Another Vitamin D Benefit/symptoms

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Could this be a clue?

Ann Rheum Dis. 2005 Aug;64(8):1217-9.

An excess of widespread pain among South Asians: are low levels of vitamin D implicated?Macfarlane GJ, Palmer B, Roy D, Afzal C, Silman AJ, O'Neill T.Aberdeen Pain Research (Epidemiology) Group, Department of Public Health, School of Medicine, Polwarth Building Foresterhill, Aberdeen AB25 2ZD, Scotland. g.j.macfarlane@...BACKGROUND: Anecdotal reports from rheumatologists in the United Kingdom suggest that patients from South Asian backgrounds are more likely to report widespread body pain. OBJECTIVE: To confirm the presence of an excess of widespread pain in South Asians, and to evaluate the relationship of their symptoms with levels of 25-OH vitamin D. METHODS: Two population studies involving over 3135 subjects were carried out in the North West and Midlands areas of England. RESULTS: The first study confirmed an excess of widespread pain among South Asians (OR = 1.6, 95% CI 1.3 to 2.1). The second smaller study conducted only among young women also showed a similar excess of widespread pain among South Asians (OR = 1.8, 95% CI 0.7 to 4.7) and found that low levels of 25-OH vitamin D (<10 ng/ml) were more common among those with widespread pain (OR = 3.5, 95% CI 0.4 to 31.0). CONCLUSIONS: Owing to the small numbers, the relationship between 25-OH vitamin D and widespread pain must be considered preliminary and requires further investigation. However, it may be one potentially treatable cause of widespread pain. PMID: 16014682

Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2004 Aug;13(8):1325-30.

Risk of early-onset prostate cancer in relation to germ line polymorphisms of the vitamin D receptor.Oakley-Girvan I, Feldman D, Eccleshall TR, Gallagher RP, Wu AH, Kolonel LN, Halpern J, Balise RR, West DW, Paffenbarger RS Jr, Whittemore AS.Department of Health Research and Policy, Stanford University School of Medicine, HRP Redwood Building, T204, Stanford, CA 94305-5405, USA.Vitamin D inhibits prostate cancer cell growth, angiogenesis, and metastasis. These actions are mediated by the vitamin D receptor. We examined associations between prostate cancer risk and five polymorphisms in the VDR gene: four single nucleotide polymorphisms (FokI, BsmI, ApaI, and TaqI restriction sites) and the polyadenylic acid microsatellite. Specifically, we genotyped population-based samples of young African Americans (113 cases and 121 controls) and Whites (232 cases and 171 controls) and members of 98 predominantly White families with multiple cases of prostate cancer. Among Whites, there was no evidence for association between prostate cancer risk and alleles at any of the five polymorphic sites regardless of how the men were ascertained. Moreover, estimated five-locus haplotype frequencies were similar in White cases and controls. Among African Americans, prostate cancer risk was associated with homozygosity for the F allele at the FokI site (odds ratio 1.9, 95% confidence interval 1.0-3.3). In addition, estimated haplotype frequencies differed significantly (P < 0.01) between African American cases and controls. These findings need replication in other studies of African Americans. Homozygosity for the F allele at the FokI site is more prevalent in the African American population than in U.S. Whites. If the FokI association noted here were causal, this difference could account for some of the disease burden among African Americans and some of the excess risk in African Americans compared with Whites. PMID: 15298953

Med Hypotheses. 2005;64(5):1022-6.

Secondary hyperparathyroidism promotes the acute phase response -- a rationale for supplemental vitamin D in prevention of vascular events in the elderly.McCarty MF.NutriGuard Research, 1051 Hermes Ave., Encinitas, CA 92024, USA. mccarty@...Parathyroid hormone (PTH) promotes IL-6 secretion by osteoblasts, and may also up-regulate IL-6 production in the liver and adipose tissue; this may explain why serum IL-6 is markedly elevated in primary hyperparathyroidism, and low in hypoparathyroidism. IL-6 is the chief stimulus to hepatic production of many acute phase reactants, notably fibrinogen and C-reactive protein (CRP). Mild secondary hyperparathyroidism is common in elderly people, particularly at high latitudes during the winter, owing to poor vitamin D status. This may rationalize evidence that acute phase proteins show seasonal variations and are typically elevated in the elderly, whereas leisure physical activity is associated with a reduction in these proteins. In a recent clinical trial targeting elderly chronically ill patients, administration of vitamin D reduced serum levels of both CRP and IL-6; further such studies should assess the impact of physiologically meaningful doses of vitamin D on acute phase reactants in elderly subjects likely to have poor vitamin D status. Since elevations of CRP and fibrinogen may increase risk for thromboembolic vascular events, these considerations may help to explain the excess of coronary mortality observed during winter months, and suggest a role for supplemental vitamin D in preservation of vascular health. Moderate alcohol intake is associated with reduced serum PTH as well as decreased levels of CRP and fibrinogen; conceivably, modulation of PTH mediates, at least in part, the favorable impact of moderate drinking on the acute phase reactants. PMID: 15780504