End Fatigue
Optimized Nutrition: The Foundation of Healing
| Introduction |
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| Sugar and White Flour |
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| Caffeine and Alcohol |
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| Vitamin and Mineral Supplements |
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 | The Importance of an Excellent Multiple Vitamin and Mineral |
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| Antioxidants |
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 | Vitamin C |
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| Vitamin E |
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| Vitamin A |
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| Beta Carotene |
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| Bioflavonoids |
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| Glutathione (GSH) |
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| Superoxide Dismutase |
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| Lipoic Acid |
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| B Vitamins |
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| B1 – Thiamine |
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| B2 – Riboflavin |
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| B3 – Niacin |
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| B6 – Pyridoxine |
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| B12 |
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| Vitamin D |
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| Vitamin K |
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| Pantothenic Acid |
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| Folic Acid |
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| Biotin |
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| Minerals |
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| Boron |
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| Chromium |
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| Copper |
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| Iodine |
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| Lithium |
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| Magnesium |
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| Manganese |
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| Molybdenum |
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| Phosphorus |
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| Potassium |
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| Selenium |
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| Sodium |
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| Zinc |
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| Amino Acids |
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| Arginine |
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| Lysine |
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| Methionine |
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| N-Acetyl-Cysteine |
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| Serine |
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| Taurine |
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| Tryptophan |
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| Tyrosine |
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| Cofactors |
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| Choline |
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| Malic Acid |
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| Inositol |
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| Trimethylglycine (Betaine) |
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| Getting Optimal Nutritional Support Easily |
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| Iron |
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| Calcium |
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| Fish Oils |
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| Ribose |
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| Intravenous Nutritional Therapies |
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| Don’t Forget a Healthy Diet! |
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| Important Points |
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| References |
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Introduction
Often, people come in to my office complaining of longstanding fatigue that is not quite as disabling as the fatigue seen in chronic fatigue syndrome or fibromyalgia. I never cease to be amazed at how often these people improve dramatically by simply cleaning up their diets a little—cutting down on their sugar, caffeine, and alcohol intake; substituting whole grains for white flour; and adding simple yet powerful nutritional support to their daily regimens. So let us start with the easy things first.
Sugar and White Flour
The average American’s diet includes over 140 pounds of added sugar per year.1 This added sugar accounts for 18% of the average American’s caloric intake. Since a healthy diet without added sugar may have only a 5-15% margin of safety for supplying optimum amounts of vitamins and minerals, the added sugar alone makes the average American diet a disaster.
Sugar also suppresses the immune system and stimulates yeast overgrowth in the intestines. Yeast grows by fermenting sugar and the yeast say thank you by making billions of baby yeasties. Physicians working in this field have found that although most sugar is usually absorbed before it gets to the intestines, excess sugar can still markedly aggravate yeast overgrowth.2 Yeast can also aggravate sugar craving. This may mimic hypoglycemia, which is commonly found in people with an under active adrenal gland.
I often hear people express skepticism about the importance of nutritional supplements. A typical comment that I hear is, “Five hundred years ago, there were no vitamin tablets, and people seemed to do just fine.” Well, 500 years ago, sugar was expensive and not readily available. The King of England might have sprinkled a teaspoon of sugar on his food as a sign of power, but when he wanted sugar and had none left, he had to send someone to the West Indies to get it!
Another dietary disaster is white flour. Vitamins were supposedly discovered by a settler who went on sailing expeditions with Dutch explorers. Soon after the settler helped a group of colonists establish their new home, he found that the colonists were becoming ill. He also noticed that the colony’s chickens were looking unusually healthy. Being a curious fellow, this man began feeding the chicken food to the people. Over a period of several weeks, the people became stronger and healthier. Since the settler was also a good businessman, he (incorrectly) named the chicken feed vital amines, meaning “vital proteins,” and began selling it. The name was later shortened to vitamins.
Today, scientists understand what happened to those colonists. Polishing off the brown outer coat, or bran, from rice had become fashionable. The rice bran was then used as chicken feed. The bran, however, contains most of the vitamins and minerals that are present in rice. The colonists therefore quickly became nutritionally deficient, while the chickens flourished.
In the United States, approximately 18% of the average person’s calories come from white flour. However, white flour, just like white rice, has had the bran removed and therefore is also significantly depleted of vitamins and minerals.3,4 Although some foods made of white flour are now fortified with vitamins and minerals to make up for this, most of the nutrients that were removed continue to be missing.
As you can see, from just the use of white flour and added sugar, Americans often reduce their vitamin and mineral intake by around 35%. Add to this the nutrients that are lost in the canning of vegetables, which can cause vitamin losses of up to 80%, and in the processing of other foods.5 As Dr. S. B. Eaton noted in his study in the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine, “Physicians and nutritionists are increasingly convinced that the dietary habits adopted by Western society over the past one hundred years make an important etiologic [causative] contribution to coronary heart diseases [angina], hypertension, diabetes, and some types of cancer.6 This is the same conclusion that was reached by the authors of Western Diseases: Their Emergence and Prevention.7
Caffeine and Alcohol
I am constantly astonished at the number of people who complain about being tired who drink more than ten cups of coffee a day. Caffeine is a loan shark for energy and also accentuates hypoglycemic symptoms. Many chronic fatigue patients fall into the trap of drinking ever increasing amounts of coffee to boost their energy so that they can function. What these people do not realize is that as the day goes on, caffeine takes away more energy than it gives. Coffee drinkers are often caught in a vicious cycle. I advise all my coffee drinkers to stop ingesting coffee completely for two to three months. After this initial period, I tell them that they can add back up to eight ounces of coffee a day if they are feeling better. Black and green teas, in leaf and teabag forms, are high in antioxidants, however, and are much more healthful than coffee. It is OK to drink 1-2 cups of brewed tea a day (not the sugar loaded ones sold in bottles) to get your “caffeine-kick.”
If you drink more than three cups of coffee a day, you should remove it from your diet gradually. To begin, cut your coffee consumption in half every week until you are down to about one cup a day. For example, if you generally drink four cups of coffee a day, cut your intake to two cups a day the first week, then to one cup a day the second week. The final week, continue on or switch to caffeinated tea, which contains many antioxidants which improve your health. I usually tell my patients that I do not want to see them until ten days after their last cup of coffee. Caffeine is an addictive drug and removing it from the diet brings withdrawal symptoms—grouchiness, headache, and fatigue. Once the withdrawal symptoms are gone, however, my patients usually feel much better and are very happy that they went through the process. By tapering the coffee as just described, it takes a little longer to feel well, but the withdrawal symptoms are not as severe.
Limit alcohol to one to three drinks a day. One drink equals six ounces of wine, twelve ounces of beer, or one and a half ounces of whiskey. If you drink more than these amounts, you should stop drinking alcohol completely for three months. If you decide to return alcohol to your diet at the end of that time, make two drinks a day your limit. Some people with yeast overgrowth find that even the smallest amount of alcohol makes them feel poorly.
Vitamin and Mineral Supplements
The argument about people not needing vitamin tablets 500 years ago simply does not apply to the average modern American. One study that was reported in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition showed that fewer than 5% of the study participants consumed the recommended daily amounts (RDAs) of all their needed vitamins and minerals.8 What is frightening is that this study was conducted in Beltsville, Maryland, on U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) research center employees.
Despite this, some cynics still like to say that the vitamins go out in your urine, so all you’re doing by taking vitamin supplements is making expensive urine. Using this line of reasoning, these cynics can stop drinking water (it just goes out in their urine!). That way, they’ll soon stop annoying people who are in the process of getting themselves well!
