The Unsung Hero of Pain Relief & Long Term Health: Vitamin D

As we trudge towards mud season and the bare branches herald the return of songbirds and sunshine, my mind has been stuck on the unsung hero of chronic pain and whole body health...who, it turns out, might be more elusive than you think. Vitamin D plays a huge role in pain management and disease prevention, and yet most of us are surprisingly lacking this important multitasking vitamin.

"Recent research has shown that Vitamin D, or lack of it, plays an extremely important role in the development of chronic pain" as well as the prevention of several chronic illnesses, says author Cindy Perlin in this article in The Alternative Pain Treatment Directory.

Vitamin D helps prevent cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis, cancer, cognitive impairment in older adults, diabetes, multiple sclerosis and plays an important role in gene expression throughout the body and lifetime, cellular function, healthy immunity, decreases cell death and damage that would lead to a concussion when taken after head trauma, and can decrease musculoskeletal aches and pains in the body. 

And yet, staggering numbers of Americans are Vitamin D deficient, Perlin says. 

"A study at the University of Minnesota of people with nonspecific musculoskeletal pain (pain without evidence of injury, disease, or anatomical or neurological defect) found that 93% of participants were deficient in vitamin D. Another study, this one including participants with nonspecific musculoskeletal pain from diverse age groups and ethnicities, found that 100% of African Americans, Hispanics, and Native Americans were vitamin D deficient. All subjects younger than 30 were also deficient, with 55% severely so and five patients so deficient that their vitamin D levels were undetectable." 

Many studies show a reduction in pain with Vitamin D supplementation, even when other pain management options have failed. But how can we get enough?

For those of us living in Vermont, there simply isn't enough sunshine to absorb enough Vitamin D, especially since it's important to wear sunscreen (which blocks the body's ability to make Vitamin D from sunshine), and food sources of Vitamin D sometimes require large servings of Vitamin D rich foods. And, to make matters more complicated, "Many drugs also block the synthesis of vitamin D or reduce absorption," Perlin explains, "including:

• some antacids 

• barbiturates 

• anticonvulsants 

• anti-rejection drugs 

• antiviral drugs 

• nicotine 

• blood thinners 

• cholesterol-lowering medication 

• steroids"

Therefore, many studies have shown supplementing with at least 50,000IU of Vitamin D daily (with loading doses over 100,000IU to start), and some suggest Vitamin D/K2 blends, as Vitamin K helps balance the Vitamin D and prevent any potential overdose...though it should be stated that given both the amount of widespread deficiency and prevalence of blockers, the benefits generally outweigh the risks (though K2 is also wonderful for heart health, so a D/K blend is always a great idea when available!). 

In short, Vitamin D is incredibly safe to use and highly valuable for pain management, disease prevention, and health optimization. And in our cloudy spring-reluctant little corner of the world, supplementation is surely the way to go.