Vitamin D and Lyme Disease

Vitamin D CouncilVitamin D Council NewsVitamin D Announcements13 October 2010Eugene Shippen, Doctor of Endocrinology, gave an excellent lecture on vitamin D and immunity in relation to Lyme Disease at a recent Lyme Disease Association Conference. The presentation was sponsored by Columbia University and is CME approved.


Dr. Shippen has kindly provided Vitamin D Council with a copy of his presentation so that we may share it with our readers (PDF format):

Vitamin D, Regulatory Hormone of Immunity and Inflammation — Implications in Chronic Infectious Diseases

21 September 2010Urgent — immediate response requested: Canadian healthcare policy on funding for vitamin D testingDear Colleagues,

I wish to alert you to the situation in Canada regarding Vitamin D testing and to ask for your support by way of comments sent to the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care (MOHLTC). Deadline is Sept. 26th.

The Canadian province of Ontario has solicited expert medical advice and is proposing to eliminate Vitamin D testing for many patients whose conditions may benefit by an assessment of Vitamin D sufficiency.

In June, Ontario's Health Technology Advisory Committee (OHTAC) concluded that the use of Vitamin D testing for the general population could not be justified based on current evidence. MOHLTC will be restricting Vitamin D testing as an insured service to Ontarians with the following conditions: Osteoporosis, Rickets, Osteopenia, Malabsorption Syndromes and Renal Disease, or Ontarians who are on medications that affect vitamin D metabolism. The impact of this will be to greatly limit access to a biomarker tool that has been documented to reduce the economic burden of other Vitamin D-sensitive diseases.

If this change occurs, a significant number of patients who may be at risk will not have access to Vitamin D testing. MOHLTC fails to provide medical evidence to support that by eliminating Vitamin D testing they will improve the quality or value of health care for those that are Vitamin D insufficient or deficient. Even in otherwise healthy populations, generalized supplementation guidelines may be oversimplified given anticipated patient-unique dose-response to Vitamin D supplementation. As you are aware, clinical studies have indicated that Vitamin D deficiency may be the root cause of a host of health complications.

Thank you,

John Cannell, MD

Vitamin D Council

27 August 2010In memory of one of the greatest contributors to human understanding of vitamin D...Vitamin D researcher and expert, Dr. Frank C. Garland, peacefully left our Earthly plane on Tuesday, August 17 at UCSD Thornton Hospital after a nearly year-long illness.

Vitamin D Council extends our deepest condolences to the family and friends of Dr. Garland.

Dr. Garland, along with brother Dr. Cedric Garland, were the first to make the connection between vitamin D deficiency and cancer, igniting the interest of the scientific community. Today, there is evidence of as many as 20 different cancers that are responsive to vitamin D and more may be found.

For his work in the area of vitamin D and cancer prevention, Dr. Garland received the Arnold-Rikli Prize for Advancement in the Field of Photobiology.

In 2006, the International Journal of Epidemiology re-published, in its original form, the 1980 article by the Garlands concerning vitamin D and cancer prevention entitled Do sunlight and vitamin D reduce the likelihood of colon cancer?, followed by a set of commentaries on the importance of this seminal paper.

Dr. Garland's legacy is that of an invaluable gift bestowed upon humanity, a gift that will positively impact the health of many future generations.

~ Vitamin D Council

23 June 2010Is Scientific American right about autism?A Scientific American article asks, "What if Vitamin D Deficiency is a Cause of Autism?" (1) How could vitamin D deficiency during pregnancy cause autism, a genetic disease? Indeed, five researchers at Harvard, led by Dr. Dennis Kinney, recently endorsed and modified the vitamin D theory of autism. (2)

Dr. Darryl Eyles, of the University of Queensland, added his name to growing list of scientists who agree that vitamin D deficiency plays an important role in autism. (3) Writing in Acta Paediatrica, arguably the most read pediatric journal in the world, Dr. Eyles praised the vitamin D theory of autism as being "parsimonious," with the animal studies he has conducted over the last decade.

For the last 15 years, geneticists have tried and failed to find a common structural genetic abnormality in autism. What they have found is evidence of genetic damage; the genetic code is not properly regulated in autism, with multiple genes not being expressed, probably due to an environmental injury. As Dr. Kinney reports, vitamin D's mechanism of action is protection of the genome with direct regulation more than 1,000 human genes.

