Vitamin D, Magic Mushrooms

[Michaelangelica]

Originally Posted by Ahmabeliever

How very interesting. The title made me laugh, especially as you'd started the medical MJ thread too. I'm thinking, good grief, he's calling MM's medicine I gotta see this.

It seems nature provides again - less sun and the fungi arrive.
.

I'm glad i sucked you in.
But it is magic.
what is interesting is that the Vitamin D level soars when commercially grown tunnel mushrooms are given a short burst of sunlight (c. 6 hours?).
There was some suggestion that Mushroom growers be asked to do this before sending mushrooms to market.

I love mushrooms and fungi but can't cook them. & most of my family are not keen on the stranger varieties
Tthe only time I get a good hit is Yum Char in China Town occasionally(Father's Day the last time )

This was a fascinating TV report on exotic mushrooms, but I think most of his crop is sold OS in SE Asia.
Unfortunately I can't find the video for you

Exotic mushrooms demand on the rise
Reporter: Sean Murphy
First Published: 21/09/2003

It looks like a medieval cathedral, but there are no worshippers - just mushrooms, tens of thousands being grown 70 metres below ground.

Landline - 21/09/2003: Exotic mushrooms demand on the rise . Australian Broadcasting Corp

PS

Vitamin D Lowers Diabetes Risk
Thursday, Mar. 13, 2008 By SORA SONG
baby vitamin d
Steve Nagy / Design Pics / Corbis

Giving children vitamin D supplements in infancy may shear their risk of developing type 1 diabetes later in life. In an analysis of previously published studies, British researchers found significant evidence that supplements of the vitamin were associated with a 29% reduced risk of the disease.
Related Articles

Participants in the studies were given vitamin D supplements from birth onward, for a variable time period, and were tracked for some 15 to 30 years, according to Dr. Christos Zipitis, a pediatrician with the Stockport NHS Foundation Trust and lead author of the new paper, which appears online this week in the Archives of Disease in Childhood.
Types and doses of vitamin D supplements varied, and were not always reported, but Zipitis says supplementation was roughly 10 mcg, or 400 I.U., of vitamin D daily — the amount typically found in infant multivitamins. Based on data from three case-control studies involving 6,455 participants, the new paper found that infants who were given supplements were 29% less likely to develop type 1 diabetes compared with infants who never got extra vitamin D. .
.. . .
"

Breaking News, Analysis, Opinions, Multimedia and Blogs - TIME
No smiley mushrooms to put here.

[Michaelangelica]

Vitamin D Deficiency May Be To Blame For Soft Bones In Baby's Skull

ScienceDaily (Mar. 28, 2008) — Softening of the skull bones in normal-looking babies might reflect vitamin D deficiency during pregnancy, according to a new study. Furthermore, breast-feeding without vitamin D supplementation could prolong the deficiency, which might lead to a risk of serious health problems later in life, including type 1 diabetes and decreased bone density.

“Craniotabes, the softening of skull bones, in otherwise normal newborns has largely been regarded as a physiological condition without the need for treatment,” said Dr. Tohru Yorifuji, of Kyoto University Hospital in Japan. “Our findings, however, show that this untreated condition may be the result of a potentially dangerous vitamin D deficiency.”

For this study researchers evaluated 1,120 newborns for incidence of craniotabes, and at 5-7 days of age, 246 neonates (22 percent) were found to have craniotabes. Researchers also found the incidence of craniotabes had obvious seasonal variations. This clear seasonal variation strongly suggests that the condition is associated with prenatal vitamin D deficiency and likely reflects the amount of sun exposure of pregnant women.

Most importantly, vitamin D deficiency in neonates, could persist into later life, especially in breast-fed infants who do not receive a formula containing vitamin D supplementation. In this study, more than half of the breast-fed infants with craniotabes showed statistically significant low levels of serum 25-OH vitamin D, the storage form of vitamin D. Some of those infants also had symptoms of an overactive parathyroid gland consistent with vitamin D deficiency.

