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Tag: Vitamin D

  • How to care for your aging skin

    How to care for your aging skin

    Your skin is the largest organ in your body. As you age, though you might not become thin-skinned, your skin will inevitably thin. How should you care for your agin skin this summer?

    Why your skin is so important: You need your skin for all sorts of reasons. It protects all your organs so that harmful microbes don’t infect you. It lets you know when something you touch is hot or cold. It keeps your temperature stable.

    Your skin also ensures your body’s electrolytes are in balance. The electrolytes, such as magnesium, potassium, sodium and calcium are minerals in your blood. They help ensure your body has the water it needs and your muscles work.

    And, when exposed to the sun, your skin makes vitamin D.

    What happens to your skin as you age: But as you age, your skin loses its oils and fat. It becomes less elastic. Your skin does not rejuvenate at the same rate it once did.

    What you can do for your skin:

    • Make sure you drink a lot of fluids after sweating to replace electrolytes.
    • Don’t expose your skin to too much sun.
    • Use a broad-spectrum sunscreen with a sun protection factor of 15 or more to protect your skin against the sun’s UVA and UVB rays.
    • Moisturize your skin daily. Try using retinol, an antioxidant, to keep free radicals in your skin from breaking down skin cells. Creams with alpha, beta and poly hydroxy acids can also help remove dead skin cells and cause better skin to grow.
    • Use a humidifier to keep your skin from drying out at night.

    Beware of the products you use on your skin. Some are far better than others.

    Check moles, birthmarks and other skin parts. Do you have marks that are:

    • Asymmetric–have different or irregular borders?
    • Changing color or multiple colors?
    • Bigger than a pencil eraser?
    • Changing size or shape over time?

    If so, it could be skin cancer, which comes from too much exposure to the sun, as well as tanning booths. Talk to your doctor.

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  • Yes, you need vitamin D, but not from supplements

    Yes, you need vitamin D, but not from supplements

    Last year, a large study came out on vitamin D and omega-3 fatty acid supplements, supporting earlier findings that routine use of these supplements has little if any value for healthy people. Now, Elissa Welle reports for Stat News on a new study further finding that vitamin D supplements do not make for healthy bones or prevent bone fractures in older age.  You should aim to get your vitamin D from the sun, fatty acids and mushrooms.

    The new New England Journal of Medicine study dives deep into whether vitamin D supplements offer any value against bone fractures to specific subpopulations of mid-life and older adults. They found that vitamin D supplements did nothing to reduce the number of bone fractures. No one, whether from different race and ethnic groups, of different weights and body types, or of different ages, appeared to have any bone benefits from taking vitamin D supplements.

    Vitamin D supplements alone are not going to help with bone health.  You should try to get your vitamin D naturally, through exposure to sunlight and eating fatty fish and mushrooms. The VITAL study, released last year, found that 2,000 IU of vitamin D daily did not reduce people’s risk of bone fracture over five years. Among the 1,551 who took either a vitamin D supplement or a placebo, fracture rates were similar.

    The VITAL study also found that taking vitamin D supplements offered no benefit in reducing your risk of cancer and heart disease. Taking vitamin D supplements is likely a waste of money.

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  • New study finds no benefits to Vitamin D and omega-3 fatty acid supplements

    New study finds no benefits to Vitamin D and omega-3 fatty acid supplements

    A new study that looks at the value of taking vitamin D and omega-3 fatty acid supplements supports earlier findings that routine use of these supplements has little if any value for healthy people. You should try to get your vitamin D naturally, such as through exposure to sunlight and eating fatty fish and mushrooms

    Specifically, this VITAL study found that people who took 2,000 IU of vitamin D, often in addition to other supplements, did not reduce their risk of bone fracture over five years. Among the 1,551 who took either a vitamin D supplement or a placebo, the likelihood of getting a bone fracture were about equal. In other words, fracture rates were similar.

