A Predictive Equation for Vitamin D Replacement Dose
July 23, 2014 by Dr. Harvey
Filed under Articles of Interest, Blog
It is well-known and has been well researched that proper levels of Vitamin D are necessary to maintain optimal health. I have written about how Vitamin D supplements are not only essential to good health, but that they may possibly prevent cancer deaths, Yet many of us in the USA are deficient in Vitamin D. A recent study came out in the Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine which looked at the proper dosage for Vitamin D in patients who are deficient in Vitamin D levels, and what the proper maintenance dosage for Vitamin D should be.
This study looked at over 1300 patients and predicted an equation for proper dosage based on age, serum albumin levels, BMI and starting blood levels of Vitamin D. Race and ethnicity were not determined to be factors affecting this equation. It was determined that 5000 IU/day of Vitamin D3 was needed for a period of 3- 6 months to correct any deficiencies, and a dose of about 2000 IU/day was needed to maintain proper Vitamin D3 levels in the blood stream.
The exact formula is
Dose = [(8.52 – Desired change in serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D level) + (0.074 × Age) – (0.20 × BMI) + (1.74 × Albumin concentration) – (0.62 × Starting serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentration)]/(-0.002).
The overall conclusion from the paper also is that the RDA requirements for Vitamin D are “grossly inadequate” for correcting any deficiencies in serum Vitamin D levels. The text of the summary in PubMed is listed here.
I am fortunate in that the Vitamin D supplement I work with contains 5000 IU/serving. If you have any questions about this article or are interested in obtaining some Vitamin D, please let me know.
To Your Health!
Dr. Harvey
