Thinking of getting a stairlift?

This week, along with my copy of the Radio Times coming through the letterbox, there were also some of those leaflets advertising this and that. There is usually at least one with a photo of a photogenic TV doctor endorsing something or other, and doubtless being very well paid to do so. This time the 'doctor advert' was trying to sell stairlifts. 

 

If you too received one of these leaflets and it has started you wondering whether you should be getting a stairlift - a very expensive purchase - I would just like to invite you to read this blog article I posted earlier this year. You too may well be short of vitamin D. Most people in this country are short of vitamin D because the main source of vitamin D is sunshine, and we don't get a lot of that in the UK. Perhaps you too would benefit more from improving your nutritional status and thus your bone and muscle strength and general health, than by spending thousands of pounds on an expensive stairlift.

Fewer people in the 'at risk' groups are taking the free flu jabs

It's really good to read that fewer people are falling for the propaganda urging them to have the flu vaccination. Flu vaccines are pretty ineffective. See this article and this.

And why have vaccine injected into your body and take the risk of adverse effects from it, when there are excellent drug-free ways to avoid catching flu? Here are some good precautions to take:

Wash your hands frequently to lower the risk of germs being spread.

Avoid dieting.

Eat good, nutritious meals cooked from fresh foods, rather than processed meals which are nutritionally poor and usually contain unhealthy additives.

Make sure you are getting enough Vitamin D, the 'sunshine vitamin', which builds up immunity to respiratory diseases. Most of us are short of this vitamin, especially in the winter, so you may find that taking a supplement of vitamin D3 capsules or tablets would be helpful for you. Some GPs will get your vitamin D level checked for you - a little blood test.

Cut down on salt and salty food.

Cut down on sugar and wheat/bread.

Avoid synthetic chemicals like artificial sweeteners, colourings, flavours, etc and those ghastly artificial scented room sprays and laundry products.

I myself haven't had the flu or a cold since I stopped having the flu jabs many years ago.

Do you choose to have the flu jab in winter? - I don't.

Do you choose to have the flu jab in winter? - I don't. - And that is despite the fact that I had pulmonary TB for years as a child and adolescent.

I've been taking vitamin D3 supplements for a couple of years now because I was deficient in Vitamin D, and while I have been taking it I've not caught a cold or flu or any other infection. Making sure you get enough vitamin D is a very good way to reduce the risk of respiratory infections. It is widely reported that most people in this country are not getting enough Vitamin D, and this is obviously even more of a problem in the winter months when there are more respiratory infections like colds and flu about, and no summer sun to garner vitamin D from by its action on the skin. So you may like to consider whether you are perhaps in need of vitamin D supplementation.

A few mornings ago Justin Webb (one of my bêtes noires...(o:) was interviewing someone about the fact that in the winter months there are more deaths of older people than there are in the summer months. I think his interviewee was a spokesman for Age UK. This man was explaining that when it is very cold, deaths from respiratory and circulatory problems increase. Correct me if I'm wrong, but if I remember correctly he was drawing attention to the inadequate heating in the homes of many old people. You can read about this on The Poverty Site, where you will see that "Older people occupy much of the substandard housing in Britain, and the link between ill health and housing is strong for this group. This is particularly important because many older people spend such a lot of time at home. Respiratory diseases are often caused or made worse by damp and cold conditions at home. Inefficient heating and insulation are factors driving the high level of winter deaths in Britain: there are 30,000-40,000 more deaths in winter than summer months, and old people make up the vast majority of that excess. 1 The indicator used here is the 'number of excess winter deaths' amongst older people."

Unfortunately, this important point was obscured by Justin Webb butting in to say that it is important for older people to have the flu jab to protect them from catching flu - implying that the flu jab would reduce the extra deaths of old people when it's very cold.

No, Mr Webb; that is not true. - There is no evidence to support the view that the flu jab protects the over-65s from flu. See this article in The Lancet. It is entitled "Efficacy and effectiveness of influenza vaccines: a systematic review and meta-analysis". Personally I'd far rather hear what the interviwer has come on a programme to talk about, than have Justin Webb coming in with his uninformed twopennath!

Latest concerns about Vitamin D deficiency. Check it out.

Check it out. Latest concerns about Vitamin D deficiency. BBC News reports that there has been an increase in childhood rickets over the past 15 years. "The chief medical officer for England, Dame Sally Davies, is to contact medical staff about concerns young children and some adults are not getting enough vitamin D. Government guidelines recommend some groups, including the under-fives, should take a daily supplement. However, recent research found that many parents and health professionals were unaware of the advice."

As well as the short video on that webpage, I believe you will find this one from a news report earlier this month even more interesting/alarming. That most health professionals are ill-informed in the matter of the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency is perhaps the most alarming aspect of the problem.

