I take 2000iu of D3 daily...
Cheers!
I see all these healthy food shows...none of them say DRINK MILK.
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The question is whether it is cause or effect. Vitamin D levels are directly related to sun exposure and healthy elderly get more sun than the infirmed.
It would be interesting to see if a double blind study with Vitamin D supplementation has the same effect.
Save for later.
I would urge everyone to take vitamin D supplements during the late fall, winter and spring months. Vitamin D helps boost your immune system. Since we make less vitamin D in winter because we get less sun and absorb less sunlight in our skin then to synthesize vitamin D, make sure to take extra to keep your immune systems boosted.
I’d recommend other things but this will help your body all on its own.
From PubMed:
While the underlying pathophysiology of herpes zoster infection has been well characterised, many of the mechanisms relating to the subsequent development of post herpetic neuralgia (PHN) remain uncertain. The dorsal horn atrophy and reduction in skin innervation seen in PHN patients does not adequately explain many clinical features or the efficacy of a number of topical treatments. In the central nervous system the glia, their receptors and their secreted signalling factors are now known to have a major influence on neural function. In the peripheral nervous system, schwann cell activation in response to infection and trauma releases a number of neuroexcitatory substances. Activation of the nervi nervorum in the peripheral nervous system also leads to the release of calcitonin gene related peptide, substance P and nitric oxide. Schwann cell and/or nervi nervorum activation could be an additional mechanism of pain generation in PHN. Such a paradigm shift would mean that drugs useful in the treatment of glial cell activation such as naloxone, naltrexone, minocycline, pentoxifyllline, propentofylline, AV411 (ibudilast) and interleukin 10 could be useful in PHN. These drugs could be used systemically or even topically. High dose topical vitamin D would appear to offer particular promise because vitamin D has the ability to both reduce glial inflammation and reduce nitric oxide production.
Med Hypotheses, 2009 Jul 25, "Post herpetic neuralgia, schwann cell activation and vitamin D," Bartley J., The Auckland Regional Pain Service, FRACS, 10 Owens Rd., Epsom, Auckland 1023, New Zealand.
This article posits that infection of the peripheral ganglia causes at least some cases of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS), with a neurotropic herpesvirus, particularly varicella-zoster virus (VZV), as the most likely cause of the infection. Virtually all CFS symptoms could be produced by an infection of the peripheral ganglia, with infection of the autonomic ganglia causing fatigue, postural hypotension, and sleep disturbances, and infection of the sensory ganglia causing sensory symptoms such as chronic pain. Furthermore, infections of the peripheral ganglia are known to cause long-term nerve dysfunction, which would help explain the chronic course of CFS. Herpesviruses have long been suspected as the cause of CFS; this theory has recently been supported by studies showing that administering antiherpes agents causes substantial improvement in some CFS patients. VZV is known to frequently reactivate in the peripheral ganglia of previously healthy adults and cause sudden, debilitating illness, making it a likely candidate as a cause of CFS. Moreover, many of the symptoms of CFS overlap with those of herpes zoster (shingles), with the exception that painful rash is not one of the symptoms of CFS. A model is therefore proposed in which CFS is one of the many manifestations of zoster sine herpete; that is, herpes zoster without rash. Furthermore, re-exposure to VZV in the form of chickenpox has become less common in the past few decades; without such re-exposure, immunity to VZV drops, which could explain the increased incidence of CFS. Co-infection with multiple herpesviruses is a possibility, as some CFS patients show signs of infection with other herpesviruses including Epstein-Barr, Cytomegalovirus, and HHV6. These three herpesviruses can attack immune cells, and may therefore promote neurotropic herpesvirus reactivation in the ganglia. The possibility of VZV as the causal agent in CFS has previously received almost no attention; the possibility that CFS involves infection of the peripheral ganglia has likewise been largely overlooked. This suggests that the search for a viral cause of CFS has been far from exhaustive. Several antiherpes drugs are available, as is a vaccine for VZV; more research into such agents as possible treatments for CFS is urgently needed.
Med Hypotheses, 2009 Jun 9, "Does varicella-zoster virus infection of the peripheral ganglia cause Chronic Fatigue Syndrome?" Shapiro JS., 3424 Platt Road, Ann Arbor, MI 48108, USA.
ping