Why are vitamins and minerals so important? Dr. Janet Travell, White House physician for Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson and professor emeritus of internal medicine at George Washington University, co-wrote Myofascial Pain and Dysfunction: The Trigger Point Manual, which is acknowledged as the authoritative work on muscle problems. In one chapter alone, Dr. Travell and coauthor Dr. David Simons reference 317 studies showing that problems such as hormonal, vitamin, and mineral deficiencies can contribute to muscle disorders.9
In fact, when I had figured out how to effectively treat CFS/FMS as a young physician and was all full of myself, one of my patients brought in The Trigger Point Manual and asked “Hey Doc, have you seen this?” Dr. Travell had figured out all of these things when I was still in diapers! As the godmother of pain management, I am proud to dedicate this book to her memory.
Patients often ask me “What vitamin or mineral do I need?” The answer is that all of them are critical. In addition, higher levels than normal are often needed to compensate for the poor absorption of nutrients caused by the bowel infections as well as the increased needs that result from the illness. For example, as discussed below, optimal zinc levels are critical for proper immune function, and zinc deficiency likely contributes to the immune dysfunction seen not just in CFS, but in AIDS as well. Chronic infections result in large zinc losses, which then further suppress immune function—resulting in more infections and zinc losses. In AIDS, zinc levels are as low as in a genetic zinc deficiency (called "Acrodermatitis Enteropathica" or "AD"). This zinc deficiency results in the hormone that regulates immunity (thymulin) not functioning—resulting in the same immune deficiencies in AD that are seen in early AIDS. Very low zinc levels have also been demonstrated in FMS (likely because of the chronic infections), contributing to further immune dysfunction.
Numerous other studies have shown that adequate amounts of many vitamins, minerals, amino acids, and nutritional cofactors are critical. In addition to zinc, vitamin A, beta-carotene, vitamin B6, vitamin C, vitamin E, and iron have been found to be very important in keeping the body’s defenses strong.10-15
Each nutrient is critical to health, and it is helpful to understand the roles that they play. In this chapter I will give you a “Nutrition Primer” which will review the key nutrients you should be getting from the diet and their optimal amounts. Don’t panic! We will also show you how to get all of these easily without being part of the “Handful Club” (where you take handfuls of supplements all day)! As you read this, realize that except for iron (which is toxic if you are not deficient), calcium (which blocks thyroid absorption and which most people do not need—contrary to sales hype) and fish oil (oil and water don’t mix) all of the nutrients discussed in this chapter (in optimal levels) and much more can be obtained in 1 drink and 1 capsule daily. This has been done to keep it easy and inexpensive for you. In addition, for credibility’s sake, I have my policy of not taking money from any supplement or pharmaceutical companies and 100% of the royalties from my products (including this one) go to charity.
The Importance of an Excellent Multiple Vitamin and Mineral
Every vitamin and nutritional mineral is very important in some way to health. The body depends on receiving vitamins and minerals from the diet because it cannot make them itself. If you are low in vitamins and minerals—whether because you eat junk food and are not taking in the required nutrients or because you are consuming the proper foods but your body is unable to metabolize them correctly—your CFS and fibromyalgia simply will not subside. An excellent multivitamin supplement is therefore critical to your improvement.
Nutritional deficiencies are not only a problem in the United States, but are also significant globally for many reasons. For example, a United Nations survey has determined that deficiencies in vitamins and minerals are impairing the energies, intellects, and economic prospects of entire nations. The report found that a lack of iron lowers children's IQ's by an average five to seven points and a deficiency in iodine cuts it 13 more points. Birth defects increase when mothers don't get enough folic acid and a shortage of vitamin A makes children 25-30% more likely to die of disease.
In the U.S., nutritional deficiencies are a major problem and a key contributor to creating disabilities. As a study out of Cornell University notes “Low serum concentrations of vitamins B6 and B12 and selenium predict subsequent disability… in older women living in the community. Nutritional status is one of the key factors to be considered in the development of strategies aimed at preventing or delaying the disablement process.”16 In addition, among overweight or obese men and women, long term use of multivitamins, vitamin B6, vitamin B12, and chromium were significantly associated with lower levels of weight gain.17
Getting optimal nutrient levels can also even help you keep your teeth!18 I recommend the Energy Revitalization System powder and B Complex made by Enzymatic Therapy and also by ITI (Integrative Therapeutics—which sells through health practitioners). A single drink and capsule replaces over 35 supplement pills. In fact, I lecture frequently to over 400 of the world’s leading nutritional experts at the IAACN (International and American Association of Clinical Nutritionists) annual conference, and I put out the challenge that if any of them can get what’s in the 1 drink and capsule in less than 35 capsules, I’d give them $50 (multiplied by 400 attendees, my risk was $20,000). No one has managed to do it yet and these are experts. Try it yourself. It usually takes 50+ capsules!
The main side effects caused by multivitamins which give optimal nutritional support are gas, diarrhea or an upset stomach, which occurs in a small percentage of people. If this is a problem for you, try taking the vitamin powder with a meal or at bedtime, or split it and take one quarter to one half scoop of the powder two times a day. Half a scoop is plenty for most people for maintenance, so adjust it to the dose that feels best to you (I take ~ 4/5th of a scoop my self each morning in water). The “Daily Energy” B vitamins are also sold separately, so by using only half a scoop you can save 40% of the total cost (which is under $1.80 a day and often discounted and on sale; e.g., under $1.50/day at www.endfatigue.com) for those of you on very tight budgets. It is carried in most health food stores. Please note that any supplement containing B vitamins will turn your urine bright yellow. This is normal. This supplement is outstanding for most people (with or without CFS—though because of the magnesium it should be used under doctor’s supervision in kidney failure/dialysis patients) and I recommend it be used long term.
Because it is a powder, it can be taken many ways. Some like to add it to yogurt. Others add the orange flavored form (my wife’s favorite) to 4 ounces of orange juice and 4 ounces of milk (it tastes like an orange smoothie). Others like the berry flavor (my favorite) and simply stir it in water (I like to avoid the sugar in fruit juices). If hand mixing it as I do instead of using a blender, know that the best way to mix powders is to put the powder in a dry glass, add 2-3 ounces of what ever liquid you’re using, give it a few stirs till any lumps are gone and then add the rest of the liquid. It’s the most worthwhile 10 seconds you’ll spend each day!
Because of the critical nature of proper nutrition, let’s look at the importance of some of key nutrients.
Antioxidants
This category is so important that I am beginning the discussion of nutrition with 2 key antioxidants. Although necessary for life, oxygen is incredibly toxic. In fact, the greatest mass extinction in the history of the planet occurred when algae (which create large amounts of oxygen) began to grow in the seas. Putting large amounts of oxygen into the air, it is estimated that they drove over 95% of animal species then living into extinction—as oxygen is that toxic. Oxygen results in the production of toxic “free radicals,” which set up ongoing, self-sustaining chain reactions of molecular damage. Antioxidants end these chain reactions and are critical to life. Species that developed anti-oxidant defense systems and actually learned to thrive on oxygen survived the coming of algae. Doing so, however, is quite literally like playing with fire!
People with CFS/FMS are under increased oxidative stress.19 The importance of this problem is reflected in the work of Dr. Paul Cheney. This noted CFS expert believes that a major component of chronic fatigue syndrome stems from the heart muscle working poorly because of inadequate energy production. He theorizes that this occurs because the body's mitochondrial energy furnaces are unable to adequately handle oxygen free radicals and therefore shut down energy production. Antioxidants are the key tools that your body uses to neutralize free radicals. One antioxidant, called "glutathione," is especially critical. For over a decade we have talked about how glutathione deficiency may be one of the single most critical common denominators causing CFS and fibromyalgia. This theory has also been supported by the brilliant work of Rich Van Konynenburg, Ph.D. He proposes a number of triggers for glutathione depletion, including a block in the methylation cycle. I have long respected Rich as being a leading edge thinker in CFS and have added more detailed information on his theories in the "From Fatigued to Fantastic!" notes section.
