Vitamin D Has Numerous Health Benefits

Vitamin D is called as "nature's antibiotic" as recent discoveries have brought to light its numerous health benefits.

Right from the health of your immune system to prevention of heart disease and even vulnerability to influenza, vitamin D is now seen as one of the most critical nutrients for overall health.

But it is also one of those most likely to be deficient - especially during winter when production of the "sunshine vitamin" almost grinds to a halt for people.

Analogs of the vitamin are even being considered for use as new therapies against tuberculosis, AIDS, and other concerns.

And federal experts are considering an increase in the recommended daily intake of the vitamin as more evidence of its value emerges, especially for the elderly.

"About 70 percent of the population of the United States has insufficient levels of vitamin D. This is a critical issue as we learn more about the many roles it may play in fighting infection, balancing your immune response, helping to address autoimmune problems, and even preventing heart disease," said Adrian Gombart, a principal investigator with the Linus Pauling Institute at Oregon State University.

Among other findings about benefits of Vitamin D is the ones made by OSU scientists that it induces the "expression" of cathelicidin, an antimicrobial peptide gene.

This explains in part how it helps serve as the first line of defense in your immune response against minor wounds, cuts, and both bacterial and viral infections.

Experts believe advances in the use of cathelicidin may form the basis for new therapies.

"Vitamin D insufficiency and deficiency is a world-wide, public health problem in both developed and developing nations. Nearly one billion people world-wide are deficient," the new report concluded.

The new report found that low levels of circulating vitamin D are associated with increased risk and mortality from cancer.

Vitamin D plays an important role in activating the immune system, fostering the "innate" immune response and controlling over-reaction of adaptive immunity, and as such may help control autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis, psoriasis and rheumatoid arthritis.

The regulation of cathelicidin by vitamin D, a unique biological pathway for the function of vitamin D that could help explain its multiple roles in proper immune function
, is so important that it's only known to exist in two groups of animals - humans and non-human primates - and has been conserved in them through millions of years of evolution.

Epidemiological studies show a link between vitamin D deficiency and increased rates of respiratory infection and influenza, and it has been hypothesized that flu epidemics may be the result of vitamin D deficiency.

Higher levels of a protein linked to vitamin D have been associated with reduced infections and longer survival of dialysis patients.

Vitamin D has important roles in reducing inflammation, blood pressure and helping to protect against heart disease.




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Try Vitamin D If You Want To Live Longer

Writing in the journal Clinical Endocrinology, scientists from the Netherlands, Austria, and the U.S. report that low blood levels of the sunshine vitamin are associated with increased risk of all-cause mortality, and mortality from heart disease, in the elderly.

The research follows hot on the heels of similar findings published in Nutrition Research and in the Archives of Internal Medicine.

The new study used data from 614 people participating in the Hoorn Study, a prospective population-based study with men and women with an average age of 69.8. Blood levels of 25(OH)D were measured at the start of the study. After an average of six years of follow-up, 51 deaths had been documented, 20 of which were due to cardiovascular health.

People with the lowest average vitamin D levels were found to be at a 124 and 378 percent increased risk of all-cause mortality and cardiovascular mortality, respectively.

Commenting on the potential mechanism, the researchers note:

“Apart from the maintenance of muscular and skeletal health, vitamin D may also protect against cancer, infections, autoimmune and vascular diseases, suggesting that vitamin D deficiency might contribute to a reduced life expectancy.”

Adults with lower blood levels of vitamin D may also be more likely to die from heart disease or stroke. Scientists in Finland compared blood levels of vitamin D, and deaths from heart disease or stroke over time in more than 6,000 people. Those with the lowest vitamin D levels had a 25 percent higher risk of dying from heart disease or stroke.

In addition, in a study of 166 women undergoing treatment for breast cancer, nearly 70 percent had low levels of vitamin D in their blood, according to a study presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology’s Breast Cancer Symposium. The analysis showed women with late-stage disease and non-Caucasian women had even lower levels.

Said Luke Peppone, Ph.D., research assistant professor of Radiation Oncology, at Rochester’s James P. Wilmot Cancer Center:

“Vitamin D is essential to maintaining bone health and women with breast cancer have accelerated bone loss due to the nature of hormone therapy and chemotherapy. It’s important for women and their doctors to work together to boost their vitamin D intake."