Vitamin D deficiency has not received as much attention as it once did, however several recent studies have reported a resurgence of the condition, even in developed countries. Vitamin D deficiency classically presents with skeletal manifestations such as rickets in childhood or the softening of bones in adults. In addition, vitamin D deficiency in adults can also lead to increased incidence of immunological diseases such as multiple sclerosis, type 1 diabetes, or even colorectal cancer.

Vitamin D Deficiency May Be To Blame For Soft Bones In Baby's Skull

[Michaelangelica]

Brain chemistry winter blues link-- Depressed woman
Poor mood in winter is linked to lack of light

Scientists have pinpointed seasonal changes in brain chemistry which may cause some people to suffer from the winter blues.

Seasonal affective disorder, which can be debilitating, is linked to lack of light exposure on short winter days.

The latest study suggests this might make proteins which clear the brain of the mood-regulating chemical serotonin more active.

The University of Toronto study appears in Archives of General Psychiatry.

Seasonal affective disorder is linked to lack of energy, fatigue, overeating and a tendancy to sleep longer as well as depressed mood.

The condition affects thousands of people in the UK.

BBC NEWS | Health | Brain chemistry winter blues link

Perhaps this should have gone in clinical depression thread.

[Michaelangelica]

Lack of Sunlight Leads to Infertility

fertility, infertility, vitamin D, sunlight, sunshine, sun, vitamins, minerals, pregnancy, spermAn infertility study has revealed vitamin D deficiency among men who are unable to impregnate their partners. The discovery surprised the researchers, who were investigating the incidence of DNA fragmentation of sperm.

Fertility specialist Dr. Anne Clark screened the blood of almost 800 men with fertility problems, and found that almost a third had lower than normal levels of vitamin D.

Lack of Sunlight Leads to Infertility - Articles

[Michaelangelica]

Australians not Getting Enough Sun !

Great segment on ABC Catalyst TV tonight.
Just about everybody over 60 is Vitamin D deficient!!!
Very surprising finding for such a sunny place.
I wonder how Scotland an N. America fare?
Catalyst: Vitamin D - ABC TV Science

[Michaelangelica]

We need to reduce our toxin load (less pollution and less consumption of unnatural chemicals, including prescription drugs); stress (which increases free radical production and reduces our immune response); and exposure to infection (wash hands always and beware when eating uncooked food; wear a mask if there is risk of respiratory infection). We need to improve our immune systems by increasing antioxidant intakes (healthy diet and supplements if necessary), and ensure a healthy supply of protective, friendly bacteria in our guts as well as lead healthy lifestyles.

There are many nutrients that are known to increase our immunity that you may want to consider. For example, beta-glucans from mushrooms are known to increase immune cells and also stimulate stem cells. I will elaborate on the anti-inflammatory immune-boosters in future.


■ Dr Amir Farid Isahak is a medical specialist who practises holistic, aesthetic and anti-ageing medicine. He is a qigong master and founder of SuperQigong. For further information, e-mail starhealth@thestar.com.my. The views expressed are those of the w[/I]

Rejuvenate me!

[Michaelangelica]

Back to basic: Get vitamins
By The Daily Progress
Published: August 17, 2009

This is almost like the return of tuberculosis or polio.

A health problem addressed long ago has re-emerged to threaten America’s children: a lack of vitamin D.

About 7.6 million children, adolescents and young adults — about 9 percent — have vitamin D levels so low they could be considered deficient.
Another 61 percent — 50.8 million — have levels low enough to be insufficient, according to a new analysis of federal data.

“It’s astounding,” said Michal Mela-med of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York, who helped conduct one of the analyses. “At first, we couldn’t believe the numbers. I think it’s very worrisome.”

Low vitamin levels were especially low among girls, adolescents and people with darker skin, making African-American teenage girls the group at the highest risk.

Anyone with low vitamin D levels is at risk for bone problems, heart disease, diabetes and other problems.

