[Karen W.]

In my Dreams Iko.. Wouldn't that be fun...LOL..I cannot even imagine how beautiful they would be! I know little about them other then they are beautiful. Sorry I am really geographically challenged, so pardon me asking, is Scandinavia where one should go to see these beautiful lights?

You better be careful I might take you up on that! LOL

[iko (OP)]

In the polar zone of Scandinavia, the northern, the better...
Sweden, Norway: the first picture is actually from Thromso, Norway, home country for the cod liver oil fanatics!
Take care

ikod  [^]

http://www-istp.gsfc.nasa.gov/Education/Figures/Loom_Map.gif

[Karen W.]

Drive north 1000 miles or more probably.. then fly or take a plane from there! LOL...

[Karen W.]

Thanks Karen,

You get a larger pic if you click down there, do you know?
It's a free picture for you from an italian friendo! [8D]
LOL x LOL !!!
Do you remember our triple misunderstanding with Neil?  []
By the way, where is our friendo Neilepus?

ikod

I think he has been really busy... Forum is awful slow without him! I guess that's the way it goes..

I did not know about the picture I will click and see it..

Our triple misunderstanding are you referring to the first time you said, I am your friend.. LOL I remember that I was embarrassed! LOL

BTW i also posted in the a#z to try to get it going again ..LOL You did Good Iko! LOL

I will look at the picture and print it for me self! Thanks Iko!

[Karen W.]

I am sorry I missed this post a long time ago.. but realize the questions could remain valid today...
Are we all thats left?

[iko (OP)]

More recent hints on vitamin D and TB protection.
Special antimicrobial peptides called "defensins"
are synthesized thanks to the hormone vitamin D:

IFN-gamma- and TNF-independent vitamin D-inducible
human suppression of mycobacteria: the role of cathelicidin LL-37.

Martineau AR, Wilkinson KA, Newton SM, Floto RA, Norman AW, Skolimowska K, Davidson RN, Sørensen OE, Kampmann B, Griffiths CJ, Wilkinson RJ.
Wellcome Trust Center for Research in Clinical Tropical Medicine, Division of Medicine, Wright Fleming Institute, Imperial College London, United Kingdom.

Vitamin D deficiency is associated with susceptibility to tuberculosis, and its biologically active metabolite, 1alpha,25 dihydroxyvitamin D(3) (1alpha,25(OH)(2)D(3)), has pleiotropic immune effects. The mechanisms by which 1alpha,25(OH)(2)D(3) protects against tuberculosis are incompletely understood. 1alpha,25(OH)(2)D(3) reduced the growth of mycobacteria in infected human PBMC cultures in a dose-dependent fashion. Coculture with agonists or antagonists of the membrane or nuclear vitamin D receptors indicated that these effects were primarily mediated by the nuclear vitamin D receptors. 1alpha,25(OH)(2)D(3) reduced transcription and secretion of protective IFN-gamma, IL-12p40, and TNF in infected PBMC and macrophages, indicating that 1alpha,25(OH)(2)D(3) does not mediate protection via these cytokines. Although NOS2A was up-regulated by 1alpha,25(OH)(2)D(3), inhibition of NO formation marginally affected the suppressive effect of 1alpha,25(OH)(2)D(3) on bacillus Calmette Guérin in infected cells. By contrast, 1alpha,25(OH)(2)D(3) strongly up-regulated the cathelicidin hCAP-18 gene, and some hCAP-18 polypeptide colocalized with CD14 in 1alpha,25(OH)(2)D(3) stimulated PBMC, although no detectable LL-37 peptide was found in supernatants from similar 1alpha,25(OH)(2)D(3)-stimulated PBMC cultures. A total of 200 mug/ml of the active peptide LL-37, in turn, reduced the growth of Mycobacterium tuberculosis in culture by 75.7%.
These findings suggest that vitamin D contributes to protection against TB by "nonclassical" mechanisms that include the induction of antimicrobial peptides.

