Sunlight and Vitamin D

Some medical texts have said that overdose of vitamin D can cause vascular and even metastatic calcification, because high vitamin D levels raise calcium levels Apparently this only applies to synthetic vitamin D and not to that obtained by sun exposure. I live in the UK and have for 8 years or so been supplementing with 5000 to 6000IUs of vitamin D3 per day during Winter. My MS symptoms (except bladder) are much reduced, but now I am worried that although a cornerstone of the OMS regimen, high levels of vitamin D may not be good for me in other ways. Does anyone know anything about this?

My understanding is this:

The OMS protocol advises keeping our Vit D levels at around 150nmol/L to 200nmol/L (UK measurements). Problems with calcification arise when levels hit around 400nmol/L.

So although we are taking more than the recommended dose by most GPs standards, we are unlikely to damage our health.

The thing to look at is the level of Vit D in your blood, rather than how much you are taking. I take much more than you - 10,000iu per day - and my level is around 200nmol/L. Our bodies don't 'build up' the level, which is why people often have to take a megadose to get their levels up initially.

I hope this gives you some reassurance.

Rachel.

It is generally correct that high Vit D levels from sun exposure should not be a problem, but scientists have not yet found out what else sun exposure is doing which produces this result.

Problems with calcification are more likely to arise if you are supplementing with D3 but do not have enough of other substances which are required for Vit D metabolisation - i.e. there are other things which are required to assist Vit D with sending calcium to the right places (such as teeth and bones). The following webpage provides some useful information on this issue.
https://www.vitamindcouncil.org/about-v ... -minerals/

When blood tests are done you would not just look at the Vit D levels, but also calcium levels. If your calcium levels are outside the normal range then your doctor would have to take some action on them.

I had some difficulties with Vit D supplementation initially and did a fair bit of research into the subject, which led me to taking magnesium and Vit K2 along with the Vit D. In the past I have posted on the need to take Vit K2 with Vit D, and been scoffed at or told to "shut up" by other forum members. I find it quite ironic that there is a new OMS News article uploaded (20th March 2018) about Vit K2 and MS. The article is about a study which found lower serum levels of K2 in a small sample of PwMS. Half the story is missing - i.e. the interrelationship between D3 and K2 - it has been found in clinical studies that when K2 is given to elderly people who are also taking Vit D there is no significant change in their serum levels of D when K2 is added but there is a statistically significant outcome of reduced numbers of fractures.