If the gestational and early childhood vitamin D deficiency theory of autism is true, the tragedy is more poignant in that physicians could prevent the disease with adequate daily doses of vitamin D during pregnancy and early childhood. Just as important, vitamin D's mechanism of action implies a treatment effect in autistic children.

This month, Acta Paediatrica, published yet another article on vitamin D and autism. This paper is open access; the pdf is free to download. (4) In the paper, Dr. Cannell reviews the evidence of vitamin D's involvement in autism, including evidence published after his original 2007 paper. (5)

1.Glaser G. What If Vitamin D Deficiency Is a Cause of Autism? Sci Amer April 24, 2009.

2.Kinney DK, Barch DH, Chayka B, Napoleon S, Munir KM. Environmental risk factors for autism: do they help cause de novo genetic mutations that contribute to the disorder? Med Hypotheses 2010;74:102–6.

3.Eyles DW. Vitamin D and Autism, Does skin colour modify risk? Acta Paediatr 2010 Mar 8.

4.Cannell JJ. On the Aetiology of Autism. Acta Paediatrica. ISSN 0803-5253, May 2010.

5.Cannell JJ. Autism and Vitamin D. Med Hypotheses 2008;70(4):750–9. Epub 2007 Oct 24.

22 June 2010Statement regarding recent studies showing no beneficial effect of vitamin D on cancer riskNews article

Studies

The recent set of studies by the Cohort Consortium Vitamin D Pooling Project of Rarer Cancers published in the American Journal of Epidemiology online June 18 found virtually no effect of prediagnostic serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] levels on affecting incidence for seven types of cancer: endometrial, esophageal, gastric, kidney, ovarian, and pancreatic cancer and , non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. These results are puzzling as numerous studies report reduced risk of breast and colorectal cancer with higher serum 25(OH)D levels. Also, numerous ecological studies found lower cancer incidence and mortality rates for all of these cancers. What could explain the finding of no benefit?

One possibility is that a single serum 25(OH)D level measurement does not represent the level over the course of time when it would affect cancer incidence. Several studies find that long-term ultraviolet B (UVB) doses reduce the risk of cancer. A randomized controlled trial of vitamin D and calcium supplementation found a significant benefit of vitamin D between the ends of the first and fourth years of the study.

Another possibility is that serum 25(OH)D levels changed over the course of the studies; the median follow-up times ranged from 1.7 to 10.8 years. Serum 25(OH)D levels have fallen in Australia, the UK, and the US as the result of publicity on the risk of skin cancer and melanoma from sun exposure and the need to protect oneself from the harmful UV rays. On the other hand, vitamin D supplement use has increased greatly recently due to the widespread publicity of the benefits of vitamin D in reducing the risk of cancer and other diseases.

Thus, these studies should be taken with a grain of salt.

Dr. William Grant

Vitamin D Council

14 June 2010A big "Thank You!" to our supporters...A sincere thanks to all of you who so readily and enthusiastically took action to show us your support. Your donations are what make it possible for us to continue working towards a healthier future for humanity by bringing the truth about vitamin D to the world.

But we still have a long way to go — your continued support will hopefully allow us to take on the exciting projects and campaigns we have planned.

3 June 2010Vitamin D Council's future at risk — please helpBecause we are a nonprofit, the support of the public is crucial to the Vitamin D Council's existence...

The number of donations we receive every year from the public is few and, as of this year, has decreased considerably. The truth is, if it were not for our sponsors, the Vitamin D Council would not still be here. The reality of so few donations has had its challenges, none more so than the limitations imposed upon what we are able to set out to accomplish. Now, that reality stands to bring its greatest challenge yet — it could place our very existence at risk.

Incorporated as a nonprofit, tax-exempt 501(c)(e) educational corporation in the State of California, the Vitamin D Council is required by the IRS to receive a certain percentage of our funding from many small donations. We are not meeting that requirement and, unless the number of donations received by the Vitamin D Council increases, the IRS could decide to revoke our nonprofit, tax-exempt status. If this were to occur, it is most likely that we would no longer be able to continue our mission.

To all our fans who appreciate the efforts of Dr. Cannell, to those who value the information provided by the Vitamin D Council, and to those who would like to keep us around awhile longer, we ask for your help in the form of a donation.

The vitamin D movement has come far, however, there's still a long way to go. The Vitamin D Council has been a prominent proponent in that movement and would be thankful for the opportunity to continue to bring the truth of the wonders of vitamin D to all of humanity. Our greatest accomplishments have yet to happen, let us see what we can do...

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