J Immunol. 2007 Jun 1;178(11):7190-8.

http://blogimg.goo.ne.jp/user_image/10/bb/8443c3fe1da06cf70270973db1afbfd7.png

[Karen W.]

Isn't there a certain amount of vitamine D we can get from the sunshine.. and isn't it rickets that can be improved with the sun because of the vitamine " D!"

[iko (OP)]

Isn't there a certain amount of vitamine D we can get from the sunshine.. and isn't it rickets that can be improved with the sun because of the vitamine " D!"

You are certainly right.  Cod liver oil helps with vitamin A and D plus 'therapic' fatty acids like omega-3 so good for brain and things.  Human skin exposed to sunlight is able to make vitamin D3 in a variable fashion, depending on subcutaneous tissues, age, pigmentation and other factors...

CodPics...

Vitamin D3

     

                 


http://www.axxora.com/files/formula/LKT-C0145.gif
http://www.photomed.de/uploads/pics/vitamin_d3_01.jpg
http://www.mmaonline.net/Publications/MNMed2005/November/Images/sun.gif
http://www.teridanielsbooks.com/States/Florida/children,%20beach,%20sand,.jpg

[Karen W.]

Thanks Iko..What else is a good source of A!hi

[iko (OP)]

The photobiology of vitamin D--a topic of renewed focus.  [Article in Norwegian]

Moan J, Porojnicu AC.Avdeling for strålingsbiologi, Rikshospitalet-Radiumhospitalet, 0310 Oslo. johan.moan@labmed.uio.no

The sun is our most important source of vitamin D. Exposure to solaria, in sub-erythemogenic doses, also gives large amounts of this vitamin. The ultraviolet radiation in these sources converts 7-dihydrocholesterol to previtamin D3 in the skin. Furthermore, heat isomerization to vitamin D3 takes place, then transport to the liver and hydroxylation to calcidiol, which is transported to the kidneys and hydroxylated to the active hormone calcitriol. The vitamin D3 status of the body is supposed to be reliably imaged by calcidiol measurements. Calcidiol levels above 12.5 nmol/l prevent rickets and osteomalacia, but optimal levels are probably higher, in the range 100-250 nmol/l. A daily food intake of 100-200 microg vitamin D3 (50-100 g cod-liver oil), or a weekly exposure to two minimal erythemal doses of ultraviolet radiation (20 to 40 minutes whole body exposure to midday midsummer sun in Oslo, Norway), will give this level.
An adequate supply of vitamin D3 seems to reduce the incidence rates or improve the prognosis of several cancer forms, including prostate, breast and colon cancer, as well as of lymphomas.
Several other diseases are related to a low vitamin D3 status: heart diseases, multiple sclerosis, diabetes, and arthritis. The action mechanisms of vitamin D are thought to be mainly related to its known cell-differentiating and immuno-modulating effects. Even though most of the 250 annual death cases from skin cancer in Norway are caused by sun exposure, we should, in view of the health effects of ultraviolet radiation, consider modifying our restrictive attitude towards sun exposure and use of solaria.

Tidsskr Nor Laegeforen. 2006 Apr 6;126(:1048-52.

http://www.flipimages.co.uk/imageslandscapes/fjordhouse.jpg

[iko (OP)]

Crossing MS and vitamin D on PubMed Database
you find plenty of studies and experimental
data suggesting a positive effect in such a
chronic, long-lasting and highly debilitating
disease like multiple sclerosis.
Strangely enough, I could not find any clinical
study with vitamin D3 GIVEN to the patients...
I might have missed some report or trial, maybe.
It would not cost much, compared with all the
various expensive new drugs being tested on MS!
We seem to be quite late, approximately 2-3
decades behind with this.

A longitudinal study of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D and intact PTH levels
indicate the importance of vitamin D and calcium homeostasis regulation in multiple sclerosis.

Soilu-Hanninen M, Laaksonen M, Laitinen I, Eralinna JP, Lilius EM, Mononen I.
University of Turku, Finland.