In addition to being critical for the production of energy, antioxidants also seem to be very important for maintaining health and youth. In fact, doctors who specialize in "anti-aging medicine" use antioxidants (as well as bioidentical hormones) as key tools.
Although supplementation can be critical, there are ways that are even more fun to get your antioxidants. This is why when I recommend avoiding sugar, I also add the three magic words “except for chocolate!” Chocolate’s high levels of antioxidants (especially dark chocolate), as well as it’s containing a natural mood enhancer, are the reasons for this recommendation. For example, according to the results of a study conducted at Cornell University, the concentration of cancer-fighting antioxidants in hot cocoa was significantly higher than those in red wine, green tea, or black tea.
Chocolate has other fringe benefits. Children born to women who regularly ate chocolate during their pregnancies were more likely to be “sweet natured.” Researchers at the University of Helsinki in Finland asked 300 pregnant women to track their stress levels and chocolate consumption. When their children were six months old, their moms were surveyed on their babies' behaviors. The results showed that babies born to stressed women who ate chocolate daily smiled more frequently, laughed more often, and showed less fear of new situations than babies of stressed women who did not indulge in chocolate. Taking high levels of antioxidants during pregnancy also decreases the risk of the baby having asthma.20 I guess that eating chocolate is simply a sacrifice that we need to make for our children!
In men, taking even low dose antioxidants (120 mg of ascorbic acid, 30 units of vitamin E, 6 mg of beta carotene, 100 µg of selenium, and 20 mg of zinc, vs. a placebo for an average of 7.5 years) can prolong life.21 Men in the antioxidant group were 1/3 less likely to have died by the end of the study.
As one of many other examples, antioxidants such as Vitamin C can decrease the hearing loss that accompanies aging.22 In addition, it is estimated that 300,000 cases of macular degeneration (35% of cases), a leading cause of blindness, could be prevented simply by supplementation with antioxidants and zinc!23 Anti-oxidants also protect against stomach cancer,24 help in the treatment of liver disease,25 are associated with a decreased risk of hip fractures,26 and may protect against strokes.27
Thanks to low carb diets, scurvy is starting to make a come back. In a study done at the University of Arizona and published in the American Journal of Public Health, it was found that men and women aged 25 to 44 often fail to take in adequate amounts of vitamin C and are at high risk of getting scurvy. Because the disease is seldom considered by 21st century healthcare practitioners, people presenting with scurvy symptoms such as fatigue, limping, bleeding gums, or swollen extremities are often misdiagnosed and medicated for other disorders.
Vitamin C is well known as a critical nutrient, being important for proper immune, adrenal and antioxidant function, so I will not spend much time on it. I recommend you get at least 500 mg/day. To help encourage you to take it, too little vitamin C in the blood stream has been found to correlate with increased body fat and waist measurements. Nutrition researchers from Arizona State University report that the amount of vitamin C in the blood stream is directly related to fat oxidation—the body's ability to use fat as a fuel source—during both exercise and at rest.28
Vitamins C and E also help to prevent osteoporosis29 and vitamin C may protect against developing angina or strokes30 though this was not found in a larger study.
As an aside, vitamin C actually does make you less likely to catch a cold. In one study, people taking 500 mg of vitamin C a day had 18% fewer colds than those in the 50 mg/day group.31 Vitamin C also helps improve sperm count and motility, and can be helpful in treating infertility (see pregnancy articles).32 With sperm counts dropping dramatically around the planet, it could be that natural selection will mean that only those taking their supplements will eventually be able to reproduce!
This critical antioxidant serves many functions, but more is not always better. Many nutrients (such as beta carotene) are part of a larger “family,” so taking very high doses of only one type can actually suppress the others and become problematic. This is the case with vitamin E as well, as there are many types of tocopherols. Research suggests that taking over 150 units a day can actually be problematic,33 so I recommend taking 100 units a day as the optimal level in multi-vitamins. If you are taking higher levels to treat a specific problem, take it for only a few months and use natural vitamin E (mixed tocopherols) which contain all of the different types of vitamin E.
Although more is not better, deficiency is a significant problem. For example, research suggests that 91% of 2-5 year olds are vitamin E deficient.34 Taking vitamin E (200 units twice a day) can also significantly reduce the severity and duration of menstrual period pain. Writing in the British Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, the researchers say: "The use of vitamin E for dysmenorrhoea [painful periods] in adolescent women is attractive because of the marked effect we have demonstrated, coupled with the absence of significant side effects from vitamin E in therapeutic doses." Peter Bowen-Simpkins, of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists notes: "This is particularly exciting because such treatment is readily available over the counter, is free from side effects, avoids the use of hormones or pain relievers and appears to be very effective."35
Vitamin E in optimal doses (~ 100 units a day) may also be cancer protective. Two studies presented at the 2004 annual meeting of the American Association of Cancer Research found that people who had a high intake of dietary vitamin E or who had high levels in their bloodstream were the least likely to have cancer. In one of the studies, vitamin E supplements in addition to a vitamin E-rich diet lowered the bladder cancer risk. In the other, men with the most vitamin E in their systems had the lowest risk of prostate cancer. This was also discussed in another study published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, where high blood levels of vitamin E cut the risk of prostate cancer by about 50%,36 and a third study which showed that vitamin E caused prostate cancer cells to “self destruct.”37 Adequate vitamin E may also decrease the risk of breast cancer.38
Given the above, one could argue that you’d need to be demented not to get adequate antioxidant support. I guess it’s not surprising then, that in a study on 1,033 people aged 65 years and older, low plasma levels of vitamin E were found to be associated with a more than doubled risk of becoming demented and of suffering from cognitive impairment!39
Vitamin A is critical for mucosal immunity and zinc function, but be careful not to get too much. Birth defects can occur in women taking over 8,000 units/day, and higher dosing of vitamin A (not beta carotene) can also aggravate osteoporosis. At doses of over 50,000 units/day, vitamin A can even cause liver injury, so I would only use doses over 8,000 units daily under the supervision of a holistic practitioner. Two examples of when higher doses may be used by your practitioner include acne, which is associated with low vitamin A levels40 and improves with high dose vitamin A plus zinc (which augments vitamin A activity) and heavy menstrual periods during peri-menopause. Called “Dysfunctional Uterine Bleeding (DUB),” the bleeding often resolves without the need for a hysterectomy by taking 50,000 units of vitamin A (with 25 mg zinc) daily for 3 months. It is, of course, important to also treat the low thyroid and low iron, which are 2 other (and more common) important causes of heavy periods.
One of a large family of carotenoids (found in carrots), beta carotene is the main one added to supplements. In proper dosing it can be helpful, and higher doses (to a point) are associated with increased longetivity.41
Because beta carotene is part of a larger “family,” however, taking very high doses of only one type can actually suppress the others and become problematic. For example, taking 25,000 units a day was associated with an increased risk of lung cancer. So more is not always better!
There are many members of this family, which can be found in the white part of citrus fruits just below the peel. They are important for blood vessel integrity and immune function. A high intake of flavonoids has been shown to lower heart attack risk42 and 500 mg a day (of the quercitin form) decreases the symptoms of prostatitis.
Glutathione (GSH) is a tripeptide and is an antioxidant, protecting cells from free radicals. Glutathione is not an essential nutrient since it can be synthesized from the amino acids L-cysteine, L-glutamic acid, and glycine. While all cells in the human body are capable of synthesizing glutathione, liver glutathione synthesis has been shown to be essential.
