The recently released news articles denouncing the consumption of higher levels of vitamin D was not surprising to me, given the source of the studies.

Those institutions performing the latest studies claimed that taking excessive amounts of vitamin D could cause cancer, yet there was no statistical evidence to support this has ever happened. Additionally, there was no mention of the well-known fact that the body converts sunlight into as much as 15,000 IU of vitamin D daily, with no detrimental effect whatsoever.

My research has revealed that not only are these studies short-termed, and not strictly controlled, but are often funded by big pharmaceutical special interest groups.

In an earlier opinion piece I wrote for The Bulletin, I stated that there has never been any reported cases of vitamin D toxicity at levels approaching 10,000 IU based on long-term studies by Dr. Reinhold Vieth of Mount Sinai Hospital at the University of Toronto. Dr. Vieth has proven conclusively that many groups of people, especially those of us who live in the northern tier of states, could well benefit from supplementation of this critically important vitamin.

Your doctor is the best judge of determining what your specific levels of vitamin D should be.

Art De Tomaso

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