Taking vitamin D3 supplements certainly made a big difference to me: enabled me to rise from a chair without a monumental struggle was perhaps the most noticeable difference, and the ability to climb stairs more easily, and of course to feel stronger, and steadier on my feet. All my life doctors had given me the wrong information about vitamin D. Especially Dr Nigel Bax - now a professor, I believe. Although my chest X-ray at the time I saw him caused him to exclaim with shock that my ribs were almost transparent on the X-ray, he did his damnedest to warn me off taking vitamin D, and said if I did take any supplements, against his advice, the best time to take them was on an empty stomach before breakfast! - That too, was wrong. Fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, E, K) should be taken with or after a meal that contains healthy fat. His confident, strongly expressed, incorrect advice did me immeasurable harm. - I had osteomalacia. No wonder my ribs were hurting.

A snippet of information can transform someone's life

A snippet of information can transform someone's life. This is a message I received from someone one day last week:

"hi margaret

just thought i would let you know about my experience with regards to vitamin D i saw what you have said about it and as i have had fibromyalgia for over 25 years i thought what the hell i'll try anything once and so i have started taking a supplement called osteocare and WOW what a difference i have been taking it for 3 weeks now and i can already feel a big difference in my muscles and bones and also my energy levels i really don't know how to thank you enough i have not used my stairlift for a week much to everyones amazement and i am hoping that i will continue to improve lots more it has already made a huge difference to me and my quality of life it's amazing what a snippet of someone elses wisdom can have such a massive change in someone else's life

thankyou so much"

Do you still need to be convinced about the benefits of Vitamin D supplements?

In people with low blood levels of vitamin D, boosting them with supplements more than halved a person's risk of dying from any cause compared to someone who remained deficient, in a large new study.
Read article in The Vancouver Sun (Canada)

Note:Vitamin D3 is the best version of Vitamin D.

Study suggests high dose vitamin D may boost exercise capacity for COPD sufferers

High dose supplements of vitamin D may increase the exercise capacity and strength of respiratory muscles in people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), suggests a new study.
Read article at nutraingredients-usa.com

I've had my vitamin D level tested and have received the result

As some of my readers will know, I have been taking Vitamin D3 supplements since last Spring, and have greatly benefited from them: feeling stronger, finding it much easier to get up from a chair, steadier on my feet so less likely to fall, etc. - Well last Wednesday I had a dental appointment. This entailed climbing steps. - Suddenly I found this sooo much easier! I didn't need to hold onto the handrail. - My leg muscles managed on their own.

So the benefits of my vitamin D3 supplements are continuing to increase. And I've not had a cold or flu or any other respiratory infection since I started seriously supplementing with this vitamin. - It's my favourite vitamin now...(o: It has helped me so much.

I recently sent off for a home testing kit to get my vitamin D level measured and I received the results a week or two ago. I am informed that most experts consider the optimal level for health to be 50-70ng/nl, and mine was found to be 52ng/ml, so that's fine. - I reckon it shows clearly that I certainly needed the supplementation! I shall continue supplementing. I feel so much stronger.

There is a great deal of research these days that shows vitamin D deficiency to be common, especially in people who cannot get out into the sunshine in the summer to build up their stores of the sunshine vitamin. Maybe you too could benefit from taking vitamin D3 tablets. Especially if you are unsteady on your feet as I was, or have had a fracture from a fall, or find it difficult to rise from a chair or to climb stairs, or you repeatedly catch colds - maybe your doctor would consider it a good idea to arrange for you to have your vit D level checked and then take it from there. - It's worth checking, don't you think, for the sake of your health? There's more information about vitamin D on my Fat Retention webpage.

Review finds exercise and vitamin D help to prevent falls in older people

A systematic review of over 50 clinical trials finds that exercise and Vitamin D supplements are the best ways to reduce the risk of falling in people aged 65 and over.
Read article at physorg.com

Are you unsteady on your feet? A bit wobbly? Prone to falling?

Are you unsteady on your feet? A bit wobbly? Prone to falling? - It may well be, that like me, upping your vitamin D intake would bring about a great improvement.

Here is news of recent studies that have found that for older people, taking exercise and taking vitamin D supplements is associated with reduced risk of falls. This was certainly my own experience, coupled with much greater muscle strength that makes it easier to rise from a chair, and much more confident walking. If you decide to take vitamin D supplements, then be aware that Vitamin D3 is the more effective version of this vitamin supplement. You could be saving yourself from a fall and a consequent broken bone or two. - Well worth taking the tablets...(o:

Vitamin D is one of the vitamins that are soluble in fat, so the best way to take Vitamin D supplements is with or after a meal that contains some fat.

It's also vital to improve your dietary intake, of course. - Healthy, natural, unsalted food, raw or cooked from scratch, is more likely to reward you with a healthy body than feeding it processed, highly-salted, sugar-laden, chemical-drenched, nutrient-low, denatured junk, isn't it? - Take care of your body! It's the only one you've got. - Saving money by choosing to eat cheap, processed rubbish instead of real food, preferably organic, is the most costly economy measure you could take, because it could cost you your health.

