Vitamin D Toxicity

 

You will not overdose on vitamin D from the sun — it just will not happen. The sun regulates not only the cholecalciferol (vitamin D) formed from cholesterol in your skin; but it also regulates everything else: your vitamin A, B, C, E, K, Magnesium, Calcium, Potassium and other minerals and trace minerals. The sun is not just doing one thing — it’s doing and providing many things.

It is dangerous to be taking high doses of vitamin D3 supplements isolated without a complete supplement profile. Even taking  D3/K2 -mk7 is still not good enough. Too much vitamin D3 will automatically lower your vitamin A level. Look up symptoms for a vitamin A deficiency. Furthermore, when vitamin A becomes deficient because of the over-using of vitamin D3, then the stored mineral copper becomes depleted/dysregulated in the liver. Copper is the spark plug of the body. Even some auto-engine spark plugs are made with copper. Even vitamin C is made up partially with an enzymatic copper-carrier, called tyrosinase. Vitamin C, which is most abundant in the adrenal glands, will not work without copper. Thus you have thyroid and hormonal dysfunctionality thinking that it’s an iodine deficiency, when really it’s a copper deficiency, traced back to taking too much supplementation D3. Many women are taking HRT or bio-identical hormones, when all they really need is 2 mg of copper daily.

Taking cod liver oil — which contains both vitamin A and D — will prevent this cascade somewhat because of the retinol (vitamin A) content of cod-liver oil. However, cod liver oil has its own problems, and retinol in supplement form is a poison toxin, that should only be taken for a short period of time, if at all.

Vitamin D is indeed good and necessary for many biological functions — such as helping to regulate the immune system and keeping white blood cells healthy and active. Low vitamin D levels are associated with inflammation and bone pain. I personally supplement with lichens or mushrooms to achieve a healthy vitamin D status. And of course, I try to get as much sunlight as possible and as needed. These are all natural ways to increase vitamin D levels in the body gently, and without trauma.

Some health professionals are saying that the only toxic effect of too much supplement vitamin D is that of raising calcium levels in the blood, leading to a condition known as hypercalcemia! (This also increases the risk of developing kidney stones.) Wait! But there are other issues. The process of turning cholecalciferol into hormone D — a.k.a. vitamin D — is a complicated process, that requires a lot of energy. That energy is spelled: m.a.g.n.e.s.i.u.m. That means a lot of magnesium is being sacrificed to accommodate the complex process of making active vitamin D that is useful to the body. That burning up of magnesium causes calcium to proliferate, since magnesium is needed to regulate calcium.

That complicated process involves turning cholecalciferol (“vitamin D”) into calcidiol by the liver, which is then turned into an active hormone D form, calcitriol, primarily by the kidneys, which then binds to what is called the vitamin D receptor (VDR), which binds to what is known as the retinoid X receptor (RXR), which then binds to vitamin A (retinol). Vitamin D is not really active and is essentially useless without vitamin A.

As previously mentioned, too much vitamin D supplementing reduces retinol (vitamin A) in the liver. Retinol is needed to activate ceruloplasmin — the protein that transports bio-available copper. If retinol is reduced, then bio-available copper is reduced. If copper is reduced, then unbound iron builds up in the blood, since copper controls/regulates iron. If unbound iron builds up, then there is inflammation and rusting of the organs, especially the liver, spleen, stomach, heart and even brain. Don’t believe me?

I ask that anyone who has been taking high doses of vitamin D3 10,000 IU (even with K2-mk7) or more, get a ferritin test. If the test shows over 100, you have a problem. If it shows over 300, you have a serious problem: way too much unbound iron wreaking havoc and causing inflammation, and even autoimmune diseases: the birth of autoimmune diseases!

Magnesium: The King Of Minerals

 

As we age, unbound, free iron increases in our body while magnesium decreases. For healthy living, it should be the other way around. Increased magnesium automatically keeps potassium from depleting. There lies the heart connection. Magnesium is not involved in over 300 enzymatic processes — it’s more like over 3000! If you know about methylation, you will know the power of magnesium, and P5P, and copper, and zinc, and manganese, and molybdenum! The number one thing that is depleting magnesium in health conscious people today is taking too much Vitamin D3. If you are taking D3/K2-MK7 without adding magnesium, it would be better had you not taken the former(s). Vitamin D3 depletes retinol (vitamin A), which then depletes ceruloplasmin (a protein needed to transport copper), which then depletes bioavailable copper, which then causes unbound iron buildup and rusting of the blood and organs — because copper regulates iron. Which then causes a great depletion of magnesium!

