Could Your Vitamin D Be Harming You?
Vitamin D is an important nutrient that is often prescribed to treat osteoporosis symptoms. Consuming vitamin D has a plethora of health benefits and can even help prevent cancer, heart disease, diabetes, and rheumatoid arthritis.[1] But, it is not so widely known that there are actually two major forms of the vitamin – D2 and D3. Do you know which form you are taking? If you are taking the wrong one, you could be making a major health mistake!
Vitamin D2 (ergocalciferol) is a synthetic version of the vitamin and is not the kind produced naturally by your body. It is a derivative of ergosterol – literally from the sterol membrane (the cell membrane) of the ergot fungus, which typically grows on barley, rye, and cereals. When these fungi are exposed to ultraviolet light (irradiation), significant amounts of D2 are produced. Unfortunately, for patients with decreased vitamin D levels, most physicians prescribe Drisdol, the vitamin D2 form.
On the other hand, Vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol) is naturally found in food sources such as salmon and is also created by your skin in response to sunlight. A study published from the Osteoporosis Research Center at Creighton University revealed that “vitamin D3 is approximately 87% more potent in raising and maintaining vitamin D concentrations in the body and produces 2- to 3-fold greater storage of vitamin D than does D2.”[2]
Studies Show No Benefits of Vitamin D2
While you think you are taking the right steps to improve your health, if you are taking vitamin D2 you may actually be doing more harm than good! Dr. John Cannell of the Vitamin D Council explains, “Several recent studies have shown that vitamin D2 may actually reduce the levels of D3 in the blood and, worse still, D2 actually increases a health problem, instead of reducing it, the way vitamin D3 does.” Here is a small sampling of the negative health effects from D2 compared to the positive benefits of D3:
- According to The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, vitamin D2 does not prevent fractures and actually increases the risk for falls while vitamin D3 decreases the risk for falls.[3]
- Multiple sclerosis symptoms (numbness, tingling and pain in the body, vision disturbances, fatigue and dizziness) are made worse with supplementation with vitamin D2, but are improved with vitamin D3.[4]
- Research published in the Annals of Internal Medicine notes that vitamin D3 reduces mortality (death) rates in adults while vitamin D2 does not.[5]
- All forms of vitamin D must be converted in the body to a more active form (calcitriol), and vitamin D3 is converted 500% faster than vitamin D2.
Begin Taking Vitamin D3 Today! Here are some helpful tips to get you started:
- Multivitamins may contain either vitamin D2 or vitamin D3. Make sure your daily vitamin contains the D3 form.
- If your multivitamin does not contain vitamin D, you can add a vitamin D3 supplement to your daily regimen. Make sure you choose a supplement that provides you with at least 1000-5000 IU of vitamin D3 daily.
- If your doctor prescribes vitamin D for you, check to see if it is cholecalciferol (vitamin D3) or ergocalciferol (vitamin D2). If it is vitamin D2, schedule an appointment to discuss this with your doctor. To prepare for your appointment, right down any questions you have about the prescription. (Never stop taking a prescription unless directed by your doctor.)
- It’s good to work with your doctor and let him periodically run a blood test called 25-hydroxy vitamin D to check your vitamin D levels. Normal range for vitamin D is 30.0 to 74.0 ng/mL, with the recommended optimum level at least 50 ng/mL.
[1] The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 2006;84:694 –7.
[2] Neurology. 2011 Oct29;77;e99.
[3] Annals of Internal Medicine. 2011 Nov 15;155(10):JC5-04.
[4] Harvard Medical School, 2007 Feb.
[5] The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, 2011 March 01;96(3):E447-E452.
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