NHS Cumbria's director of Public Health favours seasonal flu vaccine propaganda on Eastenders and other TV soaps

NHS Cumbria's director of Public Health favours seasonal flu vaccine propaganda on EastEnders and other TV soaps, as reported here.

If you favour staying healthy without recourse to vaccines or other drugs, and favour your TV drama unlaced with propaganda, then you may like to consider supplementing your diet this winter with Vitamin D3 tablets and with Vitamin C. Good nutrition is the safest medicine. Another way to improve your nutrition is to reduce your intake of salt and salty food.

Read this very informative page: http://www.patient.co.uk/health/Vitamin-D-Deficiency.htm

See also www.vitamindcouncil.org

Official leaflets for people of Scotland advising them to make sure they get enough Vitamin D - Well done, Ryan McLaughlin!

Schoolboy, Ryan McLaughlin, tirelessly campaigned on this issue and petitioned the Scottish Parliament to produce new guidelines on vitamin D supplements for children and pregnant women. His efforts have been successful. See BBC News report.

Because Scotland gets less sunshine than the more southerly regions of Britain, it is inevitably more difficult to get sufficient Vitamin D, the 'sunshine vitamin.' Inadequate levels of this vitamin result in many health problems, including more fragile bones, excess weight, muscle weakness and many more. (Click on the Vitamin D label just beneath this post if you would like more information about Vitamin D.) Possibly the most important of Vitamin D's contributions to health is protection from infections. - If you have enough Vitamin D you are far less likely to catch colds and flu, etc.

If getting out into the sun is a problem for you and you decide to take supplements of the sunshine vitamin, the best version is Vitamin D3. Vitamin D is also essential to metabolise calcium. Read about dairy calcium, fat retention and vitamin D on my webpage here.

Pregnant women in the UK need to take supplements of vitamin D.

Despite some conflicting advice, researchers are recommending pregnant women to take vitamin D supplements because diet and sunshine are providing insufficient levels of the vitamin. Read the BBC News article. "The paper said the UK was the only one of 31 countries examined which did not recommend that women of reproductive age took a vitamin D supplement, and that it also fails to endorse a daily supplement for expectant mothers."

Avoiding vitamin D deficiency brings many health benefits, especially for pregnant mothers and the babies who will be born to them. - Check it out.

Gwyneth Paltrow and her Vitamin D Deficiency

See the Telegraph article, in which we read that the "problem was diagnosed in a bone scan after she suffered a leg fracture." (Vitamin D deficiency weakens bones.) She was advised to spend more time in the sun.

I myself was short of Vitamin D, and had weak bones and muscles, and badly fractured my right arm in 2007, but my skin is too delicate to spend much time in the sun, so early last year I started to take Vitamin D3 tablets, along with the calcium tablets I was already taking. The results have been really impressive: my muscle strength is very greatly increased and my balance has also improved. I am given to understand that because Vitamin D gets stored in fat in the body, the tablets are best taken with or after a meal containing fat.

It was Bill who stressed to me the importance of taking Vitamin D3, rather than D2, and that I needed to take a higher dose than I had been taking initially, and I am very grateful to him for that advice, as it has undoubtedly done me good.

Breast Cancer Survivors Need Vitamin D

Researchers state in an article published in the March 2010 issue of the journal Nutrition that Vitamin D should be recommended for breast cancer survivors because there is evidence that this vitamin can provide a myriad health benefits.
Read article at foodconsumer.org

Older people need higher doses to treat vitamin D deficiency: Study

Older adults suffering vitamin D deficiency need higher remedial doses than younger adults, according to a new research review.
Read article at nutraingredients.com

Vitamin D supplements reduce falls

Giving people living in nursing facilities vitamin D can reduce the rate of falls, according to a new Cochrane Review.
Read article at physorg.com

Vitamin D supplements may help to prevent type 2 diabetes

A New Zealand study has found that South Asian women with insulin resistance improved markedly after taking vitamin D supplements. Nutrition researcher Pamela von Hurst of the Institute of Food, Nutrition and Human Health at Albany, said while diet and exercise played a major part in the onset of type-2 diabetes, her findings reinforced the importance of vitamin D from the sun and supplements to prevent type-2 diabetes.
Read article at pharmacynews.com.au (Australia)

Women with breast cancer have low vitamin D levels

Women with breast cancer should be given high doses of vitamin D because a majority of them are likely to have low levels of vitamin D, which could contribute to decreased bone mass and greater risk of fractures, according to scientists at the University of Rochester Medical Center.
Read article at physorg.com

Vitamin D and Calcium Supplements Taken Together Help to Prevent Cancer

An article published in the Sept 2009 issue of Anticancer Research suggests that vitamin D supplements may better be used together with calcium supplements to prevent cancer. Low, insufficient or deficient vitamin D is now considered as a risk factor by many researchers for various types of cancer. For example, scientists suggest that maintaining high levels of vitamin D can reduce risk of breast cancer by up to 70 percent.
Read article at foodconsumer.org