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Vitamin D: How to Determine Your Optimal Dose

In the wide world of supplements, vitamin D is the superstar. For the last few years, this humble nutrient has been featured prominently in allopathic and alternative circles alike. It has basked in the rays of media publicity, and has survived an onslaught of scientific scrutiny. And while such widespread publicity is often good cause for skepticism in the realm of health and medicine, vitamin D appears to be the real deal. Whether we`re talking about heart disease, cancer, diabetes, multiple sclerosis, or Alzheimer`s disease, the "sunshine vitamin" delivers benefits unseen before our time (1).

Given the remarkably powerful benefits of vitamin D, many find themselves wondering how to actually go about obtaining it. We know that vitamin D is good for us, but how much do we need, and where do we get it? Most people know that sunlight is somehow involved in vitamin D production, but is sunlight alone sufficient to produce the incredible results demonstrated by recent vitamin D research? What about supplements? There are so many different preparations - with doses ranging from 400 IU to 50,000 IU - that it can get a little confusing. Are such supplements necessary, and if so, how much should we be taking?

Everyone is Different

One might suppose that this question is as easily answered as saying, "Everyone needs to spend 15 minutes in the sun every day." Or, "Everyone needs to take x amount of vitamin D per day." But it`s not like that. Not at all. There are a multitude of variables unique to you that determine how much vitamin D is required on a daily basis (2). And because there are so many individual variables, it really is impossible to recommend a single amount for everyone. Fortunately, however, there are many circumstantial clues to look for that will suggest whether you need to be paying better attention to your vitamin D status. Furthermore, personally optimizing your vitamin D level is fairly easy and inexpensive.

Are you at risk for vitamin D deficiency?
-How much sun exposure do you get every day?
-Where do you live? Above or below the 35 N latitude line? (3)
-What is your age? Over 40?
-Is your skin light, dark, very dark?
-Are you overweight?
-Do you have a chronic illness?

How do each of these factors affect vitamin D status?

Sun Exposure: Catching some rays each day is definitely desirable, and healthy young people can usually get the vitamin D they need from around 10 to 30 minutes of sun exposure per day - depending on their location and the time of year. Most adults in today`s modern world, however, do not even attempt to get this much sun exposure - much less achieve it. But even if they did, would it matter, or are there other variables standing in the way?

Location: Vitamin D is produced in the skin from a cholesterol derivative when we are exposed to UVB radiation from the sun. However, because of the axial tilt of the earth, the further north one lives, the less the sun`s UVB rays will be able to activate vitamin D in the skin. So sun exposure does not necessarily equal optimal vitamin D status if you`re living in the wrong location. Living down south is better, of course (south of the 35 N latitude line seems to be the best), but there is still more to consider.

Age: Say you do live close to the equator, or are significantly below the 35 N latitude line. That`s a good thing, and it probably helps. If you`re around 35-40 years old or above, however, you`re likely losing the ability to activate sufficient levels of vitamin D in your skin, even in the unlikely event that you`re getting adequate UVB sun exposure (4).

Dark Skin: What if you have dark skin? If you have a lot of pigment in your skin, this is going to shield you from the UVB radiation you need, and you`re probably deficient in vitamin D.

Weight: Vitamin D requirements are also relative to body weight. If you`re overweight, your body requires more vitamin D than if you are not overweight. If you get a lot of sun, but are on the heavy side, you`re probably still not getting enough vitamin D.

Chronic Illness: Chronically ill? Have cancer? The body demands more vitamin D when you`re sick, and is probably using it up faster than you can get it from the sun.

When one considers that many Americans are victims of not just one but many of the above drawbacks, it becomes readily obvious as to why there is such a widespread vitamin D deficiency epidemic. Not getting enough sun is bad enough, but lack of sun exposure combined with being middle-aged, overweight, and chronically ill is an absolute disaster - and it is the devastating situation that many (most?) Americans find themselves in today.

Is Sun Exposure Really Not Enough?