BACKGROUND: Past sun exposure and vitamin D3 supplementation have been associated with a reduced risk of multiple sclerosis (MS). There are no previous longitudinal studies of vitamin D in MS.
OBJECTIVES: To compare regulation of vitamin D and calcium homeostasis between MS patients and healthy controls. To study correlation of parameters of vitamin D metabolism with MS activity.
METHODS: We measured 25-hydroxyvitamin D, intact PTH, calcium, phosphate, magnesium, chloride, alkaline phosphatase, albumin and TSH in serum every three months and at the time of relapses during one year in 23 MS patients and in 23 healthy controls. MRI BOD and T2 activity was assessed every 6 months.
RESULTS: Vitamin D deficiency [S-25(OH)D </= 37 nmol/L] was common affecting half of the patients and controls at some time of the year. Seasonal variation of 25(OH)D was similar in the patients and in the controls, but the 25(OH)D serum levels were lower and the iPTH serum levels were higher during MS relapses than in remission.
All 21 relapses during the study occurred at serum iPTH > 20 ng/L (2.2 pmol/L), whereas 38% of patients in remission had iPTH </= 20 ng/L. MS patients had a relative hypocalcaemia and a blunted PTH response in the winter. There was no correlation between serum 25(OH)D and MRI parameters.
CONCLUSIONS: The endocrine circuitry regulating serum calcium may be altered in MS. There is an inverse relationship between serum vitamin D level and MS clinical activity. The role of vitamin D in MS must be explored further.

J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry. 2007 Jun 19; [Epub ahead of print]

Maybe something is actually 'moving' !

http://www.msrc.co.uk/index.cfm?fuseaction=show&pageid=96

http://www.accommodationsbc.com/imagesadv/absoluteheavenbbbeach_sm.jpg

[iko (OP)]

Link to Multiple Sclerosis Resource Center:

Vitamin D
Below is the latest Research into Vitamin D and MS available.
...

http://www.msrc.co.uk/index.cfm?fuseaction=show&pageid=1334

http://www.iangilman.com/birthdays/escher.jpg

[Karen W.]

I like Escher! He has some really cool images!

[Karen W.]

See what too much cod liver oil can do  []

 

LOL Well I have not seen that piccy for a long while ! LOL! Good Day Iko!

[iko (OP)]

The "Vitamin D Tsunami" is definitely coming,
spinning out of the restricted scientific circuit.
Finally prof. Michael Holick is in the New England
Journal of Medicine...
and -as usual- lay press will follow pretty soon!

http://www.starstore.com/acatalog/iceberg-poster.jpg

"...rickets can be considered the tip of the vitamin D-deficiency iceberg.  In fact, vitamin D deficiency remains common in children and adults."

Michael F. Holick "Vitamin D Deficiency" N Eng J Med 2007;357:266-81.

July 19, 2007 splendid review article in 'Medical Progress'
Unfortunately this one is not available in free full-text...you may go to last year paper published in J Clin Invest for similar refreshing good news:

http://www.jci.org/cgi/content/full/116/8/2062

As far as this topic is concerned, one thing should be noticed: the 'Shanghai Report' is not mentioned, probably because of its unconfirmed data and weak evidence. But decreased lymphoma incidence (40% reduced risk) due to proper sunlight exposure is reported, and a specific reference quoted:

Family history of hematopoietic malignancy and risk of lymphoma.

