Parkinson's Disease - Art Solb
Natural Remedies

Vitamin D for Parkinson's Disease

| Modified on Dec 27, 2022
Vitamin D for Parkinson's Disease

By Art Solbrig

April 05, 2018

I have been gathering information on different supplements for several of my friends who have PD. The list has grown to well over 50 supplements now so in order to make it manageable, I am trying to narrow the list down to either 5 or 10 supplements that seem to show the most evidence in the form of studies or lacking that, significant anecdotal evidence since these PD /supplement studies are fairly limited.

Vitamin D is easily in that top 5 list based mainly on human studies. I will post the study links along with a very brief description of each study below.

A quick thought on vitamin D and how it is measured in people. It requires a blood test that determines your 25 (OH) d serum level . The reference range for 25 (OH) d is 30 to 100 ng/ml. If you fall below 30 ng/ml, but above 20 ng/ml you are considered to be insufficient in your vitamin D level. If you fall below 20 ng/ml you are considered to be deficient. Many studies suggest it is better to be in the upper half of the reference range and some cancer studies suggest the 60 to 75 ng/ml range as optimal, however, other studies for other health issues suggest even closer to the top of the range (100) or above the top of the range. Generally speaking, if you are actively trying to treat a disease, the upper half of the range and beyond may be needed and of course with your doctors approval and supervision. More recent studies are showing that doses of vitamin D that were previously thought to be toxic are actually healthful, so 400 iu per day is no longer a realistic daily value. Because serum 25 OH d levels vary significantly from person to person and because the dose required to get your serum level into the reference range also varies significantly, blood testing is needed to know your serum level before and after supplementing in order to determine what dose will get you to where you want to be within that reference range. The test for vitamin d can be done at your doctor's office or it can be done by mail using one of the pin prick tests from several on line vendors for under a hundred dollars per test depending on which vendor you choose. Doctors should be aware that vitamin D can have a positive impact on PD, so they should be willing to run those tests at your regular visits.

The other way to increase your vitamin D besides supplementing is to go out in the sun and expose as much skin as possible for specific periods of time when the sun is highest in the sky or directly over head. This will help during a major portion of the year, but, as long as your shadow in the sun is longer than you are tall, your body will not be able to make enough vitamin D from the sun exposure. Another point that doctors don't mention is that as we get older, our bodies ability to convert the uv rays from the sun to vitamin D by reacting with cholesterol in the skin, declines steadily. Given that PD tends to affect senior citizens more than younger people, supplementing with vitamin D-3 is likely the best way to get your serum level into the upper half of the reference range (30~100 ng/ml).

This first study suggests that vitamin D may be helpful for some people with PD and draws a correlation between serum 25 OH d level and PD severity.

https://academic.oup.com/ajcn/article/97/5/1004/4577000

This next study suggests that vitamin D can have a positive effect on balance control in people with PD.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3812066/

This next study in Iranian patients with PD suggests that most have serum levels that are too low and the lower the serum level, the more increased certain symptoms are.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3829282/

This next study concludes that higher vitamin d levels are associated with better mood and cognition.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3966187/

The following study suggests that lower vitamin D levels are inversely correlated with severity of PD symptoms.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24036688

The next study suggests that low vitamin d levels can have a negative impact on brain function.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24036688

This next important double blind, placebo controlled study suggests that daily vitamin D supplementation may slow disease progression of certain aspects of PD.

https://academic.oup.com/ajcn/article/97/5/907/4577164

Another important study showing that vitamin D level is reduced in people with PD and bone mineral density is correlated with serum level also.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23052606

This next study discusses how low serum levels of vitamin d may contribute to gastrointestinal issues in people with PD.

https://www.karger.com/Article/Abstract/441917

This next study suggests that low serum vitamin D can impact PD early on in the disease process.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26343034

This next study discusses the correlation between people who work outdoors and PD.

http://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/7/6/4817/htm

The following abstract briefly discusses how vitamin d can affect cell signaling in multiple diseases including PD.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26009175

This next study draws a correlation between low vitamin D and PD.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4390412/

This next study is a pilot study that used ultra high doses of vitamin D, that were previously believed to be toxic, but not in this study that treated psoriasis and vitiligo patients to good effect.

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.4161/derm.24808

This next one is an interesting anecdote as opposed to a study as reported to Dr. Cannell at the Vitamin D Council.