Yes, sun exposure is a good thing, but too often, it`s simply not sufficient to achieve the kind of levels necessary for disease prevention and treatment. This applies even in places like Hawaii, where individuals get plenty of sun exposure, and the latitude is around 21 (5, 6). The role of sunlight should not be downplayed too much, however. If you`re healthy, young, and live in a subtropical region, then you might have sufficient vitamin D levels. In fact, some young people in the subtropics who get sun exposure all day long have levels between 80-100 ng/ml. This is incredible, and it means that sun exposure really does work provided the conditions are right.*

The point being made in this article is simply that not everyone is young, not everyone is healthy, not everyone lives in Houston, and not everyone gets enough sun exposure every day. It is those people who need to supplement with vitamin D. This also happens to be most people.

Blood Testing is Crucial

How do you know if you`re getting enough vitamin D, and how much is enough? The only way to know is by testing your blood. Fortunately, testing vitamin D, as far as blood testing goes, is pretty cheap. You can set this up with your doctor, order tests online and get blood drawn at a local lab, or order a vitamin D home test kit, whereby you simply order the test, prick your finger, send in the blood, and wait for the results to come back to you.

Here are some basic guidelines:

-Make sure you are getting the right test. You must test for 25(OH)D, not 1,25(OH)D. They look similar, but 1,25(OH)D is a measure of kidney function, and is not the test you want for measuring vitamin D levels.

-Ideally, your blood level should be around 60-80 ng/ml, as this allows the body to have some vitamin D in reserve, and it duplicates the higher levels found in young, healthy individuals who spend a decent amount of time in a sun-rich environment.

-Begin taking vitamin D at least eight weeks prior to being tested. This will help you customize your dose once you receive your test results. To determine a basic, starting dose, it has been suggested, as per Dr. John Cannell of the Vitamin D Council (7), that you take 1,000 IU per 25 pounds of body weight. A person who weighs 150 pounds, for instance, would take 6,000 IU per day as a starting dose (150/25 = 6. 1,000 x 6 = 6,000). Do this for at least eight weeks, and then test. Perhaps this dose will put you in the ideal range, but there`s no guarantee since we are all so different, and have unique vitamin D receptor genotypes. The idea is to hopefully get somewhere in the ballpark with this method and then tweak your daily dose once the test results come back. If your results are still suboptimal, Dr. Cannell has estimated that each 1,000 IU increase in supplemental vitamin D will generally produce a 10 ng/ml increase in the vitamin D blood level (8). For example, if you have been taking 5,000 IU per day for 8+ weeks, and your results come back at 40 ng/ml, you would want to increase your dose to at least 7,000 IU (2,000 IU = ~20 ng/ml rise in blood level) to achieve a minimum of 60 ng/ml. Again, keep in mind that this is necessarily generalized, and additional blood testing every several months is recommended to further customize the dose appropriate to you.

What Kind of Supplements Should I Use?

In order to achieve consistent and predictable results, it is important to use the proper carrier form of vitamin D supplements. The absolute best form is an oil-based vitamin D preparation. Dry preparations, like tablets and capsules, should be avoided. Vitamin D is fat soluble, and needs to be taken with fat in order to be properly absorbed - hence the oil-based recommendation.

Oil-based versus dry preparations aside, there are two common types of vitamin D: Vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol) and Vitamin D2 (ergocalciferol). You will need to avoid supplementing with vitamin D2 (9), which is a synthetic product made by exposing certain plants to ultraviolet radiation. D2 is not what the human body naturally uses, and compared to D3 it falls far short in terms of efficacy (of course, D2 happens to be what many vitamin D prescriptions are made of). D3 is what your body uses and prefers. No prescription necessary.

You can buy D3 in oil-based softgels, or, if you don`t like taking pills or have trouble doing so, you can get it in liquid drops.

Summary

Vitamin D status is important year around, but whenever fall and winter are upon us, the importance of evaluating this vital nutrient is even more urgent. In summary, here are the steps you should take if you are wanting to optimize your vitamin D level:

1) Start taking oil-based vitamin D3 according to your body weight, as explained above.

2) After at least 8 weeks, have your blood tested by a good lab. There are home finger-prick test kits that are also very good.

3) Remembering that the goal should be blood levels of 60-80 ng/ml of 25(OH)D, adjust your vitamin D3 dose to achieve this level. Each 1,000 IU increase will generally lead to a 10 ng/ml increase in blood levels.

4) Recheck blood levels every several months to make sure you are still in the optimal range and taking the proper dose.

