Is Vitamin A Toxic?

Hello everyone.

So you are all concerned about taking Cod Liver Oil and getting too much Vitamin A. It has been exaggerated by the medical community that Vitamin A is toxic. While some forms of synthetic vitamin A found in supplements can be toxic at only moderately high doses, fat-soluble vitamin A naturally found in foods like cod liver oil, liver, and butterfat is safe at up to ten times the doses of water-soluble, solidified, and emulsified vitamin A found in some supplements that produce toxicity.

Additionally, the vitamin D found in cod liver oil and butterfat from pasture-raised animals protects against vitamin A toxicity, and allows one to consume a much higher amount of vitamin A before it becomes toxic. Liver from land mammals is high in vitamin A but low in vitamin D, and should therefore be consumed with other vitamin D-rich foods such as bacon from pasture-raised pigs, egg yolks, and oily fish, or during months in which UV-B light is sufficient to provide one with adequate vitamin D.

Hope this helps to clarify! 

Be Well,

Dr. M

Cod Liver Oil - An Essential Ingredient for Everyone!

TOP FIVE REASONS THAT YOU AND YOUR CHILDREN SHOULD TAKE COD LIVER OIL

1. It's an auto-immune booster

2. It takes Calcium and puts it into your joints and bones

3. It is the best source on earth for Vitamin A and Vitamin D and is in the perfect ratio

4. It has been proven to maintain the brain function - yes that's right, it stops degeneration!

5. It lowers blood pressure and cholesterol naturally

Once a standard supplement in traditional European societies, cod liver oil provides fat-soluble vitamins A and D, which Dr. Price found present in the diet of primitives in amounts ten times higher than the typical American diet of his day. Cod liver oil supplements are a must for women and their male partners, to be taken for several months before conception, and for women during pregnancy. Growing children will also benefit greatly from a small daily dose.

Cod liver oil is also rich in eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA). The body makes this fatty acid from omega-3 linolenic acid as an important link in the chain of fatty acids that ultimately results in prostaglandins, localized tissue hormones. It is very important for the proper function of the brain and nervous system. Those individuals who have consumed large amounts of polyunsaturated oils, especially hydro-genated oils, or who have impaired pancreatic function, such as diabetics, may not be able to produce EPA and will, therefore, lack important prostaglandins unless they consume oily fish or take a cod liver oil supplement.

As a general guideline, we recommend the following doses of vitamin A from cod liver oil, along with a nutrient-dense diet that contains other vitamin A-rich foods:

Children age 3 months to 12 years: A dose of cod liver oil that provides about 5000 IU vitamin A daily
Children over 12 years and adults: A maintenance dose of cod liver oil that provides about 10,000 IU vitamin A daily
Pregnant and nursing women: A dose of cod liver oil that provides about 20,000 IU vitamin A daily

Individuals under stress or wishing to use cod liver oil to treat a disease condition may take much larger doses, even up to 90,000 IU vitamin A per day, for a period of several weeks.

Be careful of the Cod Liver Oil that you buy! I sell Dr. Ron's brand, but if you aren't in the area, here's what I recommend...

In Stores: Garden of Life, regular dose cod liver oil; Nordic Naturals Vitamin D Cod Liver Oil

Online/Mail Order:

• Dr. Ron's High Vitamin Old Fashioned Blue Ice Pure Cod Liver Oil, 1-877-472-8701, drrons.com
• Radiant Life, Premier High Vitamin Cod Liver Oil, (888) 593-8333,4radiantlife.com
• Blue Ice, High Vitamin Cod Liver Oil, (402) 858-4818, greenpasture.org
• Wolf River Naturals, wolfrivernaturals.com

Warning: Many brands of cod liver oil are processed to remove all the vitamins A and D and then have synthetic vitamins A and D added back in. These products should be completely avoided as the synthetic versions of A and D are toxic. For those living in Canada or overseas, where our recommended brands are not available, be sure to contact the manufacturer and inquire whether the A and D in their cod liver oil is naturally occurring or synthetic.

Be well,

Dr. M

Vitamin D Deficiency is a Major Health Risk

With winter fast approaching and the topic of Vitamin D being in the news almost daily, I thought I would provide some reliable information for you on this topic. This is something that I am addressing with each of my patients, friends, and family. Hope this helps to clarify this topic for you.

Many Americans, particularly African Americans, may be suffering from unrecognized deficiencies of a key nutrient -- vitamin D -- that increase the risk of bone problems and perhaps a host of other diseases, a growing number of scientists say.

Pediatricians scattered around the country have been surprised to see children suffering from rickets, a bone disorder caused by vitamin D deficiency that had been largely relegated to a bygone era. A few doctors have come across adults who were disabled by severe muscle weakness and pain, sometimes for years, until they were treated for undiagnosed vitamin D deficiency. And recent studies suggest low vitamin D may be putting the elderly at higher risk for the bone-thinning disease osteoporosis and life-threatening falls and fractures.

But beyond bone and muscle problems, some evidence suggests a dearth of vitamin D may be associated with an array of more serious illnesses, including many forms of cancer, high blood pressure, depression, and immune-system disorders such as multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis and diabetes.

In response, many scientists have begun pushing to sharply boost the official recommendations for how much vitamin D everyone should get daily, either by taking supplements, by eating more food that contains the nutrient or from the sun -- a major source of vitamin D.

Suggestions that people get more sun exposure, however, have sparked an unusually intense, and sometimes bitter, debate. Skin cancer experts are alarmed that people will disregard warnings about unprotected sun exposure, making them more vulnerable to what is the most common malignancy.

Vitamin D is a nutrient that's been around for a long time, but it's relatively recently that there's been a lot of evidence emerging that indicates there's more to vitamin D than we thought.