Researchers and others attribute the deficiencies to:

Back to basic: Get vitamins | Charlottesville Daily Progress

[Michaelangelica]

Dear Jane:



The October 4 through 8 conference on Vitamin D in Brugge, Belgium, is mainly for scientists, as it is about 2/3 basic science and test tube research and about 1/3 more general human research. Scientists interested in Vitamin D should not miss it. You can read the scientific program on the above website and decide for yourself. I will be there because of a generous grant from Bill Sardi, who supported the Vitamin D Council beginning in 2003; Bill was our earliest supporter.



Dear Dr. Cannell:



My son has schizophrenia. Will Vitamin D help him? He started hearing voices twelve years ago and our lives have been a nightmare since then. He stayed with us for 8 years but we never knew when he would come home, when he was taking his meds, when he would become paranoid, and when he would lose his temper. He disappeared for weeks at a time and would show up at our door homeless and in trouble with the law. He became increasingly violent when he was home.



My husband and I had to have him arrested after he attacked his sister and he was eventually sent to prison, where he was finally made to take his medications. We feel so guilty about our role in sending him to prison but we were afraid for our lives.



I know he does not get sunlight in prison and the doctors there will not test his Vitamin D levels. They won’t let us send him supplements to take. Can the Vitamin D Council do anything about this?



Joanne, Sacramento, CA



Dear Joanne:



In my experience at Atascadero State Hospital, treating hundreds of patients with schizophrenia, adjuvant Vitamin D does not reduce hallucinations, paranoia, or psychosis but it does improve mood, reduce tremors, may reduce the amount of antipsychotic medications needed and helps prevent diabetes and the metabolic syndrome, which are common side-effects of “modern” antipsychotic medications. Care must be taken however, as the same cytochrome P-450 enzymes that metabolize Vitamin D are many of the same enzymes psychotropic medications utilize. Little or nothing is known about such Vitamin D and psychotropic drug interactions, thus Vitamin D levels are mandatory when treating Vitamin D deficiency in someone taking psychiatric medications.



As you are writing from Sacramento, I assume your son is incarcerated in the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR). At my hospital, we get hundreds of schizophrenic patients per year directly from CDCR and I have yet to find one who was not Vitamin D deficient (> 50 ng/ml) and I have yet to find one who was prescribed Vitamin D by CDCR physicians. I find this ironic as CDCR is under a federal court mandate to improve the health care of inmates.



For those not familiar with schizophrenia, the course you describe is common, especially the pain and guilt schizophrenia inflicts on families. Schizophrenia is such a debilitating disease (losing your mind while knowing you are losing your mind) that about 10% of schizophrenics cure their disease by committing suicide. Of all the diseases I know, schizophrenia is the most vicious.



Recently, researchers at Harvard published an incredible paper.

Kinney DK, Teixeira P, Hsu D, Napoleon SC, Crowley DJ, Miller A, Hyman W, Huang E. Relation of schizophrenia prevalence to latitude, climate, fish consumption, infant mortality, and skin color: a role for prenatal vitamin d deficiency and infections? Schizophr Bull. 2009 May;35(3):582-95. Epub 2009 Apr 8.

What Drs. Dennis Kinney, Emerald Huang and colleagues did was nothing short of brilliant. I discussed their paper briefly several months ago in a newsletter but this month I want to spend the time this paper deserves.

Like autism, schizophrenia has strong genetic roots. However, just like autism, genetic predisposition is not predestination. That is, for reasons no one has yet understood, one identical twin will get schizophrenia but the other one has a 50% chance of escaping the disease; the identical twin concordance rate is about 50%. This implies an environmental trigger.

We can get a clue to that trigger by looking at identical twins and multiple sclerosis. Although their genes are identical, the identical twin that went out in the sun when young was much less likely to get multiple sclerosis than his or her identical twin. For example the adolescent identical twin who listened to the dermatologists, and avoided sun tanning, was 2.5 times more likely to later get MS than his/her identical sibling who ignored the dermatologists and tanned. (I predict similar studies will be published concerning identical twins in both autism and schizophrenia.)

Islam T, Gauderman WJ, Cozen W, Mack TM. Childhood sun exposure influences risk of multiple sclerosis in monozygotic twins. Neurology. 2007 Jul 24;69(4):381-8.