Chang ET, Smedby KE, Hjalgrim H, Porwit-MacDonald A, Roos G, Glimelius B, Adami HO.
Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden. ellen.chang@meb.ki.se

BACKGROUND: A family history of hematopoietic malignancy is associated with an increased risk of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) and Hodgkin lymphoma (HL), although the magnitude of the relative risk is unclear. We estimated the association between familial hematopoietic cancer and risk of lymphoma using validated, registry-based family data, and we also investigated whether associations between some environmental exposures and risk of lymphoma vary between individuals with and without such a family history. METHODS: In a population-based case-control study of malignant lymphoma, 1506 case patients and 1229 control subjects were linked to the Swedish Multi-Generation Register and then to the Swedish Cancer Register to ascertain history of cancer in first-degree relatives of patients with malignant lymphoma. Multiple logistic regression was used to estimate odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for associations with the risk of lymphoma.
RESULTS: A history of hematopoietic malignancy in any first-degree relative was associated with an increased risk of all NHL (OR = 1.8, 95% CI = 1.2 to 2.5), common B-cell NHL subtypes, and HL. Relative risks were generally stronger in association with sibling hematopoietic cancer (OR for all NHL = 3.2, 95% CI = 1.3 to 7.6) than with parental hematopoietic cancer (OR = 1.6, 95% CI = 1.1 to 2.3). A family history of NHL or chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) was associated with an increased risk of several NHL subtypes and HL, whereas familial multiple myeloma was associated with a higher risk of follicular lymphoma. There was no statistically significant heterogeneity in NHL risk associations with environmental factors between individuals with and without familial hematopoietic malignancy.

CONCLUSIONS: The increased risk of NHL and HL among individuals with a family history of hematopoietic malignancy was approximately twofold for both lymphoma types. There was no evidence that etiologic associations varied between familial NHL and nonfamilial NHL.

J Natl Cancer Inst. 2005 Oct 5;97(19):1466-74.

Ultraviolet radiation exposure and risk of malignant lymphomas.

Smedby KE, Hjalgrim H, Melbye M, Torrång A, Rostgaard K, Munksgaard L, Adami J, Hansen M, Porwit-MacDonald A, Jensen BA, Roos G, Pedersen BB, Sundström C, Glimelius B, Adami HO.
Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Karolinska Institutet, Box 281, SE-171 77 Stockholm, Sweden. karin.ekstrom@meb.ki.se

BACKGROUND: The incidence of malignant lymphomas has been increasing rapidly, but the causes of these malignancies remain poorly understood. One hypothesis holds that exposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation increases lymphoma risk. We tested this hypothesis in a population-based case-control study in Denmark and Sweden.
METHODS: A total of 3740 patients diagnosed between October 1, 1999, and August 30, 2002, with incident malignant lymphomas, including non-Hodgkin lymphoma, chronic lymphocytic leukemia, and Hodgkin lymphoma, and 3187 population controls provided detailed information on history of UV exposure and skin cancer and information on other possible risk factors for lymphomas. Odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated by logistic regression. Statistical tests were two-sided.
RESULTS: Multivariable-adjusted analyses revealed consistent, statistically significant negative associations between various measures of UV light exposure and risk of non-Hodgkin lymphoma. A high frequency of sun bathing and sunburns at age 20 years and 5-10 years before the interview and sun vacations abroad were associated with 30%-40% reduced risks of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (e.g., for sunbathing four times a week or more at age 20 versus never sunbathing, OR = 0.7, 95% CI = 0.6 to 0.9; for two or more sunburns a year at age 20 versus no sunburns, OR = 0.6, 95% CI = 0.5 to 0.. These inverse associations increased in strength with increasing levels of exposure (all P(trend)< or =.01). Similar, albeit weaker, associations were observed for Hodgkin lymphoma. There were no clear differences among non-Hodgkin lymphoma subtypes, although associations were stronger for B-cell than for T-cell lymphomas. A history of skin cancer was associated with a doubling in risks of both non-Hodgkin and Hodgkin lymphoma.

CONCLUSIONS: A history of high UV exposure was associated with reduced risk of non-Hodgkin lymphoma. The positive association between skin cancer and malignant lymphomas is, therefore, unlikely to be mediated by UV exposure.

J Natl Cancer Inst. 2005 Feb 2;97(3):199-209.