    The study also looked at omega-3 supplements and whether they helped with people’s bone health and physical abilities and found no benefit whatsoever. People taking the omega-3 supplement and people taking the placebo had similar bone mineral density, “bone strength, cortical thickness, and polar stress strength.” The omega-3 supplement also did not appear to affect people’s physical abilities. including the strength of people’s grip, the speed at which they walked and their balance, among other abilities.

    This study found no benefits of taking these supplements on reducing your risk of cancer and heart disease.

    In short this study finds no important preventive effects from vitamin D and omega-3 supplements. Put differently, taking these supplements is likely a waste of money.

    The study authors said they could not generalize, based on the study, to older adults.

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  • How best to get vitamin D in your diet?

    How best to get vitamin D in your diet?

    Are you taking vitamin D supplements? If so, you might be better off not taking them. There are often other better and less costly ways for you to keep your bones healthy, such as through exercise and sun exposure.

    First things first, there is no good evidence to suggest that vitamin D helps to ward off Covid-19. That said, vitamin D has been found to reduce your likelihood of a respiratory infection because it leads to several antiviral responses. Vitamin D helps your lung cells to combat viruses and bacteria.

    Vitamin D also reduces your risk of inflammation and keeps your immune system from acting up in unhelpful ways. For example, your COVID-19 symptoms could be more grave if your body’s immune system responds too much to the virus and harms tissues that benefit you.

    How to get vitamin D through sun exposure: All you need to do is be in the sun without sunscreen–your face, your arms, your legs, your back–for 15-20 minutes a day. That said, keep in mind that older adults do not make as much vitamin D from sun exposure as younger adults.

    How to get vitamin D through healthy eating: Generally, milk is fortified with vitamin D, as are many fruit juices and cereals. You can also get your vitamin D from fatty fish, mushrooms and eggs. Smoking reduces your ability to create vitamin D.

    How to get vitamin D through exercise: Active adults are more likely to have higher blood levels of vitamin D.

    If you have enough vitamin D in your system, there is not a single study showing that you benefit from taking a vitamin D supplement. A recent study of 25,000 people with appropriate blood levels of vitamin D published in the New England Journal of Medicine found that people who took 2,000 IU of vitamin D every day did not reduce their risk of cancer or heart disease as compared to people who took nothing.

    And, a 2018 meta-analysis of 81 studies published in The Lancet suggests that taking vitamin D supplements to increase your level of vitamin D might not be beneficial. The analysis did not find that vitamin D helped prevent falls and fractures in older adults.

    One meta-analysis of 25 studies, involving 11,000 people, of the effects of vitamin D on respiratory infections found that taking a vitamin D supplement of 800 IU to 2,000 IU every day lowered your odds of getting at least one respiratory infection. People who had the least amount of vitamin D in their blood benefited most from taking a supplement.

    Other studies show that vitamin D keeps your bones from weakening. And, still others show that without enough vitamin D, you could be at greater risk of cancer, heart disease and stroke. But, should you take vitamin D supplements? Talk to your doctor. The FDA does not oversee supplements, so they can contain dangerous ingredients and otherwise be harmful.

    For sure, there is evidence that excessive amounts of vitamin D–4,000-10,000 IU’s a day–reduces people’s bone density.

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  • How to strengthen your immune system

    How to strengthen your immune system

    Last week, I wrote about the risks of taking supplements as a way to strengthen your immune system and protect yourself against COVID-19. There is no silver bullet. That said, there are ways to build up your bodies’ defenses against the novel coronavirus and other viruses and bacteria. As you might expect, the best ways are through exercise, good nutrition, sleep and calm. 

    Our bodies are equipped with cells, cell products, tissues and organs that serve as a defense against infection. These immune systems develop based on both the environments in which we grow up and how we treat our bodies. Diet, exercise, sleep, stress all contribute to the functioning of our immune systems. 

    Reducing your stress level, sleeping well, eating well, having enough vitamin D in your system, keeping your alcohol consumption down, and exercising all help to keep your body armed against respiratory and other illnesses.

