Vitamin D and zinc

[charlie fh]

Hi there !

Ive been on a good run of things the last 4 months and had much more stable gut situation since avoiding some of my enterolab results .. its hard to avoid all my sensitivities but have cut down a lot but the last few weeks ive been less stable for some reason.. Ive had much more bloating and gas and gurgling..
Im curious as to what you think about a recent blood test i had.. Most of it was generally normal but i had very elevated vitamin d levels and ive been told by my dr to stop taking it. since ive stopped ive noticed my gut isnt as good and is more loose. this has been just over a week. My level was 196nmol. I was taking a vitamin d oral spray that was 3000iu. How long do you think i should stay off the vitamin d?

I also wondered what you thought on zinc and good mg to take . I picked up up some from solgar that is 22mg but noticed after a few days on them that they gave me stomach cramps or pains. Also what type of zinc would you reccomend? I mainly wanted to take them as ive noticed my hair is thinning which is very strange for me as ive always had very thick hair .. Is this normal with MC and why does it happen??

Many thanks for any opinions you have on this.
Charlie

[tex]

A vitamin D level of 196 nmol shouldn't be a problem, nor should any level up to about 250 nmol. Levels over about 375 nmol are usually necessary before any adverse digestive system results will begin to appear. As long as your vitamin D level is below 250 nmol, I wouldn't be concerned.

Re: zinc, I'm sure there are all sorts of opinions on this, but basically, in the body, the zinc copper ratio, is more important than the individual elemental amounts, and that ratio should be maintained at about 15. I take a supplement by Solaray that contains 50 mg of zinc and 2 mg of copper, per capsule.

A lot of medications can cause hair loss, Asacol, for example, was notorious for doing that before budesonide came along. Many of us are hypothyroid, and hypothyroidism can cause hair loss.

I hope this helps.

Tex

[charlie fh]

Hi

ok thanks . theres so much contradictory advice out there. Ive read that anything over 125nmol is dangerous but then other places say the opposite. Also various ways the measure vitamin d . Since ive stopped taking it ive definately noticed more gut rumbling and gas etc without changing much of my diet. Is this something thats happened with other people in your experience ?

I will look into the zinc-copper . i eat a lot of meat though so wonder if i need zinc. Im not any medication so dont understand the hair loss . its really weird .

Charlie

[tex]

I'm not sure I understand exactly what you're asking, but in general, MC patients who have been reacting for a number of years are more likely to have higher levels of malabsorption, and therefore, a greater need for vitamin D and magnesium in their diet, because their reserves are likely to be depleted.

Regarding hair loss, IBDs such as MC can cause hair loss by virtue of the fact that the inflammation interferes with the proper absorption of various vitamins and minerals. This shouldn't be a problem, though, until we've been reacting for a number of years, and our trace mineral reserves have been depleted.

Tex

[charlie fh]

I will keep on the vitamin D3 regardless of what my Dr says but mabe cut down a tad. I beleive the thing to watch out for is high levels of calcium and mine seems ok.

Also I had a 23andme done and got the results yesterday which was eye opening. i have one MTHFR mutation and 2 VDR or vitamin d receptor mutations... This has seemed to come at the right time and shows i probably need more vit d than usual. As for the the mthfr it was the a1298c type. I beleive this is more reliant on active b12 than folate but perhaps you know more about these things? Its facinating

Cheers all the best

Charlie

[tex]

I don't claim to be an expert on methylation issues, but as far as I'm aware, your assessments are on target.

And I believe you're quite correct about the calcium. I've never taken a calcium supplement in my life, but since I've had MC, I've been taking vitamin D and magnesium supplements. About eight or 10 years ago, I suddenly began having kidney stone problems, which I never had before in my life. Fortunately, a few months after they began, a notice of a lawsuit against the company I had been buying my magnesium glycinate from, caught my attention. It seems that the company had been replacing 50% of the magnesium glycinate with magnesium oxide. We can only absorb 2 or 3% of the magnesium in magnesium oxide, meaning that I was only getting about half the magnesium that I thought I was getting, so I was slowly developing a magnesium deficiency, despite the fact that I was taking 3 or 4 hundred milligrams of magnesium daily. I was actually only getting about 150 to 200 mg of magnesium.

Because my magnesium reserves were too low, my vitamin D blood levels were high, and so were my calcium blood levels, and because I didn't have enough magnesium to allow insulin to transport the calcium to my bones and other cells where it was needed, at least some of the excess calcium in my blood was ending up in my kidneys, where it was forming kidney stones. Soon after I switched to Doctor's Best brand of Magnesium Glycinate, my kidney stone problems disappeared.