[iko (OP)]

I received this exciting 'vitamin D newsletter'
and I thought I had to put it HERE right away!
Enjoy

ikoD  [^]

Vitamin D Newsletter
August, 2007
 
Dear Dr. Cannell:
 
I saw an article from a Toronto newspaper about autism and vitamin D.  I am currently searching for a vitamin D specialist in the Washington D.C. area to perform a medical work up on my daughter to look for vitamin D-related disorders.  The reason I am in search of a vitamin D specialist is that I believe I have stumbled upon a complex relationship in my daughter involving her foot pain, vitamin D, and her autism.
 
In April 2006, a few weeks after my 3-year-old profoundly autistic daughter began refusing her daily PediaSure drink, she began having excruciating foot spasms lasting from 10-30 minutes at a time, several times a week.  She would throw herself on the floor, curl her toes, slam her heels against the floor, and rub the tops of her feet against the carpet, all while screaming the entire time.  These were horrible for her to endure, and horrible for my wife and myself to watch.  This went on for a year.
 
From what I read, the symptom was perhaps like foot spasms associated with carpopedal syndrome or tetany.  But her blood work did not support that at all.  Calcium level was normal (10.2 mg/dL); 25-Hydroxy-vitamin D low (23.5 ng/ml); 1,25 dihydroxy-vitamin D normal (24.7).  Despite some vitamin D deficiency, I was assured by medical professionals that nothing supported a vitamin D cause of these particular spasms, so vitamin D was dismissed.  Because her calcium level was normal, they told me she did not have tetany, and vitamin D could not be the cause of the pain.
 
All medical consultants were stymied.  I made another research effort and found a 2003 article on WebMD that stated vitamin D has been found to have some link to basic, unexplained muscle and bone pain.  By chance, vitamin D was the next supplement we had at home to begin giving my daughter to treat her autism.  So, in April 2007 we began giving my 4 year-old profoundly autistic daughter Vitamin D supplements.  Her foot spasms which had plagued her for a year diminished within days and disappeared within three weeks.  She has not had a spasm in over two months.
 
In addition, we noted clear improvements in her autistic condition which appear to be from the vitamin D supplements.  Eye contact went from zero to fantastic.  Her vocalizations increased markedly (still only babbling; she remains completely nonverbal).  She appears even happier than previously (she has always been a somewhat happy child).  (Please note that my wife and I have tried many dietary supplements over the past 1.5 years guided by a doctor and dietician who both specialize in autism.  We honestly state that this is the only thing that has ever had a positive effect on my daughter.  We have seen nothing else work.)
 
My daughter and vitamin D have a complicated relationship.  By all counts, looking at her lab work and general condition, vitamin D should have played no role in those excruciating foot fits.  And yet it is apparently exactly what is involved in them.  And, my wife and I believe at the same time her autistic condition has improved from the vitamin D.  The foot fits and her autism appear linked; it was not just a coincidence that this autistic child has those mysterious foot spasms, and the link appears to be vitamin D.
 
And so I wonder if this is just the tip of the iceberg, if perhaps there is more to know about my child's relationship with vitamin D and what that might mean for her autism.  Does she have a specific vitamin D-related disorder?  If so, might direct treatment of it also improve her autism further?  These are the questions I would like to pose to a vitamin D specialist who could perform a medical work up on my daughter.  Please let me know if you know of anyone in the Northern Virginia/Washington DC area.  Also, where is the best place to get vitamin D?  Thank you for your time.
 
Sincerely,
Paul, Washington, D.C.
 
Dear Paul:
 
I know of no such specialist in the Washington area, indeed no vitamin D/autism expert exists in the world.  As far as a specific "vitamin D disorder," linking her spasms, autism, and vitamin D, the world's English language medical literature contains no description of such a disorder.  From your daughter's case, it sounds as if PediaSure was her only regular source of vitamin D.  If so, her spasms began two weeks after stopping the small amount of vitamin D contained in PediaSure.  The spasms continued for a year, ending a few days after you started giving her vitamin D again, this time in the form of a supplement.  Several weeks after restarting vitamin D, both you and your wife noticed an improvement in her autism.  To my knowledge, this "case report" - your daughter's - is the first ever published.
 