    • Stress: Studies show that your immune system works best when you are not feeling stress. One study found that people who said that they had less stress in their lives were not as likely to catch a cold after being exposed to the cold virus with nose drops as people who felt more stress. A second study found that marital conflict weakened people’s immune systems. The study mildly wounded the arms of married couples. Couples who then argued with each other tended to have wounds that took longer to heal than couples who exhibited less anger. Techniques for managing stress and strengthening your immune system, include meditation, talk therapy, and controlled breathing.
    • Sleep: Studies show that people who sleep more than seven hours a night are better at fighting off infection than people who sleep less than six hours. In one study conducted at UC San Francisco, people who slept less were more than four times as likely to get sick after being exposed to a cold virus than people who slept more. In fact, people who slept less than five hours were more likely to get sick than people who slept six hours.
    • Eat a balanced diet. Eating a healthy balanced diet helps keep your body functioning well. As much as possible, get your nutrition from unprocessed foods rich in vitamins, minerals and fibers, not from supplements. Whole fruits are better than fruit juice. In particular, blueberries, apples and grapes have been associated with lower risk of type 2 diabetes. And, try to minimize eating foods and drinks with saturated fats, added sugar, high sodium content and that are high in calories. But, still eat modest amounts of foods with unsaturated fats, such as olive oil, nuts, and avocados.
    • Vitamin D: Vitamin D produces proteins that kill viruses and bacterial infections. If you eat fatty fish, such as salmon, tuna or mackerel, drink milk with vitamin D, eat cheese and mushrooms, or spend time in the sun, you should have a good vitamin D level.
    • Alcohol: Studies show that if you drink too much, you can compromise your immune system and are more likely to suffer from pneumonia and other respiratory illnesses. To live longer, a recent study published in  the Lancet finds that you should not drink more than five drinks a week. People who drank more than five alcoholic drinks a week had a higher risk of stroke, coronary disease, heart failure and death than people who drank five or fewer alcoholic drinks.
    • Exercise: To stay healthy, sit less and exercise. Two and a half hours a week of physical activity is important for a longer life and to deter all kinds of chronic conditions.  You should spend at least 20 minutes a day increasing your heart rate. That benefits your heart, your mind, your muscle, your skin and more. Also, avoid sitting too much. Sitting can increase your likelihood of heart disease, diabetes, and obesity. It can lead to high blood pressure, high blood sugar, and extra body fat around the waist. And, it can hurt your cholesterol.

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  • Exercise may be your best bet for bone health, not calcium or vitamin D supplements

    Exercise may be your best bet for bone health, not calcium or vitamin D supplements

    Calcium helps keep your bones strong and healthy. So, it is wise to incorporate foods with calcium into your daily diet. If you’re not getting enough calcium, exercise may be your best bet for bone health; the evidence is weak that calcium supplements will benefit you.

    The National Institutes of Health recommends eating foods rich in calcium. People over 50 need between 1,200 mg and 2,000 mg of calcium every day. You can get your daily dose of calcium from milk, cheese, yogurt, soybeans and dark, leafy vegetables such as kale or broccoli.

    Calcium supplements are another matter. Increasing evidence suggests that all those years of advice to take calcium supplements for bone health may be turning into one of those reversals of medical advice that seems to come all too frequently.

    Since 2002, the bulk of the evidence indicates that calcium supplements actually don’t decrease fracture risk and may actually do harm, such as increase the risks of kidney stones, heart attacks, prostate cancer, and even stroke. Nor does evidence indicate that eating more foods with calcium reduces fracture risk.

    That said, the Mayo Clinic suggests that if you are a vegan, lactose intolerant, have osteoporosis, or consume a lot of food with protein or sodium, you should talk to your doctor about whether you should take a calcium supplement.

    Vitamin D supplements also seem to be over-rated as far as bone health, as supplements do not lower fracture risk for those living in the community. For those living in nursing homes on the other hand, they do lower the risk of fractures from falls.