Tex

[Gabes-Apg]

I take Thorne Zinc Piconolinate from iherb

regarding the VDR genetic results, it was that result in my methylation profile that lead me to research the VDR and become aware that we need good levels of magnesium for the VDR to function and use the Vit D3 we have properly
you may not need extra Vit D3, but you most definitely need to ensure that you dont end up deficient in Magnesium

When I found this out, my auto immune issues were in chronic flared states. Once I fixed the magnesium deficiency (took me 6-9 months) then the multiple auto immune issues settled to calm remission

we do have some information and discussions about methylation
it is a very complicated thing and I do recommend finding a trained functional practitioner that can assist.
the methylation cycle is like a spinning plates, you can fix all of it at once, you have to go step by step through the process

viewforum.php?f=78

[tex]

Here's a link to a newsletter the Microscopic Colitis Foundation published in January of this year, discussing methylation issues:

https://www.microscopiccolitisfoundatio ... 2c__1_.pdf

You can either read it, using Adobe Reader (or something similar), or download a copy to your computer.

Tex

[charlie fh]

Thanks for such a detailed responce and all the info ! Its really facinating stuff . I am Heterozygous with the mthfr A1298C btw so not fully "mutated"

Gabes - Regarding the VDR did or do you take extra high vit d ? as i said earlier ihave high levels of vit d on recent blood test from taking 3-4000iu daily.. perhaps im not fully absorbing it as its a oral spray/drops. I take 3-400mg of magnesium also.

Tex- Thats really interesting about the magnesium .. it seems to be the key here! I will give the news letter a read . Thank you.

The Thorne supplements seem good but quite pricey and hard to get over in the UK but i will have a look around.

Out of interest does anyone have any knowledge of this gene..MTRR A66G? I am fully Homozygous with this but cant find much info on it.

All the best > c

[tex]

These Thorne Laboratories vitamins are much more expensive than normal vitamins, everywhere, because they're already methylated, so that they work for those of us who are incapable of properly methylating vitamins. There's a prescription version available, known as Metanx, but of course, it's even more expensive. It might be affordable in the UK, however, if you can get your Doctor to write a prescription for it. It's often prescribed to diabetics, because they tend to have methylation issues. But the real reason for that is obviously the fact that most diabetics are also magnesium deficient, so it's no surprise that they can't methylate their vitamins properly. A doctor I had years ago, took Metanx himself, because it helps with memory and cognizance, and he was getting up in age, so that it made a big difference in its capabilities.

Tex

[Gabes-Apg]

With supplements - you get what you pay for
cheaper vitamins tend to have cheaper more troublesome inactive ingredients
I purchase Thorne from iherb and it is delivered to Australia within 8 days.

With the Vit D3, once blood test confirmed that I had good levels of Vit D3 my maintenance dose is about 2000-3000iu
keep in mind that I live in Australia and spend time outdoors in winter

Each person has to adjust their Vit D3 dosage depending on:- age, other health issues, time outdoors each day etc
That magnesium dose is low in the scheme of things. the daily RDI is about 300-400, to correct deficiency you need to take more elemental magnesium each day. also keep in mind that things like coffee, some medications, processed foods, etc deplete magnesium.

As I said in my earlier reply, in regards to each methylation cycle genetics - it is best to consult with trained functional practitioner.
the gene and its actions is one thing, but a key part of the methylation cycle is the action before and the action after etc https://mthfrsupport.com.au/2014/09/mtr-mtrr/
You need to look at the whole cycle and your individual results.

Also keep in mind that although test results show you have this genetic result - it does not necessarily mean it is active or inactive - ie that is impacting you. Genetics is like a gun. having that mutation does not automatic mean the gun will fire. You need the gun, bullet, and to pull the trigger for the gun to fire.

[charlie fh]

Hello ...Yes im learning this as i go. Its a learning curve but one i suspect has been a problem for me for years.

I suspect i dont have a problem with methyl folate and more a problem with b12 as i have a double mutation with mtrr which requires more b12 . I also had fairly low b12 in a recent blood test. so just joining the dots makes sense .

In fact ive been taking a methyl folate b complex and think i may have over methylated so i will stop these and keep it simple for now with just active b12. i might go to 500mg of magnesium too for a month or 2 based on the importance of it.

I am starting to wonder if my fillings in my teeth have been giving me mercury overdose . according to my genes im not the best at detoxing and i have a lot of fillings . Has anyone had any experience with this?

Thanks for all your advice !

C

[Gabes-Apg]

I had multiple mercury fillings since teenage years, and detoxing issues - at Age 47 when I was doing focussed approach to methylation, detoxing I had no evidence of excess/toxic mercury

[charlie fh]

Interesting .. Did you have the fillings removed or have you still got them? methylation seems like a big confusing puzzle but when you get the pieces in the right order it starts to come together. very interesting stuff .

[Gabes-Apg]

over time the mercury fillings have been replaced, Only as they needed to be
any troublesome teeth (root canal type issues) I have opted to have the molers removed

My gut improved big time once I got rid of troublesome teeth.
It is a constant argument I have with dentists that want to preserve the teeth via root canal and crowns etc. (and more income for them)
I know have a dentist that understands my reasoning and does what I request
with my MC diet I am eating soft well cooked foods, so I dont need a mouth full of moles
removing the tooth rather than multiple treatments is cheaper and healthier (less anaesthetic, less stress)


It took me 12 months with very knowledgeable functional practitioner to 'fix' / balance my methylation cycle