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Are you one of the majority of Americans who are overweight or obese? It might interest you to know that the growing mountain of vitamin D research showing that your health will suffer if you don’t get enough vitamin D now includes research that ties increased vitamin D blood serum levels to improved success at weight loss during diets.

This data is from a small study of 38 obese individuals undergoing an 11 week long weight loss program. Obviously replication in larger groups and in other studies would help firm up the conclusions. However, intriguingly the amount of weight lost during the 11 week diet was predictable based upon vitamin D blood serum levels in a very consistent fashion.

The researchers believe there is a predictable pattern here despite the small study size. For each 1 ng/mL higher vitamin D in blood serum, the dieter lost about half a pound more weight. Further, the higher vitamin D levels correlated with more abdominal weight loss. Researchers suspect that vitamin D may help the body metabolize fat more effectively. While more studies are needed to fully understand the exact mechanism of the increase fat loss induced by higher vitamin D levels, it’s not premature to be advising that people need to be increasing and/or monitoring their vitamin D intake more carefully to improve their health.

Given the widespread prevalence of vitamin D deficiency, few side effects from vitamin D supplements, and the low cost of those supplements, anybody intent on losing weight and body fat should be sure to bump up their vitamin D intake to attain optimal vitamin D levels. If you’re willing to spend money on diet books, Weight Watchers classes, low-calorie meals, etc. then you shouldn’t hesitate at the small annual cost (well less than $100 for most adults) of vitamin D supplementation and periodic vitamin D blood tests to verify you are getting optimal nutrition.

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Researchers recently reviewed medical data collected as part of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey from 2001 to 2004 for 6000 children and young adults ages 1 to 21. Low levels of vitamin D were found in about 70% of children. Vitamin D deficiency, typical of very low levels that cause rickets and severe bone degeneration and weakness problems were found it about 9% of children. Insufficient levels of vitamin D were found in another 61%. These levels are associated with a wide variety of health problems including type 1 and 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, depression, autism, multiple sclerosis, tuberculosis, cancer and many other health problems.
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As we’ve previously explained, research in recent years is showing that vitamin D deficiency appears to be a widespread health problem affecting much or most of the population of nations such as the US, UK, Canada, and Australia. It’s likely a global phenomenon, ironically affecting developed nations more severely as their residents spend far less time outside in the sun and tend to use sunscreens to prevent skin cancer.

The vitamin D deficiency crisis may be causing elevated rates of depression, autism, cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, and a variety of other chronic health problems in developed nations. Vitamin D3 supplements are now recommended for most people as few get enough vitamin D from diet and sun exposure. Suggestions that adults be taking 2000 IU to 5000 IU per day are now commonplace. Recent recommendations are running up to 10,000 IU per day as a daily adult upper intake limit in some studies. Recommended intake for children is increasing, also, but depends upon the age and size of the child. With vitamin D3 recommended doses growing for both adults and children, it is good to see improved vitamin D3 products such as softgels, gummy vitamins, and liquid vitamin drinks for conveniently getting necessary vitamin D at costs as low as a penny or two per day.
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With the increasing worldwide news coverage of widespread vitamin D deficiency and the high rates of associated diseases such as type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, depression, and autism, you may wonder just how much vitamin D is too much? Many doctors are clueless about vitamin D toxicity and believe that 2000 IU per day of vitamin D3 on a daily basis could be deadly, and 100,000 IU in one dose would surely kill you. Surprising to some, these common beliefs of doctors are grossly mistaken. New research argues for 10,000 IU per day of vitamin D3 on a daily basis for long periods being the upper recommended limit for adult dietary intake and that single doses of 100,000 IU are helpful for rapidly building up levels of vitamin D in the body.
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Vince Guiliano is a prolific writer nearing 80 years old who has assembled a fascinating collection of information on human aging and how to slow it by using dietary supplements. Among his efforts to date are the Anti-Aging Firewalls blog and extensive overviews of the anti-aging properties of many dietary supplements.
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Here’s a new scientific finding to motivate your kids to brush their teeth and floss. Researchers have found that people who have poor dental hygiene are more likely to have impaired memory and mental functions. Now you can tell your babies that the reason grandpa can’t remember where he put his glasses is because he forgot to brush his teeth. When they question how that can be, you can explain it may be because nasty bacteria in his mouth are making his brain work worse.
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If you’re trying to save money in these sorry economic times, one way to do it may be to consult with your doctor on switching to common generic medications available at low prices via Walmart Pharmacy. Often newer medications don’t work much better than older ones, yet they usually carry higher prices and sometimes unknown long-term side effects. Click on the Walmart $4 Prescription Program for more information.

Print out a copy of the $4 generic prescription medicines list and take it to your doctor visits for your doctor to consult if you need refills or new prescriptions. Doctors are often not particularly conscious of how much medications cost, so this could help you save a lot of money if a low-cost generic can be used rather than a newer name-brand drug. Also ask your doctor about writing prescriptions for 90 days rather than 30 days. This may help you save a little additional money as many prescriptions are available for $10 for 90 days, thus saving you about another $8 per year.

Some of the most widely used generic medications available on this program include Glyburide and Metformin used widely by people with pre-diabetes and diabetes, Lovastatin and Pravastatin which are used for lowering LDL cholesterol and triglycerides, and Amitriptyline and Citalopram and Trazodone which are commonly used as antidepressants.

Further Reading

Cost-Effective Medications and Supplements

More Data + Less Care = Lower Cost + Better Health

These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. The products mentioned on this post are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.

In these days of rising medical costs and sagging economics, many of us are looking to find ways to cut costs without sacrificing our health. Medicines are one of the most expensive daily use items for many people, especially if you do not have insurance. Consumer Reports hosts a website to help consumers identify the most effective and inexpensive medicines for their health conditions. Click on over to Consumer Reports Best Buy Drugs to view reports on the best choices for medicines for particular health conditions. They also list information, opinions, and comparisons for particular medicines. We’re really pleased to see this kind of information becoming available to consumers. By consulting this site and other like it and working with your doctors, you are much more likely to be able to hold down your medical costs substantially.

Are you stressed out and depressed? Having trouble falling asleep each night? Feeling like you could use some help? A lot of us going through high-conflict divorces, child custody battles, divorce-induced bankruptcy, mental illnesses (depression, panic attacks, etc.), job troubles, and other life problems have such symptoms. The ongoing economic crisis may be compounding such troubles, or enough to stress you out on its own. Rather than resorting to the typical psychiatric medicines like anti-depressants and anxiolytics, consider drinking tea or taking L-theanine, a natural substance extracted from tea that may help reduce anxiety and depression.
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In May 2009, the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences published a small study involving 40 participants conducted by German and American researchers on the effects of antioxidant supplementation with 1000 mg/day of vitamin C and 400 IU per day of vitamin E on the impact of exercise. In particular, the study examined the impact of a combination of exercise and vitamins C and E on insulin sensitivity and other parameters of diabetic illness and as well as endogenous (body-produced) antioxidant defenses include superoxide dismutase (SOD) and glutathione peroxidase.
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