    The best bet to promote bone health for those living in the community? According to the evidence: Exercise. Weight-bearing exercises, such as walking, climbing stairs and dancing, are most helpful. These exercises help create new bone tissue, strengthening your bones.

    Exercise has a positive effect on preventing fractures, though in actual controlled studies, the average effect was small. The Surgeon General recommends an exercise goal of 30 minutes a day.

    This post was originally published on July 30, 2015.

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  • Seven lifestyle changes for managing rheumatoid arthritis

    Seven lifestyle changes for managing rheumatoid arthritis

    Jeannette Moninger writes for Medshadow.org on seven lifestyle changes for managing rheumatoid arthritis. I excerpt her article below. To learn more about rheumatoid arthritis on JustCare, click here. You can read Moninger’s full post on Medshadow.org here.

    1. Stay Active

    Exercising may be the last thing you want to do when your joints ache, yet research shows that physical activity alleviates joint pain and stiffness, increases joint mobility, strengthens muscles and improves mental health. “Water exercises and those that improve flexibility like yoga and tai chi are particularly good for achy joints,” says Dr. Wei.. .. It’s natural to experience some muscle soreness after a workout. But increased joint pain may be a sign that you’re exercising too hard or too much and need to ease up….

    A 2016 meta-analysis of nine randomized controlled trials and one cohort were reviewed to determine the impact of exercise on arthritic symptoms of patients with JIA. Exercises included aquatic, strengthening, proprioceptive, aerobic, and pilates. Based on descriptive summaries on activity capacity, body function, pain, muscle strength, and quality of life, 95% of patients in the trials showed significant improvement…

    2. Maintain a Healthy Weight

    Every pound of excess weight puts about four extra pounds of pressure on joints. This extra pressure worsens aches and pains. Plus, fat tissue spurs chronic inflammation and exacerbates existing swelling and tenderness in arthritic joints. A 2017 study in the British Medical Journal found that women with body mass index values of 25 or higher have a 35% greater risk of getting RA.

    3. Eat a Balanced Diet

    According to Harvard Health Publishing, certain foods have been shown to fight inflammation, strengthen bones and boost the immune system. These include foods rich in inflammatory-fighting omega-3 fatty acids like salmon, tuna, olive oil and soybeans; antioxidant-rich green tea; fiber-rich whole grains and beans; and vitamin C-rich citrus fruits. Findings from the Nurses’ Health Study (NHS) and NHS 2, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, suggest it’s also a good idea to avoid sugary soft drinks because they may contribute to the onset of rheumatoid arthritis. Sugary drinks are considered to be a major contributor to obesity — and excess weight is known to increase the risk of RA….

    4. Don’t Smoke

    Rheumatoid arthritis is an inflammatory disease able to produce severe disability due to pain. Smokers with RA are likely to experience more pain and fatigue compared to non smokers. A 2016 study from the University of Manchester conducted a meta analysis measuring the effects of smoking cessation on a population based cohort of 5,677 patients to measure the association of smoking on patients with RA. Of this cohort, 40% have never smoked, 34 are former smokers, and 26% are current smokers. Due to the increased inflammation that smoking causes, smokers and reformed smokers experienced 73% more frequent flare ups and pain compared to non-smokers with RA. There was also a significant increase (1.5 fold) in premature mortality also associated with inflammation such as cardiovascular disease and respiratory diseases.

    5. Get More of the ‘Sunshine Vitamin’

    A June 2019 report from the University of Birmingham suggests that low levels of vitamin D up one’s risk of developing autoimmune disorders including rheumatoid arthritis. This vitamin deficiency also may worsen existing arthritis symptoms. Not having sufficient vitamin D can lead to a pro-inflammatory result and can cause symptoms to arise or worsen. A blood test can determine vitamin D levels….

    [Vitamin D supplements also seem to be over-rated as far as bone health, as supplements do not lower fracture risk for those living in the community. For those living in nursing homes on the other hand, they do lower the risk of fractures from falls.]

