Vitamin D Waste Of Time Article

Everyday living
21

Well peeps, from reading all the replies to my question, it seems as though D3 is a good choice, well, as far as the consultants are concerned anyway.

Like I’ve already said, I take D3 (5000iu) daily, and so does my sister now. And we will continue to do so until told otherwise by our consultants.

I did ask my MS nurse about the size of the dosage and he said it’s ok.

I really do think that having a positive MS team behind you definitely helps, not just with the physical problems that MS brings but also with the mental/depressing issues aswell.

The positive attitude that my consultant and his team had just made me feel like I was his only patient and they were all in my corner helping me.

As soon as he said “Take the D3”, that was it, I was on them like a shot.

He could of said eat dog poo and I would of gone out with my pooper scooper looking for a fresh one. LOL

Anyway, I hope you all have a great xmas, and thanks for your replies.

22

Sorry, bit off topic, but how do I stop the site sending me an email everytime theres a reply to a thread.

I find it easier to keep this forum in my favourites, so I dont need an email alert,.

i’ve tried looking in settings but cant see where to turn the “alert” off.

Thanks in advance.

23

hiya

when u started the thread i am guessing u must have ticked to get emails alerts so am guessing there must be an unsubscribe button…dunno if that helps?

hopefully a computer literate person will be able to help/explain better!

e

24

Hi Jactac

You can unsubscribe from your email inbox I think.

My GP did bloods and immediately prescribed vit D3, Bvits and magnesium before referring me. She said shouldn’t take D3 without magnesium. She prescribed 20,000 iu every other day. Proves some GPs are on the ball.

25

Blimey Dinks I’m on vitamin D but no magnesium. Used to take it so I am sure I have a spare supply somewhere so will restart. Thanks Min xx

26

When I started on D3, I also started Magnesium the same time, but only because the person in the health shop where I bought my D3 from advised taking Magnesium along side D3, about 2 months I had a home visit from my MS specialist nurse which was a standard “how’s things” type of visit.

Anyway we went through everything, like how I was feeling, diet, getting around ect, ect, I told him I was still taking the D3, which he confirmed was good and to stick to the 5000iu daily dosage, but when I said that I’ve also included Magnesium to my daily meds he sort of pulled a face and said “if you think it’s a benefit then carry on, but personally I would spend the money on something nice for myself instead, D3 definitely, but Masgnesium not unless you can feel it’s making a difference” , those were his exact words !

A week later I had a phone call from the same nurse, he had spoken to my consultant about the D3 and the Magnesium, and he said that the consultant had agreed I should continue with the 5000iu daily dose of D3, but he also felt that the Magnesium was more of a personal choice and not something he would of told me I should rush out to buy, unlike the D3.

So I stopped with the Magnesium, and personally do not feel any different to when I was taking it.

Having said all that, my sister who also has MS, and has had it far longer than me, started taking Magnesium when I first started taking it, only because that person in the health shop advised it to me and I told my sister about it, however, she finds that it has helped slightly with twitching when she’s trying to get some sleep, She takes it a couple of hours before bedtime.

I never get twitching or jerking so maybe this is why I wasnt seeing a benefit from taking it ?

I think the bottom line is we are all very different, and we should do / take, whatever makes us feel better as an individual.

27

To quote my granny - she was a wise wee woman (sometimes) ‘I would take poison if I thought it would help me.’

To translate (she was a wee Irish granny after all) - if it helps you then take it, who cares what anyone else thinks’

On a side note if Vit D is linked to MS then this increase in rickets could be worrying. Are we going to have an sudden increase in MS in 15 or so years time cause of the lack of vit D that kids are suffering from now.

I don’t know enough the whole vit D thing so I’ll just stick to the words of Grandmotherly wisdom

JBK xx

28

I think the magnesium is more a question of keeping your nutrient intake in the correct proportions, rather than being of direct benefit for MS. I believe that if you drastically increase vitamin D intake, you should also increase magnesium - not because you’ll feel better, but if not, you’re creating an imbalance, as these two nutrients interact.