I’ve seen statistics estimating that 60 percent of the population is deficient in magnesium; and I’ve seen others raising it to 85 percent. In reality though, I believe the entire human race is deficient in magnesium! Yes, even 100 percent of all people are deficient in this important mineral. Even those eating the healthiest foods in the world are deficient. Even those supplementing in high doses are deficient. Magnesium is very easy to lose, like water vapor is very easy to dissipate. Even stress depletes magnesium. Even thinking too hard depletes magnesium. Heat depletes magnesium in our body. Cold depletes magnesium. Exercise depletes magnesium. A sedentary lifestyle depletes magnesium. Consuming the wrong type of magnesium depletes magnesium. Too much or too little of any other mineral or vitamin depletes magnesium. Inflammation anywhere in the body uses magnesium like gasoline, depleting it. Just being alive depletes magnesium.

Magnesium is so important for so many things and is needed in so many things. Our cell’s mitochondria needs magnesium to work at all . The enzymes used to create energy during ATP, from cellular respiration, need magnesium. Potassium and sodium depend on magnesium. Progesterone and all other hormones need magnesium as a co-factor. If you have low progesterone, you have low magnesium. To even sleep properly, you need magnesium. Serotonin, dopamine and melatonin depend on magnesium.

Supplementing magnesium via vegetables is surprisingly not easy. Supplementing it with chlorophyll is also impractical. What is chlorophyll — what does it look like? If you think it’s that green liquid thing you see in bottles, you are sadly mistaken. Chlorophyll does not come in liquid form! Currently, I am taking magnesium glycinate/malate combination, about 500 mg, per day — because they are among the most absorbable forms of magnesium. If you think something like magnesium oxide is absorbable, you are sadly mistaken. You would be lucky to receive even a rate of 4% absorption.

There are other absorbable forms of magnesium besides glycinate and malate, that can be taken — such as magnesium citrate, found in Natural Calm Canada. I personally would rotate between the different forms of absorbable magnesium rather than stick to just one brand. And there is mineral water. Spring water has an affinity to magnesium— it loves this mineral. Decocting or infusing herbs in hot water extracts the magnesium into the water.

You could get magnesium from such herbs as turmeric, guduchi, fenugreek, eclipta alba, saffron, olive leaf extract and many more. However, herbs are designed to be used sparingly— typically 1/4 teaspoon per day, or less.

People’s bodies are not aged by time, but by a depleting of magnesium (and others), an increase in unbound iron; and the build-up of toxins and heavy metals in our cells and tissues, and even by the oxidation of fatty acids.

But what if you can’t tolerate magnesium?

If you cannot tolerate magnesium, that means you cannot tolerate oxalates, which means you are eating too much high oxalate foods or your liver is producing too much oxalates. We have heard of calcium oxalates — but we hardly ever hear of magnesium oxalates.
Furthermore, if you cannot tolerate too much magnesium, that means you are low in potassium as well, and there is a severe electrolyte imbalance.

Solution simple: AVOID high oxalate foods such as soy, raspberries, nuts, seeds, spinach, swiss chard, okra, beet greens, chocolate, etc.
INCREASE your potassium with yam, coconut water, etc.
Take magnesium in more absorbable forms, such as cream, spray and Epsom salt baths, bypassing the liver and kidneys.
The glycine in magnesium glycinate can aggravate the condition. So consider a more tolerable form, like magnesium malate. The malate, or malic acid, in magnesium malate actually helps neutralize or gently excrete oxalates.
Drink spring water, which contains natural magnesium.
Do a liver and kidneys cleans with artichokes and dandelion root.

Suggestions on quality magnesium brands:
  • Super Magnesium  Taurate (from Green Organic)
  • Magnesium Breakthrough (from biOptimizers)
  • TRI-MAG 300 (from DaVinci)