It’s Flu Season Again
Ever wonder why people tend to get sick in winter? There are a lot of theories, including that we spend more time indoors and close to others. Another reason is that the flu virus can live longer outside of a “host” in the colder, dryer winter air.
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But there’s another reason I believe also completes this puzzle of why the flu only seems to come out in winter: Vitamin D deficiency makes us more susceptible to viral attack (along with zinc deficiency, too).
Image by Shutterbug75 from Pixabay
Vitamin D is a steroid hormone (not really a vitamin) that our body creates when it is exposed to direct sunlight. It also comes from foods like pastured meats and eggs, liver, wild fish, sardines, and oysters. Most of us are already low or deficient in vitamin D because unlike our ancestors who lived outdoors, we live inside offices and Starbucks, and because few of us are eating the foods listed above. About 80% of my clients come into my office with vitamin D levels in the “deficient” range.
Those of us in the Northern Hemisphere above the 35th parallel likely produce little vitamin D in our bodies between October and March. I have not yet found a way to invent a computer screen that emits vitamin D-creating light (but if you steal my idea, I expect half the profits—honor system here, folks).
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The vitamin D theory of the winter illnesses holds some water as evidenced by research from the National Institutes of Health, and perhaps most forcefully in a 2009 study published in JAMA. And it is now widely accepted that, regardless of the reason, sufficient levels of vitamin D help people fight acute respiratory infections, including those associated with colds and the flu.
Of course the naysayers have some studies suggesting vitamin D has no effect on your ability to fight the flu. After reviewing such research, it appears these studies only looked at the dosing, not the participants’ actual levels. You could give someone all the vitamin D in the world, but if it’s not raising their blood levels within an optimal range, the study results are not reliable.
Image by Mircea Ploscar from Pixabay
No one knows, and researchers are in a hot debate on this. There are basically two camps: the 35–50ers and the 50–70ers.
I’m in the camp of the 50–70ers, with some exceptions. That level should be achieved at least in part through sunlight and food rather than by supplementation. I know people who take mega-doses of refined vitamin D supplements for long periods of time to get that level, which I don’t recommend.
And there is some evidence that those dealing with very serious illnesses can benefit from extra high, therapeutic levels.
I base this opinion in part on studies that look at the levels of those modern hunter-gatherers and societies that live outdoors most of the time—like we did more than 10,000 years ago. Studying people in traditional cultures that are relatively free from “Western” diseases is often a good way to know what may be optimal for the rest of us.
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A recent study of the Masai people showed their average levels at 48ng/ml (range: 23–67). And the Hadzabe averaged 44ng/ml (range: 24–68). My recommendations are based in part on this study.
Image by Ulrike Leone from Pixabay
In winter (October–March), I personally take 4,000–6,000 IUs of D3 (cholecalciferol) from a supplement and a teaspoon of Green Pasture Fermented Cod Liver Oil / Butter Oil Blend or a tablespoon of Carlson Cod Liver Oil (containing about 1200 IUs of D3) for a total of 5,200–7,200 IUs per day. In summer, I cut back my supplement to 2,000–4,000 IUs per day and stay on the Cod Liver Oil or Green Pasture Fermented Cod Liver Oil.
Listen to your body and your chosen team of health clinicians to guide you on the levels that may be right for you. I have had patients who just felt terrible with levels above 50ng/ml before seeing me (possibly because of other deficiencies—see the end of this post) and others who did not get better until they surpassed that. I think the best evidence today suggests that anywhere from 35–70ng/ml would be a widely safe range for most adults.
These are just what I need to keep my levels around 55–60 ng/ml. You may need drastically different amounts. It’s always best to get tested—which is usually covered by insurance, or you can order your own test kits online.
Image by PublicDomainPictures from Pixabay
It’s important to know that vitamin D is a family of similar hormones. When you take a pill form of vitamin D, you are often getting just one isolated form. No supplement will ever fully replace the value of getting your vitamin D from direct exposure to the sun and from vitamin D-rich foods.
The fat soluble vitamins (A, D, E, and K2) are fascinating, and they work synergistically together. It’s another reason I recommend getting your vitamin D from food because vitamin D greatly increases your need for vitamin A (retinol) and K2, as Chris Masterjohn, PhD, has clearly outlined.
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The bottom line is that we now know that getting vitamin D along with pre-formed vitamin A and vitamin K2 in balance is important. Thankfully, if you take a high quality fermented cod liver oil (with a high vitamin butter oil blend) from Green Pasture, you get these in a natural balance. Yet another reason to not rely solely on a refined supplement.
They say you can’t fight the Fed, but you can fight the flu by optimizing your vitamin D!
What do you do to keep your vitamin D levels optimal? Let us know your best tips in the comments below!
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Categorised in: General Health and Nutrition, Inside Edition, Natural Medicine
This post was written by The Grow Network
Well, if your screen emitted UVB light you would get vitamin D but you’d go “snowblind” very quickly. That’s no fun! Feels like you have sand in your eyes. And you can go blind. Don’t look at UVB sources without protection!
I have been using an old UV lamp, probably from the 60s or 70s. I’ve actually bought 3 of them from 2nd hand stores. Very cheap. But since I was uncertain if they really gave UVB I bought a UVB meter, NOT CHEAP. All of them gave UVBm but one had a glass sleeve that could be moved down so you only got UVA (which gives no Vitamin D).
In Sweden there anen’t many months when the sun is high enough to give vitamin D. Every morning for most of the year I sit about 15 mins with my bare back towards it while I study Spanish on Duolingo. I have a timer that cuts it off so I don’t sit too long by mistake. I’ve been doing it for several years and in my blood checkup I had high Vitamin D levels.
here’s a video about it https://youtu.be/dbMCuwQfaFk
I no longer use effervescent tablets for vitamin C. I use pure ascorbic acid in water.
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It’s Flu Season Again
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