    6. Manage Stress

    Recognize what causes you stress and change what you can….[I]ncorporate into your daily routine relaxation exercises including meditation, deep breathing and guided imagery — there are free apps that will start you off. Releasing muscle tension eases arthritis pain…

    7. Try Alternative Treatments

    Acupuncture helps some people with rheumatoid arthritis by releasing pain-blocking endorphins and interfering with the transmission of pain signals to the brain via the nervous system. Another alternative treatment that shows promise is transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) therapy. With TENS therapy, a wearable device sends painless electrical currents to nerve fibers. This causes the release of pain-killing endorphins, as well as the generation of heat that relieves stiffness and pain…

    Here’s more from Just Care:

  • Osteoporosis, bisphosphonates and how to keep your bones strong

    Osteoporosis, bisphosphonates and how to keep your bones strong

    Bisphosphonate drugs, such as Fosamax, are marketed heavily to older adults as a medicine that keeps your bones strong, particularly for people with osteoporosis. Like all drugs, bisphosphonates have side effects. It’s important to know who benefits from bisphosphonate drugs before deciding to take one.

    Bisphosphonate drugs treat osteoporosis by decreasing the breakdown (resorption) of bone that is part of bone’s normal remodeling process but that speeds up with age. The FDA approved the first bisphosphonate, Fosamax or alendronate, in 1995. These drugs are marketed heavily to prevent broken bones in older adults.

    Osteoporosis is a key reason why a fall can be so catastrophic for an older person. A bone breaks and with the decreased mobility, a downward spiral begins. Hip fractures for example carry about a 25% risk of mortality within a year.

    Who do bisphosphonates benefit?

    Bisphosphonates are proven to benefit women with very low bone mineral density and women with a history of fractures. Their greatest impact has been on vertebral fractures, although they also have been shown to decrease rates of hip and wrist fractures. To get an idea of the size of the benefit, for every 100 women taking the medicines, six avoided a fracture of some sort over three years of therapy.

    Formulations of the bisphosphates exist where the drugs can be taken weekly or monthly, and these are as effective as the ones taken daily. People who take them should continue to take calcium and vitamin D.

    Good evidence also exists that the bisphosphonates help with the osteoporosis induced by the use of steroids, which sometimes have to be used for years for the treatment of various chronic inflammatory condition.

    Are bisphosphonates overmarketed?

    Some authorities believe that drug companies have overmarketed bisphosphonates, and that doctors prescribe  them to too many women who do not have osteoporosis, but “osteopenia,” a condition invented by the pharmaceutical companies. People with osteopenia have a lower bone mineral density than “normal” but not as low as to be diagnosed with osteoporosis. Our bone densities, muscle mass, brain mass, etc, decline with age.

    For the ravages of aging, the one best thing anyone can do (perhaps besides not smoking) is to exercise. As millions of women took bisphosphonates, reports multiplied of a rare fracture of the femur, after a patient has been on the drug for five years or so, and also of a rare type of deterioration of bone in the jaw. The latter tended to occur in people with cancer or otherwise suppressed immune systems. (You can read more on Just Care here.)

    The evidence is evolving on how long people should take these drugs. After a few years, you should discuss with your doctor whether you should continue, and make sure you understand the risks and continued potential benefits.

    Don’t forget calcium and vitamin D

    Calcium helps keep your bones strong and healthy. So, it is wise to incorporate foods with calcium, such as milk and yogurt, into your daily diet. If you’re not getting enough calcium, exercise may be your best bet for bone health; as I have explained in another post, the evidence is weak that calcium supplements will benefit you.

    Vitamin D supplements also seem to be over-rated as far as bone health, as supplements do not lower fracture risk for those living in the community. It is good to eat salmon and tuna or milk supplemented with vitamin D. For those living in nursing homes on the other hand, they do lower the risk of fractures from falls.

    Here’s more from Just Care:

  • Should you be taking vitamins?

    Should you be taking vitamins?