Unlike autism, schizophrenia takes about 25 years to manifest itself; as Professor Robert Heaney would say, it is a long-latency disease. That is, the average age of onset until recently was about 25, which explains why the incidence of schizophrenia has not yet dramatically increased. In fact, autism used to be called infantile schizophrenia and it seems likely, as the current crop of autistic children ages, some will later be re-diagnosed with schizophrenia.

Recent studies, as compared to studies published in the 1980s and 1990s, show schizophrenia is increasing, especially among teenagers. In fact, all of the studies I could find published in the 21st century, as opposed to earlier studies, show schizophrenia is increasing:

Boydell J, Van Os J, Lambri M, Castle D, Allardyce J, McCreadie RG, Murray RM. Incidence of schizophrenia in south-east London between 1965 and 1997. Br J Psychiatry. 2003 Jan;182:45-9.

Preti A, Miotto P. Increase in first admissions for schizophrenia and other major psychoses in Italy. Psychiatry Res. 2000 May 15;94(2):139-52.

Tsuchiya KJ, Munk-Jørgensen P. First-admission rates of schizophrenia in Denmark, 1980-1997: have they been increasing? Schizophr Res. 2002 Apr 1;54(3):187-91.

(If you want to read something scary, read this article about two large US government autism studies about to be released. In ten years you will be reading the same story about schizophrenia)

Kirby D. Autism Rate Now at One Percent of All US Children? Huffington Post; 08/11/09

Before I describe the remarkable paper from Harvard, I want to compliment researchers at the Saint Barthomew’s Hospital in England for almost saying what most psychiatrists already know; the incidence of schizophrenia is much higher in people with dark skin. In the 1970s and 80s, that was an accepted fact, until charges of racism were leveled against the American Psychiatric Association (APA). The spineless APA promptly did retrospective chart analyses and announced the incidence of schizophrenia is exactly – precisely – the same for Blacks as it is for Whites. The ethnicity question is important as the Vitamin D theory is not tenable unless darker skin means a higher incidence.

Coid JW, Kirkbride JB, Barker D, Cowden F, Stamps R, Yang M, Jones PB.

Raised incidence rates of all psychoses among migrant groups: findings from the East London first episode psychosis study. Arch Gen Psychiatry. 2008 Nov;65(11):1250-8.

Actually, in 2007, a group at Columbia University appears to be the first to break with the APA’s political correctness. Dr. Michaeline Bresnahan and her colleagues followed 12,000 children for up to 28 years after birth. African Americans were 3 (three) times more likely to develop schizophrenia than whites and socioeconomic factors could not explain away their findings.

Bresnahan M, Begg MD, Brown A, Schaefer C, Sohler N, Insel B, Vella L, Susser E. Race and risk of schizophrenia in a US birth cohort: another example of health disparity? Int J Epidemiol. 2007 Aug;36(4):751-8.

Getting back to the Kinney et al paper, they examined 188 studies to find 49 studies that used similar diagnostic methods. The authors were quite strict on only looking at the 49 studies that used similar diagnostic criteria as the authors are aware that most psychiatrists dismiss any latitudinal variation in the prevalence of schizophrenia by saying that doctors around the equator are too stupid to make a correct diagnosis of schizophrenia.

Then, the authors explored the three most common theories for the environmental trigger of schizophrenia:

1. Poor prenatal care,

2. Low omega-3 fatty acid consumption,

3. Prenatal exposure to infections, especially influenza.

First, they found a 10 (ten) fold variance in the prevalence of schizophrenia in the world, from a high of 28 cases per 1000 in Oxford Bay, Canada, near the Arctic Circle, to a low of 1 per 1000 around the equator, confirming Dr. E.F. Torrey’s landmark latitudinal findings published in 1987. Kinney et al confirmed that latitude and cold climate broadly and strongly determine the prevalence of schizophrenia. The majority of the 49 studies the authors reviewed were completed before the sun scare, which has driven many equatorial mothers out of the sun, so I predict the incidence of schizophrenia around the equator will soon be increasing.