Glutathione exists in reduced (GSH) and oxidized (GSSG) states. In the reduced state, it is able to donate a reducing equivalent (H++ e-) to other unstable molecules, such as reactive oxygen species. Glutathione (GSH) participates as a cofactor for the enzyme glutathione peroxidase. It is also important as a hydrophilic molecule that is added to lipophilic toxins and waste in the liver during biotransformation before they can become part of the bile. Glutathione is also needed for the detoxification of methylglyoxal, a toxin produced as a byproduct of metabolism.
An increased GSSG-to-GSH ratio is considered indicative of oxidative stress.
Glutathione taken orally is not well absorbed across the GI tract. However, tissue and serum glutathione concentrations can be raised by increased intake of the precursor cysteine, or in chronic conditions, by S-adenosylmethionine (SAMe). Glutathione precursors rich in cysteine include N-acetylcysteine (NAC), glutamine, glycine, vitamin C and undenatured whey protein and these supplements have been shown to increase glutathione content (all present in the Energy Revitalization System vitamin powder — for this reason).
The enzyme superoxide dismutase, catalyzes the dismutation of superoxide into oxygen and hydrogen peroxide. It is an important antioxidant defense in nearly all cells exposed to oxygen.
SOD can be naturally found in the cytosols of all eukaryotic cells with copper and zinc. It is in chicken liver (and nearly all other) mitochondria. Many bacteria contain a form with manganese (Mn-SOD).
SOD out-competes damaging reactions of superoxide, thus protecting the cell from superoxide toxicity. Superoxide is one of the main reactive oxygen species in cells. The physiological importance of SODs is illustrated by the severe pathologies evident in mice genetically engineered to lack these enzymes.
Mutations in the first SOD enzyme can cause familial amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Overexpression of SOD1 has been linked to Down's syndrome.
SOD has proved to be highly effective in treatment of colonic inflammation in experimental colitis and may be an important new tool for the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease. It is used in cosmetic products to reduce free radical damage to skin. Having adequate zinc (about 15 mg a day) and copper (1/2 mg a day) are key nutrients responsible for optimal SOD function. Too much copper, however, can actually increase oxidative stress, so more is not better.
Lipoic acid, from potatoes, is a helpful antioxidant which restores and supports function of other antioxidants (such as vitamin E) and also can help heal nerve pain (the latter at a dose of 300 mg 2 times a day).
B Vitamins
These are especially critical for energy production, and the RDAs I feel are very suboptimal (and one reason why many people call RDAs “Ridiculous Dietary Allowances”). B Vitamins are also important for immunity, nerve, and brain function, and much more. Using high but safe doses can be very important (while easy and low cost).
Vitamin B1 is critical for proper brain functioning, making it especially important in those with “brain fog.” It is also critical for heart function, which needs help in CFS patients (the heart is healthy, but the heart muscle needs help with energy production). In fact, a major cause of death in the U.S. is congestive heart failure, which is one symptom of vitamin B1 deficiency. Despite 33% of CHF patients being low in thiamine,43 this easy treatment aid is ignored. Thiamine is also used therapeutically in dementia, anxiety, neuropathy, fatigue, alcoholism, confusion, depression, pain, memory loss, and disequilibrium.
In a double blind study by Dr. David Benton, an expert on thiamine, supplementation with vitamin B1 improved mood—possibly by increasing synthesis of acetylcholine, a neurotransmitter that is associated with memory.44 Deficiency of this neurotransmitter has also been suspected to occur in CFS and supplementation with choline (see below) can also be helpful. Dr. Benton also found that giving 50 mg/day of thiamine (vs. placebo) was associated with reports of being more clearheaded, composed and energetic. These influences took place in subjects whose thiamine status, according to traditional criteria, was adequate.45 Dr Benton notes that:
“Traditionally, the RDA has aimed to avoid a deficiency disease and has added a safety margin. My findings suggest that if you wish to redefine the RDA as achieving optimal functioning then the levels recommended would have to be increased.” He notes that subclinical thiamine deficiency can even affect school performance in young children stating that “there are clinical reports of youths who have developed aggressive behavioral problems to the extent that they entered a mental hospital. The origin of the problem was a diet that consists of little more than fast-food snacks on the street. Having failed to respond to psychiatric drugs, their unacceptable behavior disappeared when treated with thiamine supplements. In general, as poorer mood is known to influence cognitive functioning in all children, a poor mood is likely to be associated with poorer school performance.”
Dr. Derrick Lonsdale, another nutrition expert, has even found that thiamine supplementation can markedly diminish Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). He found that by giving nutritional support:
“Gradually, it became obvious that I was merely supplying the missing components of energy metabolism and that these children were simply repairing their own tissues with the extra energy that was available to their cells. What was even more important was the fact that the enormous number of children with so-called emotional problems (attention deficit, hyperactivity and learning disability) plaguing the school system responded to their withdrawal from their cultural "goodies" and the use of vitamin therapy. This was published in the Journal of Clinical Nutrition in 1980. My present concept of the extreme danger of "high calorie malnutrition" was born. It has long been known that an increase in sugar in the diet automatically increases the need for thiamin. This is because glucose, which is the derivative of all sugars, is processed into the citric acid cycle and thiamin is the rate-limiting step. The ingestion of sugar in all forms in America is reported to be 150 pounds per capitum of population per annum.”
Dr. Lonsdale feels that inadequate thiamine can occur even if one is taking much more than the RDA. Interestingly, symptoms of thiamine deficiency can mimic symptoms often seen in CFS/FMS. He notes “Symptoms can be compared with "alarm bells" ringing. What thiamin deficiency does is to make the limbic system (the computer) much more sensitive to any form of stimulus. Thus, a person may have increased auditory, tactile or visual perceptions which are acute enough to be unpleasant. This gives rise to consciously perceived phenomena such as tachycardia, unusual sweating, abdominal pain with or without diarrhea, or a sense of panic/anxiety, fear, etc. These symptoms are easily perceived as fragments of the fight-or-flight reflex. Because of collective ignorance about the effects of dietary indiscretion, such symptoms are perceived as "nerves," "neurosis" or "functional" and are traditionally treated with a "tranquilizer." This is why I have termed the reaction Functional Dysautonomia. It is widespread and is frequently associated with mitral valve prolapse, premenstrual syndrome, temporo-mandibular syndrome and irritable bowel syndrome. There is really no such thing as a dose that suits all. Our biochemical mechanisms are variable from person to person and even within the same individual at different times. All we can do is to provide an excess, because the cell will use what it needs. The excess is lost in urine, sweat, etc. There are absolutely no side effects from thiamin unless it is given in thousands of time its physiologic dose. It has been used in Alzheimer patients in doses of 3 gms a day, with some benefit.46
Professor Michael Gold also found that people with Alzheimer’s have lower serum thiamine levels than those with other types of dementia 47. He also noted that in a small study of Chinese patients with Hepatitis, high dose B1 appeared to have anti-viral effects-which could also be potentially beneficial in CFS/FMS patients.
This B vitamin is especially critical for energy production. In higher doses (75-400 mg/day) it has been repeatedly shown to decrease migraine frequency (a common problem in CFS/FMS) by 67% after 6-12 weeks. Vitamin B2 even helps decrease the risk of postpartum depression.48
Niacin is also critical for energy production, being a key part of the energy molecule NADH (which also helps make the neurotransmitter dopamine). Niacin may also prevent Alzheimer's. A five-year study of over 3,700 people published in the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry showed an inverse relationship between niacin intake and both Alzheimer's disease and age-related mental decline. The group getting a median 14 mg of niacin daily from diet and supplements were at highest risk (current RDA for niacin is 16 mg per day for men and 14 mg per day for women). While some benefits were noted to begin at 17 mg per day, a daily niacin intake of 45 mg offered the most protection from Alzheimer's disease and other causes of cognitive decline.49 High doses over decades also seem to decrease the progression of arthritis. I recommend the niacinamide form, as regular niacin can cause marked flushing.