As no medical literature has ever been published on any of this, all you can do is give her enough vitamin D to get her 25-hydroxy-vitamin D, known as 25(OH)D, into high normal ranges and then wait and hope.  Vitamin D's extraordinary mass-action pharmacology implies that simply providing more substrate ([25(OH)D] will help children with low enzyme activity produce more activated vitamin D (calcitriol) in their brains.  The vitamin D theory of autism is not simply that vitamin D deficiency in gestation or early childhood causes the disorder.  Instead, the theory holds that a quantitative or qualitative abnormality exists in the enzyme system that activates vitamin D. 
 
It could as simple as the normal variation in the enzyme, an enzyme whose activity would vary in a normal or Gaussian distribution, much like height.  Some people are tall, some are short, most are in the middle.  The same may be true of the enzyme that forms activated vitamin D (calcitriol), some children have a lot of enzyme and some only a little; most are in the middle.  As the substrate [25(OH)D] the enzyme metabolizes fell over the last 20 years with sun-avoidance, more and more children on the low end of the enzyme curve are effected by marginally low 25(OH)D levels, explaining both its genetic basis and exploding incidence.
 
At this point, all your daughter needs is a physician willing to periodically measure her 25(OH)D.  Then you can safely supplement your daughter with doses higher than the current Upper Limit for children (2,000 IU/day).  You did not tell me your daughter's weight but, assuming she weighs about 30 pounds, even without 25(OH)D blood tests, you can safely give her 50 mcg/day which is 2,000 IU per day.  In fact, the U.S. government says this dose is safe for children over the age of one.  Life Extension Foundation sells 250 of the 1,000 IU capsules for about ten bucks with powdered vitamin D inside.  The powder is tasteless and dissolves easily in juice.  Bio Tech Pharmacal, of Fayetteville, Arkansas, told me they were going to be making a 1,000 IU capsule.  Or you can get 1,000 IU capsules in a pharmacy or at Costco and crush them.  A Canadian firm is now making vitamin D liquid, called Ddrops, with 1,000 IU per drop, but their mail order web site is not yet easily accessed.  Beware of cod liver oil; do not use it because vitamin A inhibits the actions of activated vitamin D, and due to the potential for low-grade vitamin A toxicity.
 
Remember, more and more researchers now believe autism is a progressive, inflammatory, disorder.  That is, the inflammation probably progressively destroys brain tissue as the child ages.  As I said in my recent paper, I think there is a chance that vitamin D may have a treatment effect in young autistic children if given in adequate doses, due to its anti-inflammatory properties, and its ability to upregulate glutathione, the master antioxidant that also chelates (binds) and then helps excrete heavy metals like mercury.  Unfortunately, I see no way, even if the vitamin D/autism theory turns out to be true, that vitamin D can regenerate brain tissue.  However, if it stops the inflammation, and cell death, the brain could then begin to develop and learn.  These are big ifs.  However, you have nothing to lose by trying, the worst that will happen is that it will not help and vitamin D will be added to the long list of false-hope treatments.
 
Actually, there is a worse possibility.  Say the parents of a three-year-old autistic child decide today that vitamin D is nonsense, another false hope, and that I'm a quack.  They decide not to give vitamin D supplement their autistic child, who is probably - like your child - vitamin D deficient.  Then, it turns out five years from now that scientific evidence shows vitamin D does indeed help.  By that time, the child will be eight and will have suffered additional, irreparable, brain damage.  In my mind, that is more tragic than another false hope.
 
Dear Dr. Cannell:
 
After that article appeared in the Toronto paper, I started my four-year-old son on 1,000 IU of vitamin D two weeks ago.  So far the only thing I noticed is that after about ten days, he didn't seem so miserable.  The thing that has always broken my heart is that look of sadness and suffering on his face.  After about two weeks of vitamin D, I noticed he seemed less miserable.  I wouldn't say he looks happy now but that look of misery seems to be gone.  Will it come back?  I'm not sure I can take it if it comes back.  What else might happen?  Also, last summer we noticed he seemed to get better, but then he got worse in the fall.  We never thought about it until we read about vitamin D.
 
