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Vitamin D advocates: It energizes body

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By Keri Brenner | The Olympian • Published August 06, 2007

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As we speak, I am planning a trip to the health food store to buy more vitamin D.

The more I look into this, the more I am convinced: Most of us are not getting enough of the nutrient. If we were, it could keep our bones stronger, help ward off diabetes and maybe even protect against cancer, tuberculosis and the flu.

Some vitamin D advocates, such as Lynn Krupski of Olympia, say it even helps ease food cravings, lifts the spirit, erases fatigue and stops bone and joint pain.

In December, Krupski, who suffers from multiple ailments including early rheumatoid arthritis and osteoporosis, did a short trial of 5,000 international units of vitamin D-3 daily. The standard recommended dosage of vitamin D-3, which is preferred over the vitamin D-2 form, is 400 IUs a day. Krupski previously had been on 2,000 IUs daily.

"In 48 hours, my muscles were no longer aching," Krupski, 60, said of the high-dosage experiment.

"I had needed 10-plus hours of sleep a night to keep my muscles from really hurting," she said. "Now I am sleeping soundly for seven or eight hours a night and waking easily without an alarm clock."

Krupski, who is working with doctors at The PolyClinic in Seattle, has since decreased the vitamin D dosage to about 3,000 to 4,000 IUs daily. She said the changes continue to be remarkable.

"My energy is great for 16 hours a day," she said. "I no longer crave sweets or mindlessly graze on food."

Her high-dosage experiment came after reading an article in the Dec. 18 issue of U.S. News and World Report. The article reports an increasing number of studies are finding that low levels of vitamin D can adversely affect many different functions of the body, from blood pressure during pregnancy to the pancreas' release of insulin to the ability to maintain a strong immune system.

"There's been recent research that shows how often perimenopausal and menopausal women are low in vitamin D," said Julie Dybbro, an Olympia advanced registered nurse practitioner. "I now routinely test my patients for vitamin D 25 OH, the standard test for vitamin D-3 levels."