All along the northern United States, where we have long winters, a lot of snow, not much sunshine all winter, there is endemic vitamin D deficiency. In response, the American Academy of Pediatrics last spring instructed pediatricians to prescribe that all children, especially breast-fed babies, take vitamin D supplements through adolescence.

While it is clear that low vitamin D levels can lead to rickets in children, muscle problems in older people and probably brittle bones in the elderly, there is a link to other serious illnesses. For example, many cancers, most notably breast, colon and prostate cancer, seem to increase the farther you get from the equator, where exposure to ultraviolet light from the sun is greatest.

Some studies suggest vitamin D can reduce blood pressure, which would cut the risk for heart disease and strokes -- the nation's leading causes of death. Others suggest that low vitamin D levels may contribute to depression and other psychiatric conditions.

One of the best sources to obtain appropriate levels of Vitamin D is Cod Liver Oil. But careful when choosing which Cod Liver Oil! You want an oil from a reliable source and that of good quality. Stay tuned for my thoughts on which Cod Liver Oils are best, where to get them, and why everyone should take it.

Be well,

Dr. M

Recommended Vitamin D dose for children has doubled!

The leading children's medical organization in the United States last Monday announced that it has doubled the amount of vitamin D recommended for infants, children and adolescents. But we all need to know that EVERYONE needs more Vitamin D. My next couple of posts will address this issue and help give you the resources to get the Vitamin D that you need.

The increase, from 200 international units (IU) to 400 IU per day, starting in the first few days of life, was detailed in a news conference at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), in Boston. Four hundred IU a day is the amount that is in a teaspoon of cod liver oil, which we have used for 75 years to prevent and treat rickets in children. 

Why do we need more Vitamin D?
Certain risks associated with vitamin D deficiency have been known for decades: rickets (weakening of the bones), which is still widespread in infants, children, adolescents and adults; growth failure; lethargy; irritability; respiratory infections during infancy; and osteoporosis later in life. More recently, however, associations have been made between vitamin D deficiency and type 2 diabetes, some cancers, multiple sclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis. Among rheumatologists who treat patients with autoimmune diseases, there has been an increasing recognition that insufficiency in vitamin D may contribute to a variety of autoimmune diseases.

Vitamin D acts directly on cells to promote gene transcription. No other 'vitamin' does this, so it really is very, very powerful. Vitamin D deficiency is common among all age groups across the globe. The main source of vitamin D is sunlight but experts now urge everyone to stay out of the sun or, at the very least, to wear sunscreen and protective clothing while outside. And honestly, it would take a good amount of skin exposure to the sun for at least 20 minutes per day to get adequate amounts of Vitamin D. So what do we do to increase the amount we are getting? Vitamin D is not plentiful in most foods, with the exception of fatty fish, certain fish oils, liver and egg yolks of chickens fed vitamin D.

So what to give the family to meet the perfect amount of Vitamin D? Cod liver oil. Stay tuned for information on Cod liver oil and all of it's marvelous benefits!

Be well,

Dr. M

Get Crackin!

Pity the poor egg: It gets cracked, scrambled, and whipped—not to mention unfairly maligned as the villain of the breakfast world. That's because there's a misguided belief that the cholesterol in eggs (found in the yolk) raises the cholesterol levels in your body and puts your ticker at risk. But good news, frittata fans: Research supporting the health bennies of eggs is piling up. And several studies—including a recent one in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition that found no link in healthy people between eggs and either heart attack or stroke—have debunked the bad-egg myth. Four reasons eggs rock:

They may reduce your risk of cancer.

Whole eggs are one of the best sources of the nutrient choline (one large egg has about 30 percent of your RDA). A study published this year found that women with a high intake of choline were 24 percent less likely to get breast cancer. Note: Choline is found mostly in the yolk, so feel free to ditch the egg-white omelets.

Eggs keep your peepers peeping.

Yolks are also high in lutein and zeaxanthin, two antioxidants that have been shown to ward off macular degeneration — so you'll still be able to eyeball hotties from afar when you're 80!

An omelet a day can shrink your waist.

Louisiana State University system researchers found that obese people who ate a two-egg breakfast at least five times a week lost 65 percent more weight and had more energy than women who breakfasted on bagels. Eggs are more satisfying than carbs, keep you feel full longer.

Your abs eat them up.

These little orbs contain a certain sequence of amino acids that makes egg protein easy for your body to absorb. Which means a hard-boiled grade-A is an ideal muscle-repair food after a butt-busting workout.

Which eggs are best?

All eggs contain the same basic good stuff, and the large ones pack only 72 calories each, so you really can't go wrong. But depending on your eating habits, special eggs may be worth the extra cash.

Labels to look for:

• Organic: These eggs were laid by chickens that aren't fed nasty slaughterhouse byproducts, antibiotics, or certain additives.
• Cage-Free: These little chickens are actually able to run around, like a happy chicken should. They aren't kept in cages from the moment they hatch and injected with "stuff" so they grow and produce a lot of eggs per day. They are generally happier and healthier chickens.
• Omega-3 Enhanced: Buy these to snag more of the heart-healthy fatty acids.

Just a note, I get my eggs from the Amish farm that has grass fed chickens, and they are delicious! There is a huge difference in the integrity of the yolk and the albumin (white of the egg). The yolk, is bright orange which means it is incredibly nutrient dense. Try to buy the best eggs possible and eat them often!

All is well,

Dr. M

A fall favorite...

If you like nice skin like I do, you will love my new fall favorite -- The Incredible Pumpkin Peel by Mychelle. It is free of phthalates, parabens, propylene glycol, ureas, EDTA, fragrances, and artificial colors. 

You can order it online (www.mychelleusa.com) or go to Whole Foods as I did.

Enjoy!

Dr. M