emla999/Lyme
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posted
This research was just published (2010).
Scientist have discovered that "T cells" aka CD4 cells require Vitamin D to function and therefore without adequate blood levels of Vitamin D your immune system cannot fight off infections.
"The researchers found that immune systems' killer cells, known as T cells, rely on vitamin D to become active and remain dormant and unaware of the possibility of threat from an infection or pathogen if vitamin D is lacking in the blood."
"When a T cell is exposed to a foreign pathogen, it extends a signaling device or 'antenna' known as a vitamin D receptor, with which it searches for vitamin D," said Carsten Geisler of Copenhagen University's department of international health, immunology and microbiology, who led the study."
"This means the T cell must have vitamin D or activation of the cell will cease. If the T cells cannot find enough vitamin D in the blood, they won't even begin to mobilize."
*That article stated there were no definitive studies on the optimal daily vitamin D dose but experts recommend 25 to 50 micrograms.
****I think 25 to 50 micrograms would translate to 1,000 to 2,000 IU's per day of Vitamin D.
Pinelady
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posted
That is very interesting.
I wonder how if anything that research relates to VGV-L?
-------------------- Suspected Lyme 07 Test neg One band migrating in IgG region unable to identify.Igenex Jan.09IFA titer 1:40 IND IgM neg pos 31 +++ 34 IND 39 IND 41 IND 83-93 + DX:Neuroborreliosis Posts: 5850 | From Kentucky | Registered: Dec 2008
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sutherngrl
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I just started on prescription D for the second time since becoming ill....50,000 IUs 2x a week.
First time I took it, I was almost in remission when my endo took me off of it thinking my levels were getting too high. Needless to say, I became ill again when my D dropped back down.
In hindsight, I have to wonder if I would have gotten completely well, if I had contiuned on the D for several months after being symptom free.
Now they know that it is harder than they thought to get toxic on D. And that you should be off D for a week before getting blood drawn to get an acurrate reading on your D level. I also read that to maintain your current D level you need 4000 to 5000 IUs a day.
After being on prescription D for 4 weeks, I am having a severe herxish reaction. At least that what I hope this is!
Posts: 4035 | From Mississippi | Registered: Jul 2008
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Pinelady
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posted
I get what you are saying--It may act as a antibiotic in the system.
I wish we knew for sure.
-------------------- Suspected Lyme 07 Test neg One band migrating in IgG region unable to identify.Igenex Jan.09IFA titer 1:40 IND IgM neg pos 31 +++ 34 IND 39 IND 41 IND 83-93 + DX:Neuroborreliosis Posts: 5850 | From Kentucky | Registered: Dec 2008
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emla999/Lyme
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Vitamin D is not really an antibiotic per se. But Vitamin D does help your body to kill infections though. And the scientists even found out how Vitamin D was able to do this.
Vitamin D activates "T-cells" aka CD4 cells. Without adequate levels of Vitamin D within the blood the T-cells cannot function properly.
T-cells are very important because when you are first infected with a bacteria or virus T-cells seek out and try to destroy those germs/infections.
But if you have a deficiency of Vitamin D then the T-cells will do nothing. And thus a deficiency in Vitamin D can make you more susceptible to infections.
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sutherngrl
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So which comes first the deficiency in D or the infection?
I have to say the infection, since when I became ill, I was playing golf every weekend for 4 hours in full sun, no sunscreen. I should have had ample supply of D.
I read that they are considering D as a treatment for TB and AIDS. That says a lot about the potency of this hormone.
I am very interested in what more studies on D will turn up.
Posts: 4035 | From Mississippi | Registered: Jul 2008
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Bugg
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Thanks so much for posting this...Did you guys also see the recent study where pregnant moms who took Vitamin D during pregnancy were less likely to have babies who would develop MS in later years.....Apparently the Vitamin D receptor is tied to a certain genetic code (chromosome) for MS.....
Emla- In my humble opinion, I think Vitamin D for lyme patients is also very important because it acts as an immune system MODULATOR...meaning it regulates the immune system. Just as we need Vitamin D to activate T cells, I think we need Vitamin D to regulate T cell function as well. Overactive T cell function can create an overactive immune system and induce pain. You see this in autoimmune disease. It's been well-publicized that many people with MS have low Vitamin D levels. You can now also read where some people with MS are taking higher doses of Vitamin D and feeling better (stopping the progression of their MS)
I've often wondered if lyme patients don't need to be at the higher end of the normal range in order to regulate a dysregulated immune system...
Even after stopping years of oral and IV abx use, I've often felt like my immune system has been stuck in overdrive and wouldn't just calm down
I know that my all-over muscle pain/aching bones feel much better when I have higher Vitamin D levels...It's well-known that it has anti-inflammatory effects but I also wonder if it doesn't make me feel better because it's calming an overactive immune system....
Having my levels at the low end of the normal range didn't do anything for my symptoms either....
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Bugg
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Genetic study shows direct link between vitamin D and MS susceptibility `gene' 05 Feb 2009
Scientists have found evidence that a direct interaction between vitamin D and a common genetic variant alters the risk of developing multiple sclerosis (MS).
The research published in the journal PLoS Genetics suggests that vitamin D deficiency during pregnancy and the early years may increase the risk of the offspring developing MS later in life.
The causes of MS are unclear, but it has become evident that both environmental and genetic factors play a role.
Previous studies have shown that populations from Northern Europe have an increased MS risk if they live in areas receiving less sunshine.
This supports a direct link between deficiency in vitamin D, produced in the body through the action of sunlight, and increased risk of developing the condition.
Now, in a study funded by the UK's MS Society, the MS Society of Canada, the Wellcome Trust and the Medical Research Council, researchers at the University of Oxford and the University of British Columbia have established a direct relationship between a gene variant known as DRB1*1501 and vitamin D.