Susan, Toronto, Canada
 
Dear Susan:
 
I don't know.  I think all parents have had their heart pierced by that look at one time or another.  I would advise increasing the dose to 2,000 IU per day, making sure it is cholecalciferol and not ergocalciferol, and having your doctor order a 25(OH)D every two months to see if he needs higher doses.  You want to get his blood level up to between 50 ng/ml and 80 ng/ml (In many countries outside of the USA, that would be reported as between 125 and 200 nmol/L.) and keep it there, summer and winter, and that may take more than 2,000 IU/day in the winter.  If vitamin D has a treatment effect, it will take many months to see its full effect.  As you noted, if the theory is correct, autistic children who spend time outdoors in the summer should show some seasonal improvements - if they don't wear sunblock and they expose enough of their skin to generate significant amounts of vitamin D.
 
Dear Dr. Cannell:
 
I resent you calling autism a tragedy.  My son is not a tragedy and I'm glad he was born and is in our lives.  He is our joy.  Autism is not a tragedy.
 
Emma, London, England.
 
Dear Emma:
 
I'm glad he is your joy and I believe you.  I'm new to the autism field and was not aware how much thought and speech control exists in the discussion of the disease.  Nevertheless, I have a few politically incorrect questions.  If autism is a joy, I assume you would like other parents to have an autistic child?  If autism is such a joy, why is there a huge industry forming to prevent and treat it?  At the risk of sounding insensitive - apparently one of the most serious charges leveled in the autism debate - autism is a tragedy.  As I pointed out in my paper, research shows that having an autistic child, puts the family under more emotional stress than having a child with a fatal illness.
 
Dear Dr. Cannell:
 
Who are you to write an article on autism?  You didn't even publish it in a medical journal.  You are not with a university.  You have not published very much.  You have no expertise on autism.  No autism experts support your theory.  There is no evidence to support the theory.  Shouldn't you leave this to experts before you give parents more false hopes? 
Mary, Trenton, New Jersey.
 
Dear Mary:
 
You are right, I am a nobody; just ask my ex-wife.  In the Toronto Globe, I explained why I have not yet submitted the paper.  As far as giving false hopes, I've thought about that charge.  Right now, regardless of what advocacy groups say, autism is rather hopeless.  That is, no treatment, including vitamin D, has been shown to materially affect the clinical course of autism.  As a psychiatrist, my observation is that people would rather live with a false hope than with no hope.
 
Furthermore, if autistic children began taking vitamin D, the worse that can happen is that a period of false hope will followed by dashed hopes and then parents will be back to hopelessness.  In the meantime, they will have made their child vitamin D sufficient.  Vitamin D deficiency is a serious problem in childhood. 
Postgrad Med J. 2007 Apr;83(978):230-5.

The Telegraph, Why is Vitamin D So Vital?
 
As far as the theory having no support from experts, Dr. Richard Mills, research director of the National Autistic Society in England, was quoted in the Telegraph article on the autism/vitamin D theory: "There has been speculation in the past about autism being more common in high-latitude countries that get less sunlight and a tie-up with rickets has been suggested - observations which support the theory."
 
Finally, you said there is no evidence to support the theory.  I assume you meant there is no proof.  The first statement is absolutely false, the second absolutely true.  As I detailed in my paper, there is a lot of evidence to support the theory.  In fact, if anyone can come up with an autism fact, that the theory cannot explain, I'd like to know about it.  Even the announcement of a link between television viewing and autism supports the theory.  Furthermore, the TV/autism link is actually evidence of a treatment effect.  That is, if autistic children who play outside in the sunshine more - watching less TV - have less severe illness, it may be due to the Sun-God, who bestows her precious gift of calcitriol into the brains of children playing outside in her sunlight but not into the brains of children watching TV inside in the darkness.
Natl Bur Econ Res Bull Aging Health. 2007 Winter;(18):2-3.
 