It is beyond ironic that for quite some time now, everyone has been encouraged by the "authorities" to avoid the sun in order to keep from getting cancer, yet it is that very sun exposure that would help in avoiding cancer in the first place! "Avoid midday sun, or you`ll get melanoma!" we`re told. But melanoma is mostly triggered by UVA rays from the sun - not UVB. When is cancer-causing UVA exposure the lowest? Right around midday. When is UVB exposure the highest? Also right around midday. A high UVB:UVA ratio (high UVB and low UVA) is the best for creating vitamin D in the body, and this occurs when the sun is highest in the sky - exactly the time (ironically) that is often suggested to be avoided.

Supplementation is not recommended for everyone. Certain conditions, such as sarcoidosis and some lymphomas, can produce excessive amounts of vitamin D, and in these instances, one should move forward cautiously under the supervision of a healthcare professional.



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Total Nutraceutical Solutions To Launch Natural Organic Whole Food Mushroom Vitamin D Supplement

Recent Studies Reveal Worldwide Deficiencies in Vitamin D Levels

Total Nutraceutical Solutions, Inc. (TNS) (OTCBB:TNUS), announced today that the
company has formulated and will launch a unique natural whole food
mushroom-based Vitamin D supplement. This supplement is plant-based and not
animal-based and provides a new approach to Vitamin D supplementation in
health-conscious individuals. A proprietary grown mushroom, Agaricus blazei
Murill (AbM) by Sylvan Bio, Inc. and Creekside Mushrooms Limited will be
stimulated with UV light to produce natural organic Vitamin D2 within the
mushroom. The need for this product is underscored by the following statement in
the October 26, 2009 issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine: "The worldwide
prevalence of Vitamin D deficiency is striking and more than 40% of the
population may be Vitamin D deficient." (Vol.169 No.19, pp.1806-1808).The
importance of the timing of this product launch and the need for a natural whole
food form of Vitamin D is further evidenced by a recent statement by the Office
of Dietary Supplements, National Institutes of Health, that the second-best
source of Vitamin D is 3 ounces of mushrooms enriched with Vitamin D. Many
medical organizations, including the American Academy of Pediatricians, have
advocated increased intake of Vitamin D, especially in children. Children`s
Hospital Boston reports that 62% of children taking multivitamins had below
normal levels of vitamin D (USA Today, October 26, 2009). TNS has developed
technologic capability that will allow production of a daily oral encapsulated
natural supplement that contains enough Vitamin D equal to or greater than ten
8-ounce servings of Vitamin D fortified milk, at a cost that is affordable by
most people.

According to the 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, "nutrient needs should
be met primarily through consuming foods. Foods provide an array of nutrients
and other compounds that may have beneficial effects on health."
(http://www.health.gov/dietaryguidlines/dga2005/document/default.htm) This
statement was recently supported by a TNS experiment that revealed that
ingestion of a natural organic edible whole food could increase biologic
survival in a nutritionally deprived organism. Unaltered and Vitamin D2 enriched
dried powders of the mushroom Agaricus blazei Murill by Sylvan significantly
increased survival above controls, 4% and 15% respectively (TNUS.OB; September
30, 2009).

Vitamin D, also called the "sunshine vitamin," has recently received much
attention as a needed nutritional supplement to improve human health. Decreased
levels of Vitamin D have been associated with a range of diseases, such as
osteoporosis, osteoarthritis, cancer of the breast, diabetes, cardiovascular
disease, and many others.

TNS has purchased a Steripulse - XL 3000 Pulsed UVB light system from Xenon
Corporation, Wilmington, MA, and the system is being installed at Columbia
Nutritional Services, Vancouver, WA, the TNS contract manufacturer. TNS has
acquired from The Penn State Research Foundation (PSRF) an option to license an
invention entitled "Rapid Generation of Vitamin D2 from Mushrooms and Fungi
Using Pulsed UV-light" (The Invention). A U.S. Provisional Patent Application
was filed on April 23, 2008 and names Professor Robert B. Beelman, and Graduate
Student Michael Kalaras as co-inventors, Department of Food Science,
Pennsylvania State University (PSU).