Dear Dr. Cannell,

About four years ago, I was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease (PD). Looking back, I could see that my illness had been slowly developing over the course of at least twenty years. By the time I was diagnosed, my symptoms began to worsen quickly. I was experiencing extreme imbalance issues that impaired my ability to walk as well as painful muscle cramping known as dystonia.

I also began to drool during the day and at night while sleeping. Coincidentally, I started taking vitamin D 50,000 IU/day, because I thought it might help treat the flu. I was greatly surprised within several hours after taking vitamin D that these major PD symptoms began to clear up. It has been two years since I accidentally discovered the miracle of vitamin D, and I now take 10,000 IU/day and keep my vitamin D level around 80.

I'm still amazed. I still have Parkinson's, but my symptoms are less severe.

Paul, California

Dear Paul:

A number of readers have written me that they had a very rapid response to vitamin D. In the standard genomic model of vitamin D's metabolism, it makes no sense. However, Professor Bruce Hollis recently alerted me to an important paper.

Gibson CC, Davis CT, Zhu W, Bowman-Kirigin JA, Walker AE, Tai Z, Thomas KR, Donato AJ, Lesniewski LA, Li DY. Dietary Vitamin D and Its Metabolites Non-Genomically Stabilize the Endothelium. PLoS One. 2015 Oct 15;10(10):e0140370.

This paper basically shows that the parent compound, vitamin D, has a very rapid effect on endothelial cells. Endothelial cells are a thin lining of cells that make up the innermost lining of vessel walls.

The newly discovered effect occurs so rapidly that it could not be via genetic function. The vitamin D signaling pathway teaches us that vitamin D is converted to 25(OH)D in the liver and that 25(OH)D is circulated around the body and absorbed into cells where the cells transform 25(OH)D into a steroid hormone, calcitriol, which helps regulate gene transcription. This paper does not dispute this pathway, but adds to it, finding cholecalciferol by itself may plug up holes in the lining of blood and lymph tissues.

As the authors state, vitamin D acts very quickly to “stabilize barrier structure and function, thereby reducing vascular leak into the surrounding tissues. This new observation may explain, in part, the broad associations between vitamin D and many diseases."

Professors Bruce Hollis and Carol Wagner were, to the best of my knowledge, the first to recognize that the parent compound has important effects, independent of the liver's transformation into 25(OH)D.

Hollis BW, Wagner CL. Clinical review: The role of the parent compound vitamin D with respect to metabolism and function: Why clinical dose intervals can affect clinical outcomes. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2013 Dec;98(12):4619-28. doi: 10.1210/jc.2013-2653. Epub 2013 Oct 8. Review.

If they are right, it serves as an explanation as to why some people seem to notice vitamin D works very quickly. It also explains why vitamin D should be taken daily, not weekly or monthly.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Based on the above abstracts, studies and anecdotes, it certainly seems like a good idea to make sure you are vitamin D replete and especially if you have PD . Vitamin D is easy to get and has a very good safety profile while being inexpensive. Many people are insufficient or deficient when it comes to vitamin D. Regular testing is the best way to determine how much vitamin D you will need to take in order to get into the upper half of the reference range and your doctor should be willing to help you do this!

Art




Vitamin D and Magnesium for Parkinson's

1 User Review
5 star (1) 
  100%

Posted by Art (California ) on 04/08/2018 2119 posts
★★★★★

People often talk about the need for cofactors for vitamin D such as magnesium, boron, calcium, vitamin K-2 and zinc. These work together to help calcium get to where it should be, but they do more than just that.

The link below takes you to a very brief article which explains how magnesium works with your vitamin D stores. This is important because it explains how magnesium is a major part of the process to convert your 25 (OH)d into the active form of vitamin D which is responsible for many of the health benefits mentioned in the multiple links in the article above.

Magnesium itself has many health benefits, but together with vitamin D, they are a formidable pair! The article also gives an interesting list of symptoms associated with low magnesium levels.

https://www.health.news/2018-03-27-are-you-getting-enough-vitamin-d-if-you-dont-take-magnesium-you-may-not-be.html