As far as proof the theory is true, there is, of course, none.  In medicine, proof means randomized controlled human trials, the gold standard for proof.  However, proof is the last step, not the first.  First comes evidence, then comes a theory, then comes researchers disproving those theories.  It works that way.  Sometimes we never get to the last step, proof.  For example, please point me to a single randomized controlled human trial proving cigarette smoking is dangerous?  Instead, the convincing evidence of smoking's dangerousness lies in epidemiological studies, not randomized controlled trials.  Proof, or disproof, of the autism vitamin D theory will take years, years during which young autistic brains will continue to suffer irreparable damage.  Perhaps vitamin D' powerful anti-inflammatory actions will help prevent that damage, perhaps not. 
 
It's something of a Pascal's wager, betting on vitamin D instead of the existence of God, risking your child's brain instead of eternal damnation.  "If you believe vitamin D helps autism and turn out to be incorrect, you have lost nothing -- but if you don't believe in vitamin D and turn out to be incorrect, your child will suffer irreparable brain damage." 
 
John Cannell, MD
The Vitamin D Council
9100 San Gregorio Road
Atascadero, CA 93422
 
This is a periodic newsletter from the Vitamin D Council, a non-profit trying to end the epidemic of vitamin D deficiency.  If you don't want to get the newsletter, please hit reply and let us know.  This newsletter is not copyrighted.  Please reproduce it and post it on Internet sites.   Remember, we are a non-profit and rely on donations to publish our newsletter and maintain our website.

[iko (OP)]

Ultraviolet radiation exposure and risk of malignant lymphomas.

Smedby KE, Hjalgrim H, Melbye M, Torrång A, Rostgaard K, Munksgaard L, Adami J, Hansen M, Porwit-MacDonald A, Jensen BA, Roos G, Pedersen BB, Sundström C, Glimelius B, Adami HO.
Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Karolinska Institutet, Box 281, SE-171 77 Stockholm, Sweden. karin.ekstrom@meb.ki.se

BACKGROUND: The incidence of malignant lymphomas has been increasing rapidly, but the causes of these malignancies remain poorly understood. One hypothesis holds that exposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation increases lymphoma risk. We tested this hypothesis in a population-based case-control study in Denmark and Sweden.
METHODS: A total of 3740 patients diagnosed between October 1, 1999, and August 30, 2002, with incident malignant lymphomas, including non-Hodgkin lymphoma, chronic lymphocytic leukemia, and Hodgkin lymphoma, and 3187 population controls provided detailed information on history of UV exposure and skin cancer and information on other possible risk factors for lymphomas. Odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated by logistic regression. Statistical tests were two-sided.
RESULTS: Multivariable-adjusted analyses revealed consistent, statistically significant negative associations between various measures of UV light exposure and risk of non-Hodgkin lymphoma. A high frequency of sun bathing and sunburns at age 20 years and 5-10 years before the interview and sun vacations abroad were associated with 30%-40% reduced risks of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (e.g., for sunbathing four times a week or more at age 20 versus never sunbathing, OR = 0.7, 95% CI = 0.6 to 0.9; for two or more sunburns a year at age 20 versus no sunburns, OR = 0.6, 95% CI = 0.5 to 0.. These inverse associations increased in strength with increasing levels of exposure (all P(trend)< or =.01). Similar, albeit weaker, associations were observed for Hodgkin lymphoma. There were no clear differences among non-Hodgkin lymphoma subtypes, although associations were stronger for B-cell than for T-cell lymphomas. A history of skin cancer was associated with a doubling in risks of both non-Hodgkin and Hodgkin lymphoma.

CONCLUSIONS: A history of high UV exposure was associated with reduced risk of non-Hodgkin lymphoma. The positive association between skin cancer and malignant lymphomas is, therefore, unlikely to be mediated by UV exposure.

J Natