RE: Vitamin D requirements ... Vit D/B12 blood tests

July 14, 2007

Hello Elchanan,

Well, well, well - what a surprise to get your reply after four

months! That's quite a backlog. <g> Actually, your message came at

a good time. I just got my follow-up Vitamin D blood testing results

this week.

Last March, I had a Vitamin D test done - that I call my " winter "

level - and it was low at 12 ng/ml . Reference range for the lab was

20-100.

I had the test repeated last week to see what my " summer " level would

be in comparison. For the past two months, I've been getting out in

the sun every day - an hour or more every day during the week and

several hours on the weekends gardening, including some during the

peak hours of 10 am to 2 pm. I'm fair-skinned and don't use a

suncreen. I have a nice tan now. So I expected my current Vitamin

D level to be comparatively high.

The results showed 25 mg/ml. Reference range given by this lab was

25-80. So while it was considered within the optimal level (barely),

it was much lower than I would have thought, given my time in the sun.

Since I was having my blood drawn, I also requested a B12 test. The

result of that also surprised me. It was rather low at 134 pg/ml.

Reference range by the lab was 180-914. I had been taking a mini-

multi tablet once per week that contained 6.0 mcg of B12. Thought

that would be sufficient since supposedly the body doesn't require

very much.

So my doc wanted me to go on injections of B12. I talked him into

letting me take an oral supplement (1000 mcg) per day and then be

retested in three months. I found a sublingual tablet form of B12

that is supposed to maximize absorption. We'll see.

Elchanan, have you ever had Vitamin D and B12 blood testing? If so,

could you post the results, please? It'd be interesting to see where

your levels are. If not, how about getting yourself tested? You'd

be doing us all a great service.

You said, " More important, whereas ANY form of daylight is

constructive. "

That may be true in some respects, but I don't think sun exposure in

the northern latitudes during a cold, blustery winter season with

many overcast days will allow the body to manufacture sufficient

Vitamin D.

As I recall, you reside on the west coast. How much sun exposure do

you get every day? And is that consistent throughout the year?

Jan

On Jul 11, 2007, at 6:33 PM, Elchanan wrote:

> Hi Jan,

>

> Backlog cleanup continues, your turn!

>

> This is a common question ... how can people who live far from the

> equator

> get enough sunshine so that their systems manufacture sufficient

> vitamin D?

>

> Fortunately, vitamin D is fat soluble, and we can store a decent

> supply.

> More important, whereas ANY form of daylight is constructive. Even

> in the

> tropics, our relatives (humans who live there, plus anthropoid

> primates)

> spend the middle portion of the day more in the shade than in the

> sun. Just

> get as much daylight as you can ... that's the best you can do. And

> no, it

> won't rise to the level of someone living in the tropics and who

> loves the

> outdoors.

>

> I strongly recommend a midwinter vacation to someplace sunny and warm!

> That'll tune you up!

>

> Best,

> Elchanan

> _____

July 14, 2007

Private response sent.

Elchanan

_____

rawfood [rawfood ] On Behalf Of

Jan

Saturday, July 14, 2007 8:32 AM

rawfood

Re: [Raw Food] Vitamin D requirements ... Vit D/B12 blood tests

Hello Elchanan,

Well, well, well - what a surprise to get your reply after four

months! That's quite a backlog. <g> Actually, your message came at

a good time. I just got my follow-up Vitamin D blood testing results

this week.

<<< snip >>>

July 16, 2007

Jan are you 100% raw and/or 100% vegetarian? no animal products?

And for how long have you eaten this way?

Belinda

>

> Hello Elchanan,

>

> Well, well, well - what a surprise to get your reply after four

> months! That's quite a backlog. <g> Actually, your message came

at

> a good time. I just got my follow-up Vitamin D blood testing

results

> this week.

>

> Last March, I had a Vitamin D test done - that I call my " winter "

> level - and it was low at 12 ng/ml . Reference range for the lab

was

> 20-100.

>

> I had the test repeated last week to see what my " summer " level

would

> be in comparison. For the past two months, I've been getting out

in

> the sun every day - an hour or more every day during the week and

> several hours on the weekends gardening, including some during the

> peak hours of 10 am to 2 pm. I'm fair-skinned and don't use a

> suncreen. I have a nice tan now. So I expected my current

Vitamin

> D level to be comparatively high.

>

> The results showed 25 mg/ml. Reference range given by this lab

was

> 25-80. So while it was considered within the optimal level

(barely),

> it was much lower than I would have thought, given my time in the

sun.

>

> Since I was having my blood drawn, I also requested a B12 test.

The

> result of that also surprised me. It was rather low at 134

pg/ml.

> Reference range by the lab was 180-914. I had been taking a mini-

> multi tablet once per week that contained 6.0 mcg of B12. Thought

> that would be sufficient since supposedly the body doesn't require

> very much.

>

> So my doc wanted me to go on injections of B12. I talked him into

> letting me take an oral supplement (1000 mcg) per day and then be

> retested in three months. I found a sublingual tablet form of B12

> that is supposed to maximize absorption. We'll see.

>

> Elchanan, have you ever had Vitamin D and B12 blood testing? If

so,

> could you post the results, please? It'd be interesting to see

where

> your levels are. If not, how about getting yourself tested?

You'd

> be doing us all a great service.

>

> You said, " More important, whereas ANY form of daylight is

> constructive. "

>

> That may be true in some respects, but I don't think sun exposure

in

> the northern latitudes during a cold, blustery winter season with

> many overcast days will allow the body to manufacture sufficient

> Vitamin D.

>

> As I recall, you reside on the west coast. How much sun exposure

do

> you get every day? And is that consistent throughout the year?

>

> Jan

>

> On Jul 11, 2007, at 6:33 PM, Elchanan wrote:

>

> > Hi Jan,

> >

> > Backlog cleanup continues, your turn!

> >

> > This is a common question ... how can people who live far from

the

> > equator

> > get enough sunshine so that their systems manufacture sufficient

> > vitamin D?

> >

> > Fortunately, vitamin D is fat soluble, and we can store a decent

> > supply.

> > More important, whereas ANY form of daylight is constructive.

Even

> > in the

> > tropics, our relatives (humans who live there, plus anthropoid

> > primates)

> > spend the middle portion of the day more in the shade than in

the

> > sun. Just

> > get as much daylight as you can ... that's the best you can do.

And

> > no, it

> > won't rise to the level of someone living in the tropics and who

> > loves the

> > outdoors.

> >

> > I strongly recommend a midwinter vacation to someplace sunny and

warm!

> > That'll tune you up!

> >

> > Best,

> > Elchanan

> > _____

>

July 16, 2007

I had a blood test including B12 & Vit D a few months ago - I

thought it was interesting after my only being raw for 1 year that

my results were all with a couple exceptions within 'acceptable

range' (accepted by who anyway & why should we care... eh). I did

some research prior to that time and found that sea vegetables (yes,

my old beloved nori)tend to leach the B12 from our system. My

daughter has 3 times the acceptable VitD - and she's an activity

wimp, go figure? My conclusions are don't eat seaweed/sea veggies

too often, excersize often (my low thing was the DHEA or happiness,

libito, concentration thing) and get outside as much as you can in

Maine or Virginia or NYC or those beautiful coveted tropical

places... it's just the healthiest thing to do... oh ya, and of

course eat your fruit first and lots of it, veggies last and once in

a while have some avocado, coconut, nuts or seeds.

enjoy living!

Simply,

Lesa

rawfood , " Belinda " <MistyBlueTN wrote:

>

> Jan are you 100% raw and/or 100% vegetarian? no animal products?

>

> And for how long have you eaten this way?

>

> Belinda

>

> >

> > Hello Elchanan,

> >

> > Well, well, well - what a surprise to get your reply after four

> > months! That's quite a backlog. <g> Actually, your message

came

> at

> > a good time. I just got my follow-up Vitamin D blood testing

> results

> > this week.

> >

> > Last March, I had a Vitamin D test done - that I call

my " winter "

> > level - and it was low at 12 ng/ml . Reference range for the lab

> was

> > 20-100.

> >

> > I had the test repeated last week to see what my " summer " level

> would

> > be in comparison. For the past two months, I've been getting out

> in

> > the sun every day - an hour or more every day during the week

and

> > several hours on the weekends gardening, including some during

the

> > peak hours of 10 am to 2 pm. I'm fair-skinned and don't use a

> > suncreen. I have a nice tan now. So I expected my current

> Vitamin

> > D level to be comparatively high.

> >

> > The results showed 25 mg/ml. Reference range given by this lab

> was

> > 25-80. So while it was considered within the optimal level

> (barely),

> > it was much lower than I would have thought, given my time in

the

> sun.

> >

> > Since I was having my blood drawn, I also requested a B12 test.

> The

> > result of that also surprised me. It was rather low at 134

> pg/ml.

> > Reference range by the lab was 180-914. I had been taking a

mini-

> > multi tablet once per week that contained 6.0 mcg of B12.

Thought

> > that would be sufficient since supposedly the body doesn't

require

> > very much.

> >

> > So my doc wanted me to go on injections of B12. I talked him

into

> > letting me take an oral supplement (1000 mcg) per day and then

be

> > retested in three months. I found a sublingual tablet form of

B12

> > that is supposed to maximize absorption. We'll see.

> >

> > Elchanan, have you ever had Vitamin D and B12 blood testing? If

> so,

> > could you post the results, please? It'd be interesting to see

> where

> > your levels are. If not, how about getting yourself tested?

> You'd

> > be doing us all a great service.

> >

> > You said, " More important, whereas ANY form of daylight is

> > constructive. "

> >

> > That may be true in some respects, but I don't think sun

exposure

> in

> > the northern latitudes during a cold, blustery winter season

with

> > many overcast days will allow the body to manufacture

sufficient

> > Vitamin D.

> >

> > As I recall, you reside on the west coast. How much sun

exposure

> do

> > you get every day? And is that consistent throughout the year?

> >

> > Jan

> >

> > On Jul 11, 2007, at 6:33 PM, Elchanan wrote:

> >

> > > Hi Jan,

> > >

> > > Backlog cleanup continues, your turn!

> > >

> > > This is a common question ... how can people who live far from

> the

> > > equator

> > > get enough sunshine so that their systems manufacture

sufficient

> > > vitamin D?

> > >

> > > Fortunately, vitamin D is fat soluble, and we can store a

decent

> > > supply.

> > > More important, whereas ANY form of daylight is constructive.

> Even

> > > in the

> > > tropics, our relatives (humans who live there, plus

anthropoid

> > > primates)

> > > spend the middle portion of the day more in the shade than in

> the

> > > sun. Just

> > > get as much daylight as you can ... that's the best you can

do.

> And

> > > no, it

> > > won't rise to the level of someone living in the tropics and

who

> > > loves the

> > > outdoors.

> > >

> > > I strongly recommend a midwinter vacation to someplace sunny

and

> warm!

> > > That'll tune you up!

> > >

> > > Best,

> > > Elchanan

> > > _____

> >

>

July 17, 2007

Lesa,

That's good news about your blood tests. Thanks for sharing. It's

not too surprising that your Vitamin D level would be " acceptable "

from a few months ago since it's summertime in the areas you

mentioned and you can get sufficient sun exposure. As I had

reported, my level was quite low in the winter but showed a rise when

tested recently in the summer.

What do you think is your source of B12 that would account for the

adequate blood test results? It can't be merely that you don't eat

sea vegetables. Assuming your research is accurate, then you'd have

to have B12 in your system in order for it to be leached out. Do you

take supplements? Or eat any raw animal products?

By the way, I'm sure the reference ranges given by the labs are based

upon people's averages without regard to diet or lifestyle. And

various items of mainstream processed food, like milk and cereal, are

often fortified with D and B12. So it could be that the lab's ranges

are high and not necessarily in a desirable range. That's why I'd

like to compare my results with people on this list who eat raw vegan

without supplements.

Belinda, to answer your questions: I eat predominately raw foods

(mainly lots of fruits and salad greens), but not exclusively. I've

been vegetarian for many years and do not eat animal products (and no

sea vegetables).

Jan

On Jul 16, 2007, at 6:23 PM, Lesa wrote:

> I had a blood test including B12 & Vit D a few months ago - I

> thought it was interesting after my only being raw for 1 year that

> my results were all with a couple exceptions within 'acceptable

> range' (accepted by who anyway & why should we care... eh). I did

> some research prior to that time and found that sea vegetables

> (yes, my old beloved nori)tend to leach the B12 from our system.

> My daughter has 3 times the acceptable VitD - and she's an

> activity wimp, go figure? My conclusions are don't eat seaweed/

> sea veggies too often, excersize often (my low thing was the DHEA

> or happiness, libito, concentration thing) and get outside as much

> as you can in Maine or Virginia or NYC or those beautiful coveted

> tropical places... it's just the healthiest thing to do... oh ya,

> and of course eat your fruit first and lots of it, veggies last

> and once in a while have some avocado, coconut, nuts or seeds.

>

> enjoy living!

> Simply,

> Lesa

>

> rawfood , " Belinda " <MistyBlueTN wrote:

>>

>> Jan are you 100% raw and/or 100% vegetarian? no animal products?

>>

>> And for how long have you eaten this way?

>>

>> Belinda

July 18, 2007

As I understand it, we get B12 from the foods we eat, our healthy

lifestyle etc etc... I don't know my source of B12 - well, fruits

and veggies is all I eat so I have to be getting it from that. I

seldom eat seeds, nuts or coconut, hardly ever eat seaweed/veggies

and NEVER suppliments or medications or stimulants ... I have been

eating VERY healthy for over a year now. In the past year since I

went raw I have eaten very lightly steamed broccoli with shrimp (6

pieces) 3 times, I had 2 glasses of wine on my birthday (first time

in 3 yrs) and have had a prepared fresh salsa about 1ce a month.

These are things I decided in the moment to allow, enjoy and move

past. I won't be eating the broccoli and shrimp again. The wine,

I'm not sure if I would or wouldn't have a glass on a special

occasion again. The salsa, I'm working to eliminate completely, I

use it for flavoring when I'm wanting to be less different from

others. I weighed 270#s a year ago and I've had to learn to be a

bit more gentle with myself and a bit less of a perfectionist as I

remember that mistakes are just lessons with their work clothes

on... I'm a relative newbie to the whole raw lifestyle, though I

had touched base with Natural Hygine 30 years ago and have a pretty

good nutritional foundation. I weigh in today at 137# give or take,

I am happy with my path and glad to share. Hope that answers your

questions, it's the best I can do in this moment.

Simply,

Lesa

rawfood , Jan <jantese wrote:

>

> Lesa,

> That's good news about your blood tests. Thanks for sharing.

It's

> not too surprising that your Vitamin D level would

be " acceptable "

> from a few months ago since it's summertime in the areas you

> mentioned and you can get sufficient sun exposure. As I had

> reported, my level was quite low in the winter but showed a rise

when

> tested recently in the summer.

>

> What do you think is your source of B12 that would account for

the

> adequate blood test results? It can't be merely that you don't

eat

> sea vegetables. Assuming your research is accurate, then you'd

have

> to have B12 in your system in order for it to be leached out. Do

you

> take supplements? Or eat any raw animal products?

>

> By the way, I'm sure the reference ranges given by the labs are

based

> upon people's averages without regard to diet or lifestyle. And

> various items of mainstream processed food, like milk and cereal,

are

> often fortified with D and B12. So it could be that the lab's

ranges

> are high and not necessarily in a desirable range. That's why

I'd

> like to compare my results with people on this list who eat raw

vegan

> without supplements.

>

> Belinda, to answer your questions: I eat predominately raw foods

> (mainly lots of fruits and salad greens), but not exclusively.

I've

> been vegetarian for many years and do not eat animal products (and

no

> sea vegetables).

>

> Jan

>

> On Jul 16, 2007, at 6:23 PM, Lesa wrote:

>

> > I had a blood test including B12 & Vit D a few months ago - I

> > thought it was interesting after my only being raw for 1 year

that

> > my results were all with a couple exceptions

within 'acceptable

> > range' (accepted by who anyway & why should we care... eh). I

did

> > some research prior to that time and found that sea vegetables

> > (yes, my old beloved nori)tend to leach the B12 from our

system.

> > My daughter has 3 times the acceptable VitD - and she's an

> > activity wimp, go figure? My conclusions are don't eat

seaweed/

> > sea veggies too often, excersize often (my low thing was the

DHEA

> > or happiness, libito, concentration thing) and get outside as

much

> > as you can in Maine or Virginia or NYC or those beautiful

coveted

> > tropical places... it's just the healthiest thing to do... oh

ya,

> > and of course eat your fruit first and lots of it, veggies

last

> > and once in a while have some avocado, coconut, nuts or seeds.

> >

> > enjoy living!

> > Simply,

> > Lesa

> >

> > rawfood , " Belinda " <MistyBlueTN@> wrote:

> >>

> >> Jan are you 100% raw and/or 100% vegetarian? no animal

products?

> >>

> >> And for how long have you eaten this way?

> >>

> >> Belinda

>

July 18, 2007

Lesa,

I am very impressed with your journey. I am at the begining of my journey and

hope to make it for the long haul.

I am curious why you would want to eliminate salsa. What is wrong with salsa?

I am curious because I love salsa.

There is so much to learn.

Jeannie

your time is the most cherished gift of all, tomorrow is promised to no one.

Lesa <ljbn

rawfood

Tuesday, July 17, 2007 8:20:21 PM