Systolic BP and Vitamin D - Episode 5

[Guest guest]

Hi folks:

Am I boring you yet? (I certainly hope not.)

I have just completed another two weeks taking zero vitamin D

supplements. This time I even omitted the calcium with a small

amount of D. Yet again, my SBP has returned to 110! I am now

getting pretty close to persuading myself that, at least for me,

vitamin D supplements appreciably raise my SBP. I will check again

tomorrow morning to verify the 110. Then do another two weeks taking

1125 IU of supplements daily and recheck one more time whether it,

yet again, raises my SBP.

The amount by which my SBP is raised while taking the supplement

varies appreciably. The lowest I have seen it after two weeks on the

supplements is 116, the highest 137. Off supplements it is pretty

consistently 110.

Anyway the possible relevance for people here is that if you have a

SBP above what you think it ought to be (want it to be) and are

taking supplemental D you might want to try the following. Measure

your BP a few times to get a benchmark number. Then stop taking the

D supplements, and after a few weeks without them recheck your SBP a

few times. You just may find that your BP is higher than it needs to

be. It certainly seems to be the case with me. And in my case two

weeks off the supplements is long enough to wash out the effect.

fwiw.

Obviously this is a one-mouse experiment and we all know, from

reading Dr. Walford if not before, the extent to which we should pay

attention to one-mouse experiments.

Rodney.