Pantothenic Acid and its cousin pantethine play many key roles in the body. Most importantly in CFS and fibromyalgia, pantothenic acid is critical for proper adrenal gland function. In addition, pantethine is also critical for proper handling of fats. For example, patients who have fatty liver and high triglycerides (blood fats) can have this condition resolve by taking pantethine.50
Vitamin B6 (Pyridoxine) serves many critical functions, including enhancing immune function51 and decreasing the risk of heart disease.52 In a study of 61,433 women with no history of cancer followed for an average of 14.8 years, long term intake of dietary vitamin B6 was also associated with a 34% decreased risk of colon cancer in those whose B6 levels were in the highest vs. the lowest 20%.53 I have also found that those with fluid retention benefit from vitamin B6 at a dose of ~ 200-250 mg/day—especially if you also optimize thyroid hormone levels. This has implications way beyond your rings being too tight. For example, B6 250 mg/day is very helpful at alleviating carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS). Although I have seen no studies on thyroid therapy in CTS, all of my patients who have taken B6, thyroid hormone, and a night-time “cock-up” wrist splint and do not have continuing repetitive stress injury have had their CTS go away without surgery in less than 3 months. This would make a wonderful study for insurance companies who would like to cut costs while improving patient outcomes and satisfaction (and I invite insurance companies to contact me about this).
Vitamin B12 is another key nutrient in CFIDS. Technically, the B12 level is normal if it is over 208 picograms per deciliter (pg/dL) of blood. However, studies have shown that people can suffer severe and sometimes long term nerve and brain damage from B12 deficiency even if their levels are as high as 300 pg/dL.54 Why are the “normal” levels set so low? In part, the normal values were initially set according to what prevents anemia. But the brain’s and nervous system’s needs for vitamin B12 are often much higher than those of the bone marrow. Also, as much as I hate to admit it, the medical establishment has greatly enjoyed poking fun at the old-time doctors who gave vitamin B12 shots for fatigue. The use of B12 shots despite “normal” levels is considered almost a symbol of unscientific, archaic medicine. As noted in an editorial in The New England Journal of Medicine, however, current findings suggest that those old-time doctors may have been right.55 I suspect, though, that the modern medical establishment will be a little slow to eat crow.
I have been told (although I have been unable to confirm it), that a B12 level under 400 pg/dL is often considered abnormal in Japan and treated. In addition, a recent study using the respected Framingham database showed that metabolic signs of B12 deficiency occur even with levels over 500 pg/dL.56
Furthermore, people with Alzheimer’s disease have been found to have an average B12 level of only 472 picograms per deciliter, compared with people who have confusion from a non-Alzheimer’s condition (such as a stroke), whose average B12 levels run 887 picograms per deciliter.57 These and other studies suggest that many people need significantly higher B12 levels than what is currently considered normal. More importantly, recent research shows that despite their having normal B12 levels in the blood, CFIDS patients often have very low (and sometimes absent) B12 levels in their brains!58 This suggests that, because of the metabolic problems present in CFIDS/FMS, you may need quite high B12 levels in your blood to get adequate levels past the blood-brain barrier (the membrane that separates the brain from the blood to protect the brain from circulating toxins) and into the brain, where B12 is needed. In addition, vitamin B12 helps reduce excessive levels of nitric oxide, a neurotransmitter that can be too high in people with CFIDS/FMS and that can easily contribute to symptoms. More and more, research studies are supporting what doctors who effectively treat CFIDS/FMS using B12 shots have said for years!
It is no surprise then, when their other problems are also treated, many people respond dramatically to B12 injections. If a patient’s B12 level is under 540 pg/mL, I treat that person with a 1-cc (1,000- to 3,000-microgram) injection one to five times a week for fifteen injections. These shots are very safe and fairly inexpensive. Although most regular pharmacies carry only the 1,000-microgram-per-cc strength, holistic pharmacies can make up injectable vitamin B12 that contains 3,000 micrograms per cc. I recommend that they use the methylcobalmin form or, if cost is an issue, hydroxycobalmin when making high dose injections. Usually, if a patient is going to benefit from the shots, I see improvement by ten weeks. I usually stop after ten to fifteen shots. If a patient feels worse when the injections are stopped, I resume giving the shots, usually every one to five weeks (but as often as three to four times a week in some cases) for an extended period of time. Most people, however, can maintain their B12 level after fifteen injections by taking the high amount in the Energy Revitalization System.
Why is a low B12 level such a common problem in CFIDS patients? Several possibilities exist. Among them are the following:
| Vitamin B12 is important for the repair of nerve injuries. Evidence suggests that brain dysfunction occurs in CFIDS. In repairing this injury, the body may over utilize vitamin B12 and deplete its stores. |
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| If an autoimmune process impairs the thyroid or adrenal gland, it may also attack the area responsible for our ability to absorb vitamin B12. |
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| Overgrowth of yeast or parasites in the bowel causing problems with absorption may prevent the proper absorption of vitamin B12. |
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| Nitric oxide excess is suspected in CFS and B12 is a nitric oxide scavenger. |
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| Vitamin B12 has trouble getting across the blood-brain barrier.58 |
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| Vitamin B12 may be important for, and used up in, detoxification. |
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The role of elevated nitric oxide in CFS has been explored by Professor Martin Pall of the University of Washington. He feels this is a major contributor to CFS and that high dose B12 is a key nitric oxide scavenger, and that this is a key reason it helps. Though complex, his ideas are well thought out, and I have added more detailed information on his theories in the web site notes. I would note that the approach discussed in this book is also effective at treating this problem.
Whatever the cause, I have found that treating patients with vitamin B12, even if their levels are technically normal, often results in marked improvement. This is good, as Vitamin B12 is both very safe and cheap and using high doses can be critical in CFS/FMS.
In addition to helping the CFS/FMS, B12 helps in many other ways. For example, in a study of people being treated for depression, participants with higher levels of vitamin B12 tended to get a greater benefit from antidepressants. The researchers theorized that a deficiency in vitamin B12 might result in high homocysteine levels, which may enhance depression.
In addition, Professor Vladimar Lerner, a major researcher on the role of nutrition and the brain , has noted that “Cobalamin [B12] and folic acid deficiency may contribute to the pathogenesis of neuropsychiatric disorders such as mental confusion, memory changes, cognitive slowing, mood disorder, violent behavior, fatigue, delirium, and paranoid psychosis.”59 and this can occur because of B12 and folate’s role in methylation processes—which as we noted above are key players in treating CFS/FMS.
B12 is often better absorbed when taken as a supplement than when found in food.60 This is especially important in the elderly, where suboptimal B12 levels are common. Giving RDA levels in this setting is not adequate. A 2005 study noted "The lowest dose of oral cyanocobalamin [B12] required to normalize mild vitamin B12 deficiency is more than 200 times greater than the recommended dietary allowance, which is approximately 3 µg daily," the authors write. "Clinical trials are currently assessing the effects of high doses of oral cobalamin on markers of cognitive function and depression. If such trials can demonstrate that the reported associations of vitamin B12 deficiency with cognitive impairment or depression are causal and reversible by treatment, the relevance of correction of vitamin B12 deficiency in older people could be substantial."61 Instead of waiting 10 years for those studies, I recommend people get 500 mcg/day of B12 now.
In addition, low B12 levels (which can cause high homocysteine levels) can increase the risk of osteoporosis by 200-300%.62.63 and also significantly increase the risk of stroke.64 Low B12 is also associated with increased blood clotting—a problem that is common in CFS.65 High intakes of folate and vitamin B12 are also associated with decreased breast cancer risk, particularly among postmenopausal women.66
This is the most that can legally be added to a vitamin, as there is a concern that folate could mask vitamin B12 deficiency—which is not a problem if the supplement also has high levels of B12. Optimal levels of folic acid (folate) are critical in CFS/FMS because of its role in immune function. In addition, it is critical in “methylation reactions” such as those that make SAMe.
The benefits of folate begin early in life. Folic acid is known to protect against serious neural tube birth defects that develop in the earliest weeks of pregnancy, such as spina bifida, in which parts of the brain or spinal cord don't develop properly. For this reason, doctors recommend that women who are pregnant or trying to get pregnant take a vitamin supplement that includes folic acid.About 4,000 U.S. pregnancies per year involve a neural tube defect. Because the neural tube closes about four weeks after conception, before many women know they are pregnant, folic acid needs to be taken before a woman conceives to be beneficial. In fact, to their credit, Johnson & Johnson wants to develop an oral contraceptive that contains folic acid. The goal is to reduce the risks of birth defects in babies of women who become pregnant while taking birth control pills, as well as others who conceive shortly after stopping pill use.
Mothers-to-be with lower levels of the vitamin folate in their body during early pregnancy are also more likely to have low weight babies, research published in the British Journal of Nutrition suggests. Low birth weight is associated with an increased risk of serious health problems, including respiratory disorders and diabetes. Since Canada started adding folic acid to foods, the number of children who developed neuroblastoma dropped 60%. Neuroblastoma is the most common cancer in infants, and the most common cause of cancer-related death in children between the ages of one and four.67
Another major benefit of folate is in lowering elevated homocysteine levels and 800 mcg is an effective dose for this.68 This may be one reason why an increased intake of folate has been associated with a 43% drop in heart attack rates.69 A review of many studies suggests that taking 800 mcg of folic acid per day was associated with a 15% lower risk of heart attack and a 24% reduction in stroke.
Researchers have also identified a significant new risk factor for fractures in people with osteoporosis—high homocysteine levels. Two major studies, one conducted in Boston and the other in Amsterdam, found that the homocysteine levels' link to fractures was stronger than other factors such as smoking or low bone mineral density. The lead authors of both studies suggest that increased homocysteine levels may weaken the collagen that forms the framework for bones. Both studies conclude that supplemental folic acid, vitamin B12, and vitamin B6 are clearly essential in preventing potentially life-threatening hip fractures. The studies were reported in the May 13, 2004 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.
Interestingly, since food makers began adding extra folate to flour in 1998 to prevent birth defects, heart disease, stroke, blood pressure, colon cancer and osteoporosis have all fallen, suggesting the general public may have been folate-deficient. Researchers are now advocating that the current fortification level, 140 micrograms of folic acid per 100 grams of grain, should be doubled.70
Supplementing with 800 mcg of folate a day can also help memory. In one study, 818 cognitively healthy people ages 50 to 75 took either folic acid or placebo for three years. On memory tests, the supplement users had scores comparable to people 5.5 years younger, and on tests of cognitive speed, the folic acid helped users perform as well as people 1.9 years younger. “That's significant brain protection, with a supplement that's already well-known to be safe,” said Johns Hopkins University neuroscientist Marilyn Albert, who chairs the Alzheimer's Association's science advisory council.71
In addition, low folate is associated with Alzheimers.72 The results of a long-term study published in the inaugural issue of Alzheimer's & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer's Association, indicate that consuming adequate levels of the B vitamin folate is associated with the greatest protection against Alzheimer's disease of any nutrient examined. Assistant professor of neurology Maria Corrada of the University of California Irvine's Institute for Brain Aging and Dementia and colleagues utilized data from the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging which was begun in 1958 and includes over 1,400 participants. Dr Corrada noted, "The participants who had intakes at or above the 400 microgram recommended dietary allowance of folate had a 55% reduction in the risk of developing Alzheimer's. But most people who reached that level did so by taking folic acid supplements, which suggests that many people do not get the recommended amounts of folate in their diets."73
Folate may also decrease the risk of ovarian cancer. Researchers from the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm analyzed data from a population-based group of more than 60,000 cancer-free women. Overall, women with the highest level of folate in their diet (at least 204 micrograms/day) were 33% less likely to develop ovarian cancer than those with the lowest levels (less than 155 micrograms/day). The results are published in a 2004 issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. Folate may also help protect against colon cancer as well.74
Folate also decreases the risk of hypertension. The January 19, 2005 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) published the findings of Harvard researchers led by John P. Forman that intake of folate supplements is inversely related to the risk of hypertension in women.
This is a cofactor for a number of enzyme reactions, but seems especially important for healthy hair, skin and nails. Although it may take a year for hair loss to recover on this protocol, I am amazed at how many people are thrilled that their nails and hair have become strong and healthy along with the rest of their body!
The importance of vitamin D deficiency is finally gaining increasing attention. This nutrient deficiency is critical, causing tens of thousands of unnecessary deaths in the U.S. each year. Because of this, and the deadly recommendation to avoid sunshine that people are given, I am going to cover the importance of this nutrient in depth.
Vitamin D deficiency is common. In fact, a review in the Mayo Clinic Journal showed that approximately 36% of healthy young adults and 57% of general medicine inpatients in the United States have inadequate levels of vitamin D.75 Vitamin D deficiency is even more common in people with chronic pain.
This problem has increased since the horrible advice that doctors have given in telling people to avoid sunshine—and 90% of our vitamin D comes from sunshine. This misguided advice was given to decrease the number of dangerous skin cancers called melanomas. What doctors forget is that most of these melanomas are not in sun exposed areas (they are under our clothes). It is likely that the increase in melanomas is mostly occurring because of changes in diet, environment, and sleep which are resulting in weakened immune systems. The skin cancers usually caused by sunshine (e.g., basal cell cancers) are usually quite benign and easy to treat. Many other cancers increase in the face of vitamin D deficiency and, as 90% of our vitamin D comes from sun exposure, it is currently estimated that the advice to avoid sunshine is resulting in as many as 85,550 unnecessary cancer deaths each year! Sunshine is healthy—avoid sunburn, not sunshine!
To give more background about how avoiding sunshine (not sunburn) is counterproductive, two studies in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute shows that those with the most sunburns, the most beach vacations, and/or the most sunbathing were least likely to get lymphomas and leukemia (malignant white blood cell cancers). In addition, U.S. researchers report the surprising finding that people who get the most deadly kind of skin cancer (i.e., melanoma) are less likely to die of the disease if, in the past, they'd spent a lot of time in the sun. Researchers suggest that vitamin D has a lot to do with sunlight's anticancer effect.76-9
Optimal vitamin D is also important to minimize breast cancer risk. Research findings show that “higher intakes of vitamin D and calcium from food and supplements are related to lower levels of breast density among premenopausal women. They suggest that increasing intakes of vitamin D and calcium may represent a safe and inexpensive strategy for breast cancer prevention."80
Vitamin D also appears to lower prostate cancer risk. In a Harvard study, men with the highest levels of vitamin D had significantly lower overall risk (45%) of prostate cancer, including aggressive prostate cancer. According to Dr. Li "This research underscores the importance of obtaining adequate vitamin D through skin exposure to sunlight or through diet, including food and supplements," Dr. Li presented the report at the 2005 Multidisciplinary Prostate Cancer Symposium.
