F, Hosseinpanah F, Vafa M, Razaghi M, Hoshiarrad A, Gohari M. Vitamin D3 and the risk of CVD in overweight and obese women: a randomised controlled trial. Br J Nutr. 2012 Feb 9:1-8. [Epub ahead of print]
In this RCT of 77 overweight women, they gave half a small dose of vitamin D (1,000 IU/day), and half a placebo. In just 12 weeks, the vitamin D group had lost five more pounds than the control group. They also found improved scores in lipoprotein/cholesterol ratios for better heart health in the vitamin D group verses the placebo. Which brings some readers to a question: “If I want to diet, how much vitamin D should I take?”
First, 5,000 IU/day is for otherwise healthy adults weighing average adult weight (125-200 pounds). If you’re above this weight, however, 32 IU per pound per day is a good rule of thumb (as reported in the “Body weight and vitamin D blood levels” blog above. This means that a 300lb person would need 10,000 IU/day, though it wouldn’t surprise me if they needed more. Only way to know is to test blood levels. As your weight decreases, it is important to reduce your dose.
I doubt vitamin D is a classic diet pill. It may work by increasing your activity as your “get up and go” is back. Just lying on the sofa popping vitamin D pills will get you nowhere, however. Follow that urge to take the walk, clean out the garage, and take that weekend trip.
Click here to comment on this blog
Understanding vitamin D analogue studies February 29, 2012 -- Brant Cebulla
Brant Cebulla explains endocrine and autocrine functions of vitamin D and looks into a recent study published about chronic kidney disease and activated vitamin D. Continue reading → (open access)
"The End of Illness" needs a dose of vitamin D
February 28, 2012 -- Dr William Grant
Dr Grant reviews the book, The End of Illness by David B. Agus, M.D. (Free Press, NY, 2011)who may have some good points regarding lifestyle choices, but misses the mark regarding vitamin D by a wide margin. Continue reading → (open access)
Body weight and vitamin D blood levels
February 27, 2012 -- John Cannell, MD
Who needs more vitamin D, a 250lb fit man who has 12 percent total body fat or a 250lb obese man who has 50 percent total body fat? Continue reading → (open access)
Association between vitamin D and inflammation after heart attack
March 1, 2012 -- John Cannell, MD
Ever wonder what happens to your heart after you have a heart attack? Your heart starts fixing itself, or remodeling, a sign of permanent cardiac injury. Dr Cannell discusses the study which shows a relationship between Vitamin D blood levels and damage done during a heart attack. Continue reading → (membership required)
Help support the Vitamin D Council
The Vitamin D Council is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. We rely on the contributions of individual donors to support our efforts in educating the public on vitamin D and the deficiency pandemic. This year, we have a number of initiatives to reach out to the public better than ever before. But we need your help!
Please consider donating to the Vitamin D Council or becoming a member today.
Our mailing address is:
The Vitamin D Council 1241 Johnson Ave. #134 San Luis Obispo, CA 93401
March 6, 2012
Is this email not displaying correctly?
View it in your browser. Vitamin D Council March 6th, 2012
This newsletter is in part made possible by the support of our sponsors
Vitamin D and risk of CVD in overweight and obese women
March 1, 2012 -- John Cannell, MD
One of the most replicated findings in vitamin D research is that the higher your vitamin D, the less you weigh; the lower your vitamin D, the more you weigh. Conventional wisdom says that fat-soluble vitamins, like D, dissolve themselves in fat and disappear from the blood.
Another explanation is even simpler: if you dissolve a teaspoon of sugar in a glass of water, it will be sweeter than if you dissolve it in a quart of water. That is, anything (vitamin D) dissolved in a limited mass (fat) will be more concentrated.
Body weight and vitamin D blood levels
But what about the possibility of vitamin D playing a causative role, not just an associative role, in obesity and body mass? That is, to a limited extent, does vitamin D act like a diet pill? Last week, Dr. Selehpour of the Tehran University of Medical Sciences found some interesting results in her randomized controlled trial.
Salehpour A, Shidfar F, Hosseinpanah F, Vafa M, Razaghi M, Hoshiarrad A, Gohari M. Vitamin D3 and the risk of CVD in overweight and obese women: a randomised controlled trial. Br J Nutr. 2012 Feb 9:1-8. [Epub ahead of print]
In this RCT of 77 overweight women, they gave half a small dose of vitamin D (1,000 IU/day), and half a placebo. In just 12 weeks, the vitamin D group had lost five more pounds than the control group. They also found improved scores in lipoprotein/cholesterol ratios for better heart health in the vitamin D group verses the placebo. Which brings some readers to a question: “If I want to diet, how much vitamin D should I take?”
First, 5,000 IU/day is for otherwise healthy adults weighing average adult weight (125-200 pounds). If you’re above this weight, however, 32 IU per pound per day is a good rule of thumb (as reported in the “Body weight and vitamin D blood levels” blog above. This means that a 300lb person would need 10,000 IU/day, though it wouldn’t surprise me if they needed more. Only way to know is to test blood levels. As your weight decreases, it is important to reduce your dose.
I doubt vitamin D is a classic diet pill. It may work by increasing your activity as your “get up and go” is back. Just lying on the sofa popping vitamin D pills will get you nowhere, however. Follow that urge to take the walk, clean out the garage, and take that weekend trip.
Click here to comment on this blog
Understanding vitamin D analogue studies February 29, 2012 -- Brant Cebulla
Brant Cebulla explains endocrine and autocrine functions of vitamin D and looks into a recent study published about chronic kidney disease and activated vitamin D. Continue reading → (open access)
"The End of Illness" needs a dose of vitamin D
February 28, 2012 -- Dr William Grant
Dr Grant reviews the book, The End of Illness by David B. Agus, M.D. (Free Press, NY, 2011)who may have some good points regarding lifestyle choices, but misses the mark regarding vitamin D by a wide margin. Continue reading → (open access)
Body weight and vitamin D blood levels
February 27, 2012 -- John Cannell, MD
Who needs more vitamin D, a 250lb fit man who has 12 percent total body fat or a 250lb obese man who has 50 percent total body fat? Continue reading → (open access)
Association between vitamin D and inflammation after heart attack
March 1, 2012 -- John Cannell, MD
Ever wonder what happens to your heart after you have a heart attack? Your heart starts fixing itself, or remodeling, a sign of permanent cardiac injury. Dr Cannell discusses the study which shows a relationship between Vitamin D blood levels and damage done during a heart attack. Continue reading → (membership required)
Help support the Vitamin D Council
The Vitamin D Council is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. We rely on the contributions of individual donors to support our efforts in educating the public on vitamin D and the deficiency pandemic. This year, we have a number of initiatives to reach out to the public better than ever before. But we need your help!
Please consider donating to the Vitamin D Council or becoming a member today.
Our mailing address is:
The Vitamin D Council 1241 Johnson Ave. #134 San Luis Obispo, CA 93401
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