Second, if you were born in countries around the equator with high infant mortality (a proxy for poor prenatal care), the incidence of schizophrenia was very low. In other words, around the equator it didn’t matter if you had poor prenatal care, you still did not get schizophrenia. But, at latitudes away from the sun, prenatal care did matter, and it mattered more and more the further you got from the equator. It appears that high maternal Vitamin D levels around the equator overwhelmed the effect of poor prenatal care.

Third, around the equator, it did not matter if mothers ate Vitamin D-containing fish; it only mattered the further you got away from the equator. That is, latitude overwhelmed the effect of fish consumption; consumption of Vitamin D containing fish only began to matter when the sun was not available to make Vitamin D. If omega-3 fatty acid consumption was the cause of schizophrenia, latitude variation in omega-3 consumption would not matter.

Fourth, they found that skin color only mattered away from the equator, that is, in the very dark-skinned equatorial Indians and equatorial Africans, skin color hardly mattered; the prevalence of schizophrenia was quite low. However, the further poleward you live, dark skin preventing maternal Vitamin D production becomes an increasingly significant risk factor for schizophrenia.

The authors could not dismiss the influenza theory of schizophrenia, but as I hope readers are aware, the association between influenza and schizophrenia is probably mediated by vitamin D. That is, influenza is a symptom of Vitamin D deficiency:

“… the characteristic microbe of a disease might be a symptom instead of a cause.”

George Bernard Shaw

(Preface on Doctors, The Doctor’s Dilemma, 1911)

Kinney et al concluded that the Vitamin D hypothesis correctly predicted the associations between prevalence and skin color, fish consumption, infant mortality, latitude and temperature. The Vitamin D effect “overwhelms” the effects of other known risk factors. That is, maternal Vitamin D deficiency is not just “a” cause, but is probably “the” cause of schizophrenia.

I love epidemiological studies like this, and I’m sure Professor John McGrath in Australia does as well. It was McGrath who first hypothesized that gestational Vitamin D deficiency causes schizophrenia. I often despair that I have had to wait two years for the world to learn autism is triggered by gestational and early childhood Vitamin D deficiency. John McGrath has had to wait 10 years for his theory to be accepted and will probably still be waiting 10 years from now.

McGrath J. Hypothesis: is low prenatal vitamin D a risk-modifying factor for schizophrenia? Schizophr Res. 1999 Dec 21;40(3):173-7.

I’d like to add one prediction to McGrath’s theory. The Vitamin D theory of schizophrenia predicts that the age of onset of schizophrenia should be getting younger. That is, as more pregnant women listened to dermatologists, their children are not only more likely to develop schizophrenia, but are more likely to develop more severe cases that present at a younger age. That is exactly what appears to be happening.

Di Maggio C, Martinez M, Ménard JF, Petit M, Thibaut F. Evidence of a cohort effect for age at onset of schizophrenia. Am J Psychiatry. 2001 Mar;158(3):489-92.

Ajdacic-Gross V, Lauber C, Warnke I, Haker H, Murray RM, Rössler W.

Changing incidence of psychotic disorders among the young in Zurich. Schizophr Res. 2007 Sep;95(1-3):9-18. Epub 2007 Jul 16.

If you know any pregnant women, make sure they read our recent newsletter about pregnancy and Vitamin D.

Dear Dr. Cannell:

How much magnesium do you need to allow Vitamin D to work properly?

Sarah, New York

Dear Sarah:

Severe magnesium deficiencies severely impair Vitamin D’s ability to work. What is not known, is how mild to moderate Mg deficiencies, like most Americans have, affect Vitamin D metabolism. The safe thing to do is to eat green leafy vegetables and a handful of sunflower seeds and nuts every day (Trader Joe’s sells a variety of seeds). If you can’t, won’t, or don’t end up doing that, then take a Vitamin D supplement with added Magnesium. Bio Tech Pharmacal now sells such a supplement, Vitamin D3 Plus, and will make a contribution of one dollar to the Council for every bottle sold. Bio Tech’s phone number: (479) 443-9148.