This is very important, as prostate cancer is one of the most common types of cancer in men in the U.S., and according to the American Cancer Society it's the second leading cause of cancer death in men. Almost 232,000 new cases will be diagnosed this year, and about 30,000 men will die of prostate cancer.81
High dose vitamin D is also important for those having surgery for lung cancer. Researchers at Harvard Medical School and Harvard School of Public Health studied the survival data of 456 patients with early stage lung cancer treated between 1992 and 2000. Patients who had high levels of vitamin D and had surgery in sunny months were more than twice as likely to be alive five years after surgery when compared to patients with low levels of vitamin D who had surgery in the winter, the researchers said. Lead researcher, Dr. David Christiani notes "The survival advantage at five years is pretty dramatic. 72% versus 29% when you compare the highest level of intake (of vitamin D) versus the lowest level of intake."82
So impressive is the role of vitamin D in preventing cancer that Dr. Edward Giovannucci, a Harvard University Professor of Medicine and Nutrition, laid out his case in a keynote lecture at a recent American Association for Cancer Research meeting in Anaheim, California. His research suggests that vitamin D might help prevent 30 deaths for each one caused by skin cancer. "I would challenge anyone to find an area or nutrient or any factor that has such consistent anti-cancer benefits as vitamin D," Giovannucci told the cancer scientists. "The data are really quite remarkable." The talk so impressed the American Cancer Society's chief epidemiologist, Dr. Michael Thun, that the society is reviewing its sun protection guidelines.
Of course, having scientific research behind you may not offer much protection in academia. One of the world’s leading experts on vitamin D is Dr. Michael Holick, chief of endocrinology, nutrition and diabetes (and in the past a professor of dermatology) at Boston University. He published a book, "The UV Advantage," urging people to get enough sunlight to make vitamin D. "I am advocating common sense, not prolonged sunbathing or tanning salons,” Holick said.
“Repeated sunburns especially in childhood and among redheads and very fair-skinned people have been linked to melanoma, but there is no credible scientific evidence that moderate sun exposure causes it,” Holick contends. "The problem has been that the American Academy of Dermatology has been unchallenged for 20 years," he says. "They have brainwashed the public at every level." Despite the strong evidence supporting the role of common sense (i.e., avoid sunburn, not sunshine), the head of Holick's department, Dr. Barbara Gilchrest, called his book an embarrassment and stripped him of his dermatology professorship.
About a dozen major studies are under way to test vitamin D's ability to ward off cancer, said Dr. Peter Greenwald, chief of cancer prevention for the National Cancer Institute, and two recent studies reported encouraging signs in prostate and lung cancer. Edward Giovannucci, MD, of Harvard School of Public Health, and colleagues estimated vitamin D levels for 47,800 men who participated in the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study. Men whose vitamin D levels were in the top 10% of participants experienced a 22% lower risk of mortality from any cancer than those in the lowest tenth. The research team found that an increment in vitamin D levels of 25 nanomoles per liter (nmol/L) was associated with a 17% reduction in cancer incidence, a 29% reduction in cancer mortality, and a 45% reduction in digestive tract (colorectal, pancreatic, esophageal and stomach) cancer mortality.
Another study analyzing multiple studies concluded that an intake of 2,000 units of vitamin D a day (through a mix of sunshine, food and supplements) could decrease both breast cancer and colorectal cancer by over 50%.83
This benefit applies to getting sunshine and not just supplements. Two new studies found evidence of a 40% reduction in breast cancer risk in women who had at one time worked outside. Women who participated in six or more outdoor activities between the ages of 12 and 19 had a 45% reduction in risk compared with women who had four or fewer activities.84
In addition, higher vitamin D levels may slow the progression of breast cancer.85
"Although melanomas account for approximately 7,000 deaths annually in males in the United States, 295,000 men die annually of all cancers," the authors conclude. "We estimated a 29% lower cancer mortality rate (i.e., 85,550 fewer deaths) if the predicted 25(OH)D [Vitamin D] level is increased 25 nmol/L. Thus, because current recommendations are adequate only to prevent extremely low vitamin D levels, establishing definitively whether cancer incidence and mortality rates are increased by inadequate vitamin D status should be a high priority. Achieving a 25(OH)D increment of 25 nmol/L may require vitamin D supplementation of at least 1,500 IU/day, a safe but not generally encouraged level.”86
In an editorial in the same issue of the JNCI, Gary G. Schwartz, PhD, of Wake Forest University and William J. Blot, PhD, of the International Epidemiology Institute in Rockville, write, "The promising results from both observational and laboratory studies should usher in a new era of intervention studies of vitamin D and cancer risk."87
To summarize, it is estimated that about 50,000-88,500 annual cancer deaths in the U.S. (10+% of all cancer deaths) could be prevented if all Americans had sufficient vitamin D. These deaths greatly outnumber the annual number of deaths from melanoma (8,000) and skin cancer (2,000). As an article in the BBC noted “Large Daily Dosage Of Vitamin D Lowers Risk Of Breast and Ovarian Cancers” (Article Date: 08 Jan 2006).
“A daily dosage of 1,000 international units of vitamin D can lower the risk of developing breast and ovarian cancers by about one-third," according to a study in the Dec. 27, 2005, online edition of the American Journal of Public Health.88
Cedric Garland of the University of California-San Diego Moores Cancer Center and colleagues looked at 63 previous studies that examined the association between vitamin D and cancer.89 Out of the 63 studies, 13 involved research on breast cancer and seven looked at ovarian cancer.90 Garland said the previous studies found that the link between vitamin D intake and a lower risk of cancer is as apparent as the link between smoking and higher risk of lung cancer, Reuters reports. He added that people should consider taking vitamin D supplements to increase their daily intake to 1,000 international units, which is within National Academy of Sciences' safety guidelines.91
As for sunshine, experts recommend moderation until more evidence is in hand.
"The skin can handle it, just like the liver can handle alcohol," said Dr. James Leyden, Professor emeritus of dermatology at the University of Pennsylvania, "I like to have wine with dinner, but I don't think I should drink four bottles a day." Sounds like common sense may soon prevail.