Tina

29

I agree with Tina the 2 interact which is why I presume the doctor told me to take them together. Don’t know about humans but in horses magnesium is a main ingredient in calming supplements so maybe there is a link between twitches and magnesium, interesting thought.

30

I’ve read loads of places that Magnesium is a calming vitamin. Apparently before “modern” sleeping meds were introduced, it was a big ingredient in sleeping pills.

So then this leads me to my next questions, In what way though does D3 and Magnesium interact, and what sort of dosage do you take of Magnesium ?

31

Oh no I’ve done it again, posted twice

32

To be honest, I’ve never looked into it that deeply, but I read somewhere ages ago that these two work in sync, so to me, it was absolutely logical that if you increase one, you ought to increase the other. From just a quick Google, now, it appears that magnesium facilitates the body’s utilisation of Vitamin D. So if you take extra Vitamin D without boosting the “helper” nutrients that allow the body to use it, you might not really be achieving anything. Magnesium isn’t the only trace element that affects how well Vitamin D can be used, but supposedly the most important one.

I just checked the magnesium supplements I’m taking, and they amount to 375mg a day. I originally took them for night-time cramps. I never found they did much for that, though quinine fixed it (prescription dose, not tonic water). However, I never stopped them, as I realised it was advisable to take them anyway, if I’m already supplementing with Vitamin D. I’ve never researched the exact right proportions for the amount of Vitamin D I’m taking (just over 2000 IUs per day). I just bought some magnesium, and did what it said on the pack. I daresay I could spend some time with Google and a calculator, and work out whether it’s the optimal dose, for the amount of Vitamin D I take, but sometimes, life’s too short…

Tina

33

Well Tina, what you say does seem to make sense.

I think I may start the Magnesium back up, what harm can it do anyway ?

One last question though.

I was taking Magnesium Citrate, but theres so many different forms, its all very confusing.

So which is the one to take ?

www.globalhealingcenter.com/natural-health/types-of-magnesium/

34

Just checked my magnesium pills, and they are simply magnesium oxide - though I didn’t go out of my way to choose that - I just picked up an ordinary over-the-counter magnesium supplement, and that’s what’s in it. Much lower down the list is also magnesium stearate, but I’m guessing that is just a bulking agent, to make the tablets convenient to take, and isn’t intended as the active ingredient.

I see Magnesium Oxide doesn’t get a very positive write-up in your link, but I definitely don’t want anything with a laxative effect, so I would avoid citrate at all costs. I guess if you suffer constipation, you might not mind that side-effect.

Be careful not to spend way over the odds on some special form, that is rumoured to be the best. I don’t think it’s honestly that critical. Also I note the author of that website is selling his own product, so it’s unlikely to be completely impartial advice. Obviously, he’s going to be saying his formula is superior.

Tina

35

When I was taking Magnesium, it was the Citrate version, but it had no laxative effect on me, in fact as i’ve previously said, it seemed to have no affects what so ever, good or bad ?

These are the ones I took, but only because they were offered to me by the health shop where I purchased my D3.

www.solgar.co.uk/SolgarProducts/Magnesium-Citrate-Tablets.htm

I spent hours last night googling D3 and Magnesium, and there does seem to be more people advising to take Magnesium when taking D3, than ones saying not to.

But it’s still very confusing knowing what type of Magnesium & dosage you should be taking alongside the D3 ?

If you go into a health shop you dont know if they are just trying to sell you the more expensive type, and if you ask your GP they seem to say that you should stick to a healthy diet and you dont need supplements !

I dont want to be taking Mag if I dont need it, but on the other hand I’m concerned that by not taking it I may not be getting the full affects from the D3 that I take.

So confused now …

36

In that list of Magnesium, it says that the Oxide version is used as a laxative. ?

Even more confused now Tina,