The research has been welcomed by Simon Gillespie, Chief Executive of the MS Society (UK).
"These remarkable results tie together leading theories about the environment, genes and MS but they are only part of the jigsaw," he said.
"This discovery opens up new avenues of MS research and future experiments will help put the pieces together."
While one in 1,000 people in the UK are likely to develop MS, this number rises to around one in 300 amongst those carrying a single copy of the variant and one in 100 of those carrying two copies.
The researchers found that proteins activated by vitamin D in the body bind to a particular DNA sequence lying next to the DRB1*1501 variant, in effect switching the gene on.
``In people with the DRB1 variant associated with MS, it seems that vitamin D may play a critical role,'' said co-author Dr Julian Knight. ``If too little of the vitamin is available, the gene may not function properly."
"We have known for a long time that genes and environment determine MS risk," said Professor George Ebers, University of Oxford.
"Here we show that the main environmental risk candidate - vitamin D - and the main gene region are directly linked and interact."
"Our study implies that taking vitamin D supplements during pregnancy and the early years may reduce the risk of a child developing MS in later life," said lead author Dr Sreeram Ramagopalan.
"Vitamin D is a safe and relatively cheap supplement with substantial potential health benefits. There is accumulating evidence that it can reduce the risk of developing cancer and offer protection from other autoimmune diseases."
Posts: 1155 | From Southeast | Registered: Oct 2005
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* Vitamin D plays an important role in activating the immune system, fostering the ``innate'' immune response, and controlling over-reaction of adaptive immunity, and as such may help control autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis, psoriasis and rheumatoid arthritis.
* Cathelicidin can profoundly boost the innate immune system, and could form the basis for new therapies to combat pathogenic infections.
* The regulation of cathelicidin by vitamin D, a unique biological pathway for the function of vitamin D that could help explain its multiple roles in proper immune function, is so important that it's only known to exist in two groups of animals - humans and non-human primates - and has been conserved in them through millions of years of evolution.
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sutherngrl
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Bugg interesting article about MS. Maybe the reason some of us have such a hard time getting rid of lyme is because we have that gene.
All I know is my LLMD is very excited about something new he has learned about D. I am going to ask more about it at my next appt.
Posts: 4035 | From Mississippi | Registered: Jul 2008
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Bugg
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Thanks, RPM2...very interesting..
Sutherngrl, you raise an interesting question....We don't have a history of MS in our family. However, we do have a history of autoimmune conditions....My grandmother had RA and my sister's overactive immune system rejected the fetus when she tried to get pregnant....(of course my autoimmune tests are normal like those of other lyme patients...not sure docs know what to test for in this instace.....)
Anyway, I've often wondered if some lyme patients have some sort of genetic autoimmune component that makes it more difficult for their immune systems to self-regulate after treating lyme with abx.....This might explain why some people seem to recover better than others from chronic lyme...
Posts: 1155 | From Southeast | Registered: Oct 2005
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posted
Make sure you are taking D3 cholecalciferol.. Not D2. D3 is what your body naturally makes when exposed to sun. D2 is plant based and not nearly as efficient.
I am not an md nor do I play one on tv..
But I can tell you from experience, my d level was at 18. I took 70k units of d3 per week for 3 months and my level went to 72. (Ideal is 50-100)
My mom's level was 22 and she took prescription D (d2) 50k units per month for 1 year and her level was... 22.
MD's can be very cautious in the treatment for fear of toxicity, you have to find a dr. that understands D.
My Chiropractor is the one who "hipped" me to D3 and lucky for me my MD understands D too.
I cant say that I feel any better or any different, but maybe there are long term benefits or maybe I'd be even worse than I am now. Not sure.
You really need to be tested to know for sure your levels.. That way a dosage can be tailored to your specific need.. Also, make sure you are tested after about 3 months. That is the amount of time your body needs for it to start kicking in.
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nefferdun
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The LLMD I saw told me twice to quit taking vitamin D but I am not doing it because I feel better on it. Readers Digest had an article about vitamin myths and it said the only vitamin that has been proven to be effective against disease and help fight and prevent cancer is vitamin D. They recommended everyone take only that vitamin.
-------------------- old joke: idiopathic means the patient is pathological and the the doctor is an idiot Posts: 4676 | From western Montana | Registered: Apr 2009
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posted
There has to be something more to maintaining adequate vitamin D levels in the body than just exposure to sunlight and supplementation in the winter months, because I spent all summer last year outside playing around in my garden, and my D levels, which I expected to be high, actually came back on the low side, even though I sported a tan that didn't even begin to fade until mid-winter.
This is the part that struck me...
"When a T cell is exposed to a foreign pathogen, it extends a signaling device or 'antenna' known as a vitamin D receptor, with which it searches for vitamin D," said Carsten Geisler of Copenhagen University's department of international health, immunology and microbiology, who led the study."
What could possibly be interfering with this signal?
I thought that was kind of interesting!
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sparkle7
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posted
Good article!
I wouldn't mind laying around in the sun naked for a couple of hours. You'd probably have to work up to it to prevent getting burned if you are caucasian...
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emla999/Lyme
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quote: Elizzza811 said:
There has to be something more to maintaining adequate vitamin D levels in the body than just exposure to sunlight and supplementation in the winter months, because I spent all summer last year outside playing around in my garden, and my D levels, which I expected to be high, actually came back on the low side, even though I sported a tan that didn't even begin to fade until mid-winter.
Yes, I agree.
It seems that some people have to take large amounts of Vitamin D3 before than can bring their Vitamin D3 levels up to the "normal" range.
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