For more information on the health benefits of sunshine, see the Sunlight, Nutrition and Health Research Center (SUNARC) website.92
Besides causing upwards of 80,000 unnecessary and tragic cancer deaths each year, vitamin D deficiency is contributing to many of the hip fractures seen in the elderly, a major cause of these people losing mobility and therefore being in nursing homes. Vitamin D deficiency causes this in 2 ways. Low serum levels of vitamin D in the body may make elderly persons more susceptible to falls, researchers reported at the American Society of Mineral and Bone Research (ASBMR) 27th annual meeting. "Low levels of vitamin D were associated with low physical performance," said Ilse Wicherts, "This study shows that neuromuscular performance in those with lower levels of vitamin D was significantly lower than those with adequate levels. These individuals already are fragile. The lack of mobility places them at high risk of falls and fractures."93
Low vitamin D levels also causes osteoporosis (weak bones). That low vitamin D is a disaster for the elderly is further reflected in research showing that vitamin D is low in 98% of the elderly who break their hip!94 Fortunately, women who take 500 mg of calcium and 700 units of vitamin D daily are much less likely to even have a fall.95
Unfortunately, despite media attention, vitamin D deficiency is alarmingly high in women with osteoporosis96 and vitamin D deficiency in a pregnant women actually increases the risk of her child developing osteoporosis!97,98
Vitamin D deficiency is wreaking havoc in many other ways as well. It is critical in regulating immune function, and this is likely why Multiple Sclerosis is much more common in northern latitudes which are less sunny. In fact, a very large study has confirmed the long-held theory that multiple sclerosis (MS) may be caused, in part, by a lack of sunlight. Harvard researchers took data from 187,563 women participating in the ongoing Nurses' Health Study and found that women taking a daily multiple with at least 400 international units of vitamin D were 40% less likely to develop MS. While women who had high intake of vitamin D from both foods and supplements were 33% less likely to develop the disease, relying solely on food as the source of vitamin D didn't offer any protection.99
Vitamin D supplementation may also protect against rheumatoid arthritis. Researchers from the University of Alabama at Birmingham analyzed data from nearly 30,000 women between 55 and 69 years of age who participated in the Iowa Women's Health Study. Vitamin D supplements were associated with a 33% lower rheumatoid arthritis risk. "While the immuno-modulatory effects of vitamin D are not yet fully elucidated, the results from this study suggest a possible role for vitamin D in reducing the risk of an immunologic disorder," Dr. Merlino and colleagues write.100
Vitamin D deficiency also increases the risk of diabetes. In a 2004 study, subjects with low levels of vitamin D had almost 3 times the risk of metabolic syndrome. Thus, the researchers conclude that low vitamin D leads to insulin resistance and noted "Now, we have one more reason to keep up vitamin D."101
This is supported by other research, where investigators noted “Vitamin D deficiency may, therefore, be involved in the pathogenesis [cause] of both forms of diabetes."102
Vitamin D levels also tend to be low in diabetic children and vitamin D may even help to prevent the diabetes if given early.103
Treatment with vitamin D can also improve lung function. Studies show lung function tests are worse in those with low vitamin D,104 and that giving vitamin D to people with severe, steroid resistant asthma improves function.105
In addition, pregnant Moms' who get higher doses of vitamin D than are typically recommended have a significantly lower risk of having children with asthma. Harvard Medical School researchers found that expectant mothers with the highest level of vitamin D intake—about 724 IU per day—had about half the risk of having a child with a wheezing illness at age three years of age, and less than half the risk of having a child at high risk for asthma.106
Vitamin D may also decrease the risk of:
| Heart disease.107 |
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| Stroke.108 |
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| Diabetes — 61% of patients with diabetes have vitamin D deficiency109 and higher intakes of vitamin D and calcium can lower the risk of getting diabetes.110 |
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| Gingivitis.111 |
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| Inflammatory bowel disease.112 |
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This leaves the question of what level of supplementation is optimal. I concur with Dr. Heike A. Bischoff-Ferrari, from the Harvard School of Public Health who notes “Recent evidence suggests that vitamin D intakes above current recommendations may be associated with better health outcomes. An intake for all adults of [at least] 1,000 IU of vitamin D/day is needed. Given the low cost, the safety, and the demonstrated benefit of higher vitamin D concentrations, vitamin D supplementation should become a public health priority to combat these common and costly chronic diseases."113
Although vitamin K plays a role in bone health, deficiency does not seem to affect bone density in peri-menopausal women.114
Vitamin K is also needed (along with magnesium and vitamin D) to build strong bones. Vitamin K (as K2) has been shown to decrease the risk of heart disease, and in men helps enhance insulin sensitivity. For the "science-minded" reader, the information below adds some background.
Vitamin K and Heart Disease
Professors Cees Vermeer and Leon Schurgers, of VitaK, at Maastricht University, the Netherlands, a leading research institute specializing in the role of vitamin K in the field of bone and cardiovascular health, provided the statement "There are two vitamins known to be involved in calcium metabolism: vitamin D and vitamin K. Increased calcium intake, especially if combined with vitamin D, results in increased absorption of calcium."
"However, vitamin K is required for activation of the vascular protein MGP, which is an inhibitor of calcification. In fact it is the strongest inhibitor of tissue calcification presently known and it is the only calcification inhibitor found in the vasculature. Using highly specific assays, the VitaK research group at the Maastricht University has demonstrated that the vitamin K intake by non-supplemented adults (almost without exception) is insufficient to completely activate MGP (at best 70% is activated). This means that healthy adults are not optimally protected against vascular calcification, even in the absence of an extra calcium load. Subjects of 50 years and older even have a still lower vitamin K status, and hence a higher fraction of their MGP is synthesized in an inactive form."
"When knowing these facts, it is only to be expected that an increased calcium intake will lead to increased artery calcification. This is what may happen if incomplete supplements are provided. It has been demonstrated in large population-based studies, in experimental animal studies and in cell culture studies that the efficacy of vitamin K2 in vascular calcification protection is far better than that of vitamin K1."
"However, at high intakes even K1 was shown to maintain vascular elasticity in a three-year study. Although a large clinical intervention trial on the cardio-protective effect of K2 at high calcium intakes has not yet been published, all data presently available suggest that supplements containing calcium and vitamin D without K2 are incomplete, and may have unexpected adverse side effect in the cardiovascular area."
A 2004 study published in the Journal of Nutrition, called the "Rotterdam Study," followed over 4,800 people for a ten year period. The study found increased intake of specifically vitamin K2 from dietary sources significantly reduced the risk of CHD mortality by 50% as compared to low dietary vitamin K2 intake.
Minerals
Boron is very helpful at improving bone strength—especially when combined with adequate magnesium. It may also help cognitive function. One researcher/professor gave half his class boron and the other half placebo for the semester, and the boron group did much better!
Chromium (and glutathione) is critical for proper insulin function and preventing diabetes and it can also decrease many of the symptoms of hypoglycemia. It can even be useful in treating some cases of depression, particularly when carbohydrate craving is a prominent symptom. A study of 113 people found that chromium supplements reduced depression-related cravings for sweets and starches, and provided an overall general improvement in depressive symptoms.115
Some physicians feel that it also helps cause weight loss.
Copper is a “double edged sword.” Although critical for antioxidant production (such as SOD—super oxide dismutase, one of the body’s natural free-radical scavengers that reduce pain and inflammation) it also is a potent free radical trigger and is quite toxic in excess. For example, one study showed that men in the highest 25% of serum copper values were 50% more likely to die during the study when compared to subjects in the lowest quartile.116 To strike an optimal balance, I recommend ½ mg/day of copper.
Optimal iodine levels are critical for both healthy thyroid and breast tissue function. Iodine deficiency with secondary goiters used to be endemic in the U.S. until wheat flour, and to a lesser degree salt, had iodine added to them. This eliminated much of the problem until flour makers started adding bromine instead of iodine. This not only resulted in iodine intakes dropping by as much as half in the last decade but the switch can worsen the effects of iodine deficiency, as bromine may block thyroid function.
One of the main problems caused by iodine deficiency is hypothyroidism—which can cause a host of problems. These include not only fatigue, weight gain and pain, but also infertility and miscarriages. Low maternal iodine may cause hyperactivity disorder with a loss of 18 points in IQ score in their children.117
Iodine deficiency is also a common trigger for breast tenderness and fibrocystic breast disease, and I routinely supplement women who have these with iodine. It has even been suggested that seaweed, which is high in iodine, may lower breast cancer risk.118
In fact, one of the upcoming studies planned by our foundation will be to check iodine, bromine and fluorine levels (all related chemical “halides” which compete with one another) in tissue samples of women with breast cancer, fibrocystic breast disease and healthy breasts. We suspect that low iodine, or excessive levels of bromides and fluorides which may inhibit iodine, are factors that unnecessarily increase breast cancer risk.
The neurological effect of the lithium ion Li+ makes some lithium salts useful as a class of mood stabilizing drugs, mostly for bipolar disorder. Therapeutically useful amounts of lithium (about 0.6 to 1.2 mmol/l) are only slightly lower than toxic amounts (>1.5 mmol/l), so the blood levels of lithium must be carefully monitored during treatment to avoid toxicity.
An important point that is often ignored is that at much lower doses, lithium is actually an important and natural nutrient. It helps protect brain function against injury from neurotoxins, improves mood, decreases aggressiveness and even has anti-viral properties. It is usually left out of multi-vitamins because of confusion between its use as a nutrient at very low dose (5-10 mg a day) and its use as a medication with significant side effects at 30-90 mg (300-900 mg of lithium carbonate) daily.
Magnesium is involved in hundreds of different body functions, but is routinely low in the American diet as a result of food processing. The average American diet supplies less than 300 milligrams of magnesium per day, while the average Asian diet supplies over 600 milligrams per day.119,120 I generally recommend taking 1,800 milligrams of malic acid and 200-450 milligrams of magnesium glycinate a day for