Chronic Pain from Head to Toe
That was me. I used to have hot baths, almost daily, to relieve the aches and pains. At the time I was in my early 40's and I felt healthy in general terms.
I went for check up with my GP (doctor) and he prescribed a series of blood tests.
When the results came back from pathology, I visited my GP again, all my levels were okay except my vitamin D levels. This was sitting at 17 ng/ml. In simple terms, this meant I was deficient.
The Solution Could not be Easier
My GP was very conservative, as most are. He prescribed I take 400 International Units (IU) per day. I researched this and found that this is hardly enough for maintaining Vitamin D levels, let alone boosting.
I needed to take drastic action...
Further research and I discovered many cases like mine where patients had both a low vitamin D level and chronic pain.
There was 1 case of 5 people that stands out the most to me, these 5 people were in so much pain that they were in wheelchairs. The patients were all given varying doses from a few thousand IU per day to a 50K IU once a month. The interesting thing is, all the patients were able to get out of their wheelchairs and be pain free.
What I did
For me, I bought a good quality vitamin D supplement. Each capsule was 5,000 IU. I started with 4 a day for a few days and then dropped down to 2 a day for about a month. I went back to the GP for a follow up blood test and the doctor was completely surprised to see I was in the upper end of the normal range.
I already had no pain whatsoever and so I was expecting a good report but was happy to get the confirmation. The doctor did not ask me what I was doing but said to keep doing whatever I am doing as it is a great result.
I now take a daily dose (some days I skip)of 1 capsule (5,000IU).
Not Everyone Responds the Same
Something I recently discovered(1) was that Vitamin D (oral dose) absorption rate is affected by a number of factors including;
- A persons BMI, ie if they are over weight or obese then their absorption rate is lower
- A person vitamin D level prior to dosing, ie if their vitamin D level was low then the body would absorb more compared to a body which had higher level prior to dosing.
If you are the type of person who does not want to take a vitamin D capsule or 2, then of course you can get vitamin D from the sun however, you need to consider the following points that I have discovered over years of research;
- Dark skin people absorb less than light skin people
- Any moles on your body is best to be covered before sun exposure
- Sunscreens block the vitamin D
- Exposure to the sun must be direct, glass will also filter out the vitamin D benefits
- The amount of vitamin D absorbed also varies from season and geographic location
- Do not shower straight after your exposure to the sun, vitamin D2 sits on the surface of the skin and will be absorbed and converted to vitamin D3 over a period of 12~24 hours.
What I Use
I have used a number of different brands and these 2 are the best I have found from my experience.
This one is the smallest capsule and best value for money. As I write this, it is 59% off the recommended retail price. It also has 49 reviews with an average of 5 stars out of a potential 5 stars
Then my other long time favourite is this one by Garden of Life.
Vitamin Code RAW D3 is whole food nutrition, specifically formulated with 5,000 IU of vitamin D3. Fat soluble Vitamin D3 is delivered in a whole food lipid based of Cracked-Wall Chlorella to promote absorption.
By the way, you will receive an additional discount by clicking the links above.
Challenge
So many people are suffering pain and chronic pain and often not realizing it could be a simple deficiency. Many, understandably, resort to pain killers and can become addicted to these drugs which do nothing to fix the cause.
My challenge to you or anyone you know who is suffering from pain, try a vitamin D supplement as I did. Unless the person suffering from pain receives a lot of direct sunlight or a regular basis, chances are very likely that they will be deficient and will gain some if not total relief from their pain. What could be easier?
Please, upvote, share, resteem, follow etc to help more people know of simple solutions like this.
Feedback
I love sharing my experiences but I also love to hear when other people try what worked for me and how successful (or not) they were. So please do report back here and let the whole community know. Thank you!
Credits
(1) http://www.naturalhealth365.com/vitamin-d-levels-2290.html
(Image) http://www.pixabay.com
Disclaimer: Anything in this post must not be construed as medical advice. I simply share my experiences and research with readers like yourself. Results may vary from person to person for many reasons. If unsure, then please consult your doctor.
Disclosure: By purchasing anything from the above links may give me a credit and/or recognition of your purchase. What I recommend is what I use personally and I stand by my recommendations.