Art

Replied by Allyson
(Colorado Spring)
12/21/2022

Hi Art,

Since you are one of the most influential people on this website and you suffer from Parkinson's, I am hoping you can use yourself as a guinea pig and you become better doing below, you will spread the word that EVERYONE that has chronic health ailments need to take TINCTURE OF TEASEL. I wrote a few days ago if you have any kind of arthritis, you have been bitten by a bug and decades later you suffer and get worse with ailments. Per medicalmedium.com, these bugs bite us as a kid or an adult and there are six stages of what that virus does to us in the long run…it causes thousands of diseases/conditions (nerve issues of any kind, arthritis of any kind, MS, diabetes, any skin issues, fire in the mouth (nerves) cancer, brain issues, Parkinson's, on and on and on. Western medicine got it wrong on the Lymes, it is a virus and not a bacteria and the herpes viruses, Epstein-bar, Lymes are all within the same family. Please please try this, it will cost you about $117 to show for it (you will need no more than 3 4-oz bottles but you will be free of your ailments not just make them less severe. People that live in bad areas where there are tons of bugs need to do it every 5-10 years. It is whatever bug that bit you that has a virus will pass that virus onto you. It would help as well if you learn the anti-viral foods to eat (there are tons but also try to give up meat, eggs, dairy, and wheat which are the viruses' favorite foods while you are killing the virus, there are supplements that will help like lysine, lemon balm, licorice root, etc., idea is to starve the virus) so you can help kill that virus even more and keep them from multiplying in you. I have learned so much starting 3 years ago but until I read the article that a Norwegian lady wrote on how she cured herself I did not know Tincture of TEASEL is the key (plus lab tests come up negative even if you have it) if you cannot stand fresh celery juice as I gagged my way through a year before I stopped with medicalmedium, you have to be on that for 4 years, just could not do it and then I found her journey (www.flaatthjelp.net go to the box on the left in English and hit the Lymes disease story to read about how she cured herself, (she really did her homework on the people that wrote books USA folks on how they cured themselves with the same teasel). In her story, she shares who is a reputable seller and that is who my husband and I bought from because this seller cured himself with it and now sells it to people. Go to EBay.com, type in TINCTURE OF TEASEL and it should come up with “Herbdoc”. You work up to 9 drops a day for a year ($42 a bottle, you will need to buy 3 bottles and take 9 drops for a year), you take one drop the first day, 2 drops the second day, am and pm, 3 drops the 3rd day and so on but do not take more drops than you are supposed to you might get the herx effect and feel worse. Take the nasty stuff for one year (my neighbor who I shared this with is taking it as well but he put peppermint oil in it). Once you do that, you need to heal your nerves so get to know medicalmedium's protocol to do so. These diseases/condition are horrible and this is the way out for everyone. Autism and brain conditions are from having too many heavy metals in us Anthony also shares what foods to eat to detox from the metals. The covid 2nd vaccine I took reactivates the herpes and have been absolutely miserable since, I missed his warning years ago when he told everyone. I had not given up trying to find a cure and this is it. Please please try it for yourself, what do you have to lose, a little money out of your pocket but being healthy again, small price!! My hubby and I have been on the teasel less than a month but I know this will work!!!! We just need to spread the word so EVERYONE can be as healthy as possible. Who has not been chomped by a bug sometime in their life?!!! Please let me know if you will try it!

Thanks, Art!!

Allyson

Art
(California)
12/21/2022
2119 posts

Hello Allyson,

Thank you for taking the time to send all of that information! I did see the post that you referred to, already.

I'm not sure why you think I have Parkinson's disease (PD), but to the best of my knowledge I do not, so I was a little surprised by that.

Art

Madelyn
(Idaho)
12/27/2022

Hi Allyson, I want to thank you for taking the time to explain all of this. I took screen shots of your post (as I do all my fav EC posts! ). It has been my passion and hobby for the last 20 years to read and research anything and everything natural health. I remember reading over 10 years ago that the TEASEL plant is the cure for Lyme disease. Even though I don't have Lyme, I've never forgotten it! It felt like I had stumbled on a little nugget of gold, and I should remember about the Teasel herb should anyone I know ever get infected with Lyme. Fast forward to today- I think people are carrying so many different types of infections from various sources, I.e. spirochetes, herpes, Epstein Barr. Now after reading your post, I'm considering doing a “teasel cleanse” in order to eradicate whatever is lurking in my body. I recall when I was in college analyzing a saliva sample -our own saliva- under a microscope. About half the people in the room, myself included, had spirochetes. I've since realized they are very bad for your health, and are the cause for many dental problems. I need to do more research about this topic and will study the info at the website you shared. I also need to figure out if and how to treat children with teasel. I'm sure the infections can be spread amongst family members.

I hope you'll keep us posted on your experiences with taking teasel as well. Many blessings!



Advertisement