"As a doctor, I receive no greater pleasure than having the opportunity to
create products that can help people live longer and healthier lives," stated
Marvin S. Hausman MD, CEO, Total Nutraceutical Solutions, Inc. "Vitamin D
deficiency is worldwide, is implicated in many diseases, and this product has
the potential to provide a needed nutritional answer to this problem."

"I am very excited that our new process is being commercially utilized to
produce Vitamin D-rich dietary supplements made from the highly nutritious
Agaricus blazei mushroom," stated Robert B. Beelman Ph.D., Professor of Food
Science, Pennsylvania State University. "I believe this product will be the
first of its kind made from a whole food that will appeal to health conscious
individuals that desire to consume a plant-based diet."

Sylvan Bio, Inc. is an emerging leader in providing innovative fungal products
to a variety of industries. Based in Kittanning, Pennsylvania, it is a wholly
owned subsidiary of Sylvan Inc., also based in Kittanning. Sylvan Inc. serves
mushroom, agricultural and nutraceutical markets through its prominence in
fungal technology and solid-substrate fermentation.

Creekside Mushrooms Limited is the largest single site fully integrated and
highly technological "underground" mushroom growing farm in the world.
Creekside`s unique underground farm is scientifically monitored to provide ideal
year-round growing conditions to consistently produce the highest quality
mushrooms, which are 100% organic.

About Total Nutraceutical Solutions, Inc.:

Total Nutraceutical Solutions, Inc. (TNS), is an emerging nutraceutical company
with a focus on discovering, formulating and marketing products composed
primarily of organic natural mushroom compounds that contain bioactive nutrients
for potential health benefits. TNS develops production and analytic technologies
for food and nutritional supplements composed primarily of mushrooms and their
mycelial biomasses. Novel clinical models and biomarkers are used to show
nutritional and clinical efficacy of our products. In addition to preventative
healthcare formulations and nutritional approaches to a wide variety of human
conditions and illnesses, TNS also develops and acquires breakthrough
nutritional tools and products in the fields of animal husbandry and livestock
feeds.

Any statements contained in this press release that relate to future plans,
events or performance are forward-looking statements that involve risks and
uncertainties, including, but not limited to, the risks associated with
thetransactiondescribed in this press release, and other risks identified in the
filings by Total Nutraceutical Solutions (TNS), Inc., with the Securities and
Exchange Commission. Further information on risks faced by TNS are detailed in
the Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2008, and in its subsequent
Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q. These filings are or will become available on a
website maintained by the Securities and Exchange Commission at
http://www.sec.gov. The information contained in this press release is accurate
as of the date indicated. Actual results, events or performance may differ
materially. TNS does not undertake any obligation to publicly release the result
of any revision to these forward-looking statements that may be made to reflect
events or circumstances after the date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of
unanticipated events.

Total Nutraceutical Solutions, Inc.
Roberta Matta, 509-427-5132
www.totalnutraceutical.com



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Vitamin D Good for Breast Cancer Patients

Researchers says: supplements help fight treatment-related bone loss.

Many breast cancer patients have low levels of vitamin D, which could lead to weaker bones and increased risk of fractures, say U.S. researchers who recommend high doses of vitamin D for them.

"Vitamin D is essential to maintaining bone health, and women with breast cancer have accelerated bone loss due to the nature of hormone therapy and chemotherapy. It's important for women and their doctors to work together to boost their vitamin D intake," Luke Peppone, a research assistant professor of radiation oncology at the University of Rochester Medical Center, said in a news release from the medical cwnter.

Peppone and colleagues studied 166 women undergoing treatment for breast cancer and found that nearly 70 percent had low levels of vitamin D in their blood. The average level among the women was 27 nanograms of vitamin D per milliliter of blood. Levels of 32 nanograms per milliliter are adequate, according to the U.S. Institute of Medicine.

The lowest levels of vitamin D were in non-whites and those with late-stage breast cancer.

The researchers found that weekly supplementation with high doses of vitamin D (50,000 IU or more) boosted the levels of the vitamin among all the women.

The study was to be presented Oct. 8 at the American Society of Clinical Oncology's breast cancer symposium in San Francisco.

Previous studies have shown that nearly half of all women and men have vitamin D levels below 32 nanograms per milliliter. Along with strengthening bones, vitamin D plays an important role in cell growth and keeping the immune system strong. People obtain Vitamin D through exposure to sunlight and from foods such as milk and fortified cereals.

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