Update: felt like shit, went to doctor. Not dying

[grace_mercy]

Original: https://www.reddit.com/r/fitness30plus/s/I0jllgvrbu

Fatigue for a year. Couldn’t get through a golf lesson without getting gassed. Went for a physical and got labs done. Everything was normal except for low vitamin D. Value was at least half of what it should be. Currently on 50,000iu 1x/week for two months.

Not going to run a marathon but I can walk up stairs without needing to sit down, so progress I guess. Crazy something so small can mess you up.

Get your physicals!

 

[cmw1994]

@grace_mercy Vitamin D deficiency is becoming more and more common. I recently read like 30 or 40% of the US population is deficient

 

[newshappy]

@cmw1994 Interesting that my medical plan stopped covering the test last year... ಠ_ಠ

 

[jimjam]

@newshappy It’s not covered in Canada unless you have a condition that leads to it, like osteoporosis.

 

[zikani]

@jimjam Honestly if you’re in Canada you should just assume you’re low.

 

[jimjam]

@zikani Oh I am. I’m on prescription 50,000IU once a week plus 4000 a day.

 

[zikani]

@jimjam I, a New Yorker, shall now cease to complain about my 2000 a day.

 

[jimjam]

@zikani It’s all good. We all have different needs

 

[grace_mercy]

@cmw1994 No idea why it got me. I was living in Florida up until May of last year and then moved to Georgia and probably spent even more time outdoors until about 3 months ago when it got cold.

 

[joseymiller]

@grace_mercy Thanks for sharing your experience. I think annual physicals with lab work are important as we age in order to see changes in health that may need to be addressed, especially if you have family history of health problems.

 

[boss121]

@joseymiller I went to my doctor and said 'I'm 35, everything seems to be OK up to this point, what can we do to benchmark me? I want to find out how my major systems are, what shape they're in, look at my bloods etc and see if there's any steps we can take to make sure I'm still good at 50'

She said, 'come back when there's something wrong'

So much for a proactive approach to health. 3 years later my health took a nosedive and I was diagnosed with a perfectly manageable common genetic condition via a simple blood test.

 

[joseymiller]

@boss121 Haha wow maybe you need to find a better doctor. Good on you for trying to be proactive about your health. Don’t let the disinterest of your doctor deter you from getting annual checkups.

 

[boss121]

@joseymiller Well at this point I have had so many full-body CT and MRI scans, X-rays, ultrasound imaging, blood panels and specialist tests that I have a very, very clear picture of my overall health!

£30,000 worth in the last 12 months in fact!

I have access to a private GP service now so things have become much easier.

But yeah, this was the NHS in England who don't want to spend a penny to save a pound.

 

[chole]

@grace_mercy Make sure you take magnesium and K with it. They help the body utilize D and Mg is stored in your bones so more difficult to see if you’re deficient. For some reason doctors are telling people this. Also be honest with yourself about your diet—are you eating enough fruits, vegetables, nutrition?

** Only 1 in 10 Adults Get Enough Fruits or Vegetables**

https://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpao/division-information/media-tools/adults-fruits-vegetables.html

Something is causing your D to be so low. Your body can only work with and be built out of what you give it. That low of a level hasn’t been properly maintaining your immune system, which is constantly fighting off free radicals that end up causing chronic diseases when not warded off IE cancers. Check r/[Biohackers] —someone with low level D like yours just posted w/very similar level a couple days ago.

“Magnesium is stored in the bones, cells, and tissues. Normally, only about 1% of total body magnesium is present in the liquid portion of blood, making it difficult to accurately measure total magnesium content from blood tests alone. However, this test is still useful for evaluating your magnesium status.”

https://www.testing.com/tests/magnesium/#:~:text=Normally%2C%20only%20about%201%25%20of,content%20from%20blood%20tests%20alone.

 

[grace_mercy]

@chole Yeah they didn’t tell me either but I read up on high dose vitamin d and began supplementing with magnesium. I also eat a lot of vitamin k rich food already. As for the rest of my nutrition, it could use some work. Admittedly, it’s been hard to keep up with it when I didn’t want to be active but I’m starting to break some of the bad habits from this past year.

As for why my levels are low, i dont know. I had reflux surgery 4 years ago and shortly after began having a bunch of GI issues; gallbladder, constipation, abdominal pain. Scopes from both ends are clear but I believe the change to my anatomy messed up things down the line. Doctor says it shouldn’t affect digestion but the timing seems suspect.

Since this is a fitness subreddit, my fitness goals are to get back into a daily workout routine and resume golf and tennis once the weather warms up some. Slowly of course.

 

[kylels]

@grace_mercy I had b12d and gut issues, I was consuming enough b12.

I’m just a pleb too and not a doctor but what I do know is the gut isn’t understood like we’d like it to be. I think in 20 years we will know heaps more but there’s people studying stuff like the gut microbiome who believe it’s like a second brain. These days I take a multivitamin, eat lots of superfoods and keep an eye on possible symptoms. Even checking your levels can’t do that much as the results can be skewed. Hope you feel better soon! Recovery can be very slow and tedious and it’s all about the little wins.

 

[chole]

@grace_mercy Good luck with getting to optimum health. You’ve already figured out step 1–you have to be your own advocate and that you’re in control of your health. People forget that doctors see hundreds of back to back patients, don’t know your diet and lifestyle (since most people lie), don’t know everything (it’s called practicing medicine) and that you know your body better than anyone else so keep doing things that make you feel good and well.

This article seems to agree with you:
https://www.health.harvard.edu/healthbeat/9-things-that-can-undermine-your-vitamin-d-level
-it seems if your gut is telling you that the GI issues played into it so you’re probably right—I’m not trying to be annoying but when my mom was dying she literally made a video to share on Facebook about being your own advocate—she had a bunch of weird labs, symptoms, a biopsy, then a rash on her opposite arm that multiple doctors told her were nothing…then diagnosed her with Stage IV breast cancer. She was 56 when she passed

 

[chico9999]

@grace_mercy Lack of sunlight maybe for low vitamin d. It's a problem in some places, I live in the UK and take a supplement in autumn/winter as we just don't get enough light to maintain our levels here.

 

[chole]

r/Biohackers hyperlink wasn’t working in my original comment

 

[sabby54]

@grace_mercy I use chewable vitamin d because every time I see the bottle I remember I haven’t had any today, and I can just pop one in my mouth without having to find a cup and water. Which means I’m more likely to stay on top of it.