Invitation to Participate in a Study on Vitamin D & Fish

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Gloria
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Invitation to Participate in a Study on Vitamin D & Fish

Post by Gloria »

I received an invitation by Brigham and Women's Hospital , Division of Preventative Medicine, and Harvard Medical School to participate in a large-scale study "to test whether vitamin D and fish oil supplements prevent cancer, heart disease and stroke."

The study has two groups, as usual: one taking a placebo and the other taking 2000 IU of vitamin D and 1000 mg of fish oil (omega-3 fatty acids.) They would provide the supplements for free, and the study lasts for 5 years.

I'd have to agree to not take more than 800 IUs of vitamin D per day in supplements and no more than 1200 mg of calcium from supplements.

I'm declining to participate because I'm not willing to take 800 IUs of vitamin D, or 2800 IUs if I'm not in the placebo group. Like many of you, I take about 5,000 IUs of vitamin D daily and I feel that quantity has provided health benefits. Plus, I'm concerned about taking fish oil capsules because fish are high in antihistamines.

It's great that they are conducting the study, but I wish the vitamin D level were higher.

Gloria
You never know what you can do until you have to do it.
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sarkin
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Post by sarkin »

Gloria,

I think you're making the right call by declining - but let us hope the study will shed some light. I feel lucky that fish oil seems to agree with me, despite the potential histamine issues. I would not wish to be committed to it, however, should my transient-seeming mast-cell symptoms become more concerning.

Also - I really like taking my fish oil as a liquid, not in capsules. I just am not sure which ingredients might be problematic for me, at this point, and the capsule itself has seemed to me to be a potential risk that I would prefer to avoid.

Given the latest research we've been reading, 2000IU of Vitamin D does seem quite low.

Glad to hear about this, and hope you're well.
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