    Liz Szabo reports for the New York Times that older Americans are popping supplements like candy. Doctors may recommend certain vitamins like vitamin D and folic acid, and dozens of others are marketed widely. But, the evidence suggests that most of these supplements offer no health benefits for otherwise healthy individuals and that some ingredients in some supplements do harm. Should you be taking vitamins?

    If you are otherwise healthy, speak with your doctor. You should likely skip the vitamin pills and instead eat a balanced diet. The preponderance of independent studies on almost all supplements suggests that the benefits are at best negligible and the dangers, at times, significant. For example, the biggest studies show that  vitamin E and folic acid supplements do not promote heart health. What’s worse, the studies show that too much vitamin E can mean you are at higher risk of heart failure, prostate cancer and death from any cause.

    Still, nearly seven in ten older adults take at least one vitamin and nearly three in ten take four or more vitamins.  There appears to be a misplaced belief that you can get more of the nutrients you need from vitamin pills and that more vitamins in your system is better for your health. But, pills are generally no substitute for eating a healthy diet, some ingredients in some vitamins can cause serious health risks, and taking more vitamins can be harmful to your health.

    Before believing the “experts” and spending your money on a supplement, you might want to review the scientific evidence on www.Cochrane.org. Cochrane is a global independent network of researchers, professionals, carers, patients and people interested in health. The people at Cochrane “gather and summarize the best evidence from research to help you make informed choices about treatments.”

    You can read the independent research findings about these vitamins on Just Care:

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  • Help yourself: Think outside the box with diet and exercise

    Help yourself: Think outside the box with diet and exercise

    People are often pushed away by the thought of “diet and exercise” as a cure-all. The problem is the mental approach many of us take at the onset. We can focus on the challenges of incorporating physical activity and new nutrition habits into our daily lives. Or, we can help ourselves and think outside the box with diet and exercise. Thinking outside the box has its benefits!

    Physical Activity

    At any age, being active on a regular basis is beneficial to physical and mental health — this is not news. However, one of the most common mistakes we make is with our synonymous use of exercise and physical activity. Though both burn calories, exercise is structured aerobic activity that develops muscle, while physical activity is any instance of movement that increases blood flow. In other words, it doesn’t have to be intense. You might be surprised to realize how often you are being physically active — it includes things like walking your dog, taking the stairs or gardening.

    For older adults, being physically active can increase their ability to complete regular tasks on their own and maintain independence in general. It helps promote a strong and healthy heart. And, a strong and healthy heart also increases immunity to infectious diseases and viruses, and it reduces the risk of dangerous complications that can lead to hospitalization.

    The National Institute on Aging proposes some simple ways to incorporate more physical activity into your daily life:

    • Walk every aisle of the grocery store when you go shopping
    • Walk around the block when you go out to get the mail
    • Get off the bus one stop earlier or park your car further away from your destination and walk the extra distance
    • Lift the milk carton or a one pound can a few times before putting it away
    • Walk up and down the steps a few extra times

    The National Institute on Aging also recommends having an “exercise buddy,” a health care buddy, be it a neighbor, friend or family member, who takes walks or yoga classes with you.  If you don’t already have an exercise buddy, there are easy ways to find one. There may be a walking club at your local mall or an exercise class at a nearby senior center.

    Nutrition

    Junk food and added sugar are harmful to health at any age, but can be particularly detrimental to adults with chronic conditions like diabetes or heart disease. While going on a strict diet is likely to be disruptive to your digestive system and mood, try approaching your meals with nutrition in mind. Think — Am I getting enough protein or calcium in this meal? How can I increase the amount of vitamins and minerals by eating different foods?

    By approaching nutrition as an added element to your comprehensive diet, you can improve your mental and physical well-being without the stress of cutting out entire food groups.

    Studies show that even a small amount of physical activity and attention to nutrition can have a variety of health benefits. Approaching these recommendations with a positive attitude not only helps you take the first step toward incorporating them into your life, but also helps you stick with them long term. While it may seem intimidating, you don’t have to navigate your health needs alone — talking to a doctor or family nurse practitioner can help define which specific activities and nutritional elements are right for you.

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