@Pomegranate Supposedly, vitamin D affects the absorption of calcium by the body, so it's needed, in part, for bone maintenance. But there may be consequences to too much calcium absorption. So a combination of a diet rich in vitamin D, sunshine and a D supplement may not be healthy. So talk to your doc, or a nutritionist or do some research.

@Heartlander Just because you have something - it doesn't necessarily mean that it's in your best interests to treat it.

I have high blood pressure and was medicated for it just before the pandemic... about a year and a half ago, a doctor finally admitted that maybe they were doing me more harm than good by treating my bp with pills because it was making another undiagnosed condition worse.

My concern here is that unmonitored attempts to increase vitamin D levels could potentially have a negative effect on OP's overall health in the same way that not monitoring my bp when I was out of the surgery after I was prescribed meds affected me negatively.

Realistically, I know that no one gives a crap, though - it's been 3 years since I was diagnosed with a B12 deficiency... and no one has bothered to re test my blood to find out my B12 levels despite the fact that I'm only taking pills and the doctor wasn't sure if I should try pills or take the injections.

@HootyTheNightOwl I totally agree with that. Treatment for one thing may have an undesirable effect on another, seemingly unrelated issues. And something to be aware of when you get passed from one specialist to another. Someone recently posted here about neck instability causing GERD and other digestive issues. I likewise take B12 thanks to my doc suggesting I take a B12 test even though my insurance wouldn't pay for it Thankfully my internist seems to enjoy being questioned, and doesn't mind commenting about what specialist to avoid and which to trust, and is OK with qualifying his diagnosis and the diagnosis by other docs with degrees of certainty and uncertainty.

@Heartlander A lot of my problem has been that they've been playing "Whack a mole" with various symptoms from at least 2012 when I had my left hand lock in a fist for a month and went off my legs because of pain in my back - straight away, they should have been thinking "Nerve damage" rather than prescribing me Tramadol and letting me go because we were in the worst winter conditions we'd had for decades - in March.

My hand eventually relaxed itself and I came off the Tramadol as soon as I felt able to do so (around three weeks, I think).

On the 18/08/17, I went to the mall in the city alone. I was having major issues with my vision going black, confusion and weakness in my legs... that ended in me fainting/collapsing in a private alleyway on my way home. I skinned my hands and knees and split my lips because I made no attempt to break my fall.

After that, those symptoms became regular in my life, though I've learned to avoid kissing the ground like that again after that episode. I just get exhausted more easily than normal people do these days.

From there, they hit me with high bp (that I only got after they moved the criteria for a diagnosis), b12 deficiency and Non alcoholic fatty liver... then lockdown hit.

About a year into lockdown, I came off my bp meds because my reviewing doctor wasn't sure that treating my bp was in my best interests and she referred me back to cardiology but I haven't been able to get an appointment at a hospital that I can attend.

Around the same time, I got talking to someone on SW and he suggested I have chronic fatigue syndrome - which I want to be checked out for - and a year after that, I found out that my sister has the same symptoms and her doctor has suggested that she might have fibromyalgia or chronic fatigue syndrome.

Apparently, we have both been fighting this for the same amount of time and didn't know what the other was going through until after our mother died and we got closer to each other.

@Heartlander hmmm. i wouldn't think that the color of one's skin would affect the Sun and Vitamin D but i am no doctor. just know that I am out doing manual labor in the sun. 😁

@akindheart Probably every common human disease has a bias based on race, skin color, ethnic background, etc. Like how do the French get away with consuming so much saturated fat and escape all the coronary issues we Americans have? Is it because they consume more red wine?

I think with bone health it's just the opposite of that idea about white women. Most from what I read says that white skin is more efficient at processing sunlight to make vitamin D. But the paradox is that black people, in spite of the fact that they show greater deficiency of vitamin D, have stronger bones, and fewer incidents of bone fractures. So go figure :)

I personally think the "everything else being equal" part is a but wishful thinking and impossible to say. There are obviously important things that weren't accounted for.

per FDA: "The report found the highest rates of vitamin D deficiency in non-Hispanic blacks despite clinical data showing greater bone density and fewer fractures in this group compared to other race/ethnic groups. Further research is needed on this topic."

https://www.cdc.gov/nutritionreport/pdf/second-nutrition-report-vitamin-d-factsheet.pdf

@Heartlander that is very interesting. i know that black people sun burn so they are affected by the sun. I love these kinds of posts

@Fluffybull yeh i was just thinking that too.
I dont take supplements through spring or Summer as the sun is enough

@Gangstress Too much vitamin D actually has unpleasant side-effects 👍

@Fluffybull i didnt know that hun but thanks for that

@SW-User does the shelf life change in liquid Vitamin D? my kids had to take hytakerol which is a very potent liquid form of Vitamin D because their parathyroids were dead.

@akindheart yes. It's best to keep it refrigerated too

Did they have surgery for that issue?

@SW-User my children had a rare autoimmune disease that killed their endocrine system one gland at a time. Hytakerol was the drug of choice and it was kept at room temp and very oily

@KA9ha I am not nurse and yes elder relative. I just suspected that her vitamin D might be low and the blood test proved it.

@Pomegranate see the medical extract:::Vitamin D deficiency has been found to be associated with a variety of cancers, including prostate, multiple myeloma, colorectal and breast cancer. Several studies have shown vitamin D levels to have an inverse relation with cancer mortality, while others have considered it a potential risk factor. Vitamin D is believed to influence cancer prevalence, risk and survival; hence the need to assess vitamin D levels in cancer. Although numerous studies have been conducted to demonstrate vitamin D deficiency as a risk factor for cancer, relatively few have studied its prevalence

@KA9ha I read all day and I think this medical extract also I read recently. Thank you again

@Dlrannie There is no any packet and doctor.