Bio Tech’s new Vitamin D3 Plus formula also contains zinc (the base of the fingers of the Vitamin D Receptor each contains a zinc molecule), Vitamin K2 (Vitamin K helps direct Vitamin D to calcify the proper organs), boron (boron is involved in the rapid, non-genomic action of Vitamin D on the cell wall), a small amount of genestein (about one-half the amount the average Japanese consumes every day), which helps activated Vitamin D stay around longer at the receptor site, and a tiny amount of Vitamin A. Again, the wisest thing to do is to eat green leafy vegetables and a handful of seeds every day as that combination contains the co-factors Vitamin D needs, the co-factors many Americans are deficient in.

John Cannell, MD
President,
Vitamin D Council

This is a periodic newsletter from the Vitamin D Council, a non-profit trying to end the epidemic of vitamin D deficiency. Please reproduce it, post it on Internet sites, and forward it to your friends. Remember, we are a non-profit and rely on your donations to publish our newsletter, maintain our website, and pursue our objectives. Send your tax-deductible contributions to:
The Vitamin D Council
585 Leff Street
San Luis Obispo, CA 93422

[Michaelangelica]

Vitamin D seems crucial for the Immune Response to bacteria.

Originally published in Science Express on 23 February 2006
Science 24 March 2006:
Vol. 311. no. 5768, pp. 1770 - 1773
DOI: 10.1126/science.1123933


Toll-Like Receptor Triggering of a Vitamin D-Mediated Human Antimicrobial Response

In innate immune responses, activation of Toll-like receptors (TLRs) triggers direct antimicrobial activity against intracellular bacteria, which in murine, but not human, monocytes and macrophages is mediated principally by nitric oxide. We report here that TLR activation of human macrophages up-regulated expression of the vitamin D receptor and the vitamin D-1–hydroxylase genes, leading to induction of the antimicrobial peptide cathelicidin and killing of intracellular Mycobacterium tuberculosis. We also observed that sera from African-American individuals, known to have increased susceptibility to tuberculosis, had low 25-hydroxyvitamin D and were inefficient in supporting cathelicidin messenger RNA induction. These data support a link between TLRs and vitamin D–mediated innate immunity and suggest that differences in ability of human populations to produce vitamin D may contribute to susceptibility to microbial infection.

Toll-Like Receptor Triggering of a Vitamin D-Mediated Human Antimicrobial Response -- Liu et al. 311 (5768): 1770 -- Science
The right racial/genetic background helps:-

Vitamin D receptor gene polymorphism: association with Crohn's disease susceptibility J D Simmonsa, C Mullighanb, K I Welshb, D P Jewella

a Gastroenterology Unit, University of Oxford, Radcliffe Infirmary, Woodstock Rd, Oxford, OX2 6HE, UK, b Transplant Immunology, Transplant Centre, Churchill Hospital, Oxford, UK

Correspondence to: J D Simmons, Gastroenterology Unit, John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford,

Accepted for publication 8 February 2000

BACKGROUND---The vitamin D receptor (VDR) gene represents a strong positional candidate susceptibility gene for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).
The VDR gene maps to a region on chromosome 12 that has been shown to be linked to IBD by genome screening techniques.
It is the cellular receptor for 1,25(OH)2 vitamin D3 (calcitriol) which has a wide range of different regulatory effects on the immune system. IBD is characterised by activation of the mucosal immune system.
AIM---To determine if polymorphisms in the VDR gene are associated with susceptibility to IBD
SUBJECTS---European Caucasoids: 158 patients with ulcerative colitis, 245 with Crohn's disease, and 164 cadaveric renal allograft donor controls.
, , ,
CONCLUSION---This study provides preliminary evidence for a genetic association between Crohn's disease susceptibility and a gene that lies within one of the candidate regions determined by linkage analysis.

http://gut.bmj.com/cgi/content/abstract/47/2/211

I got so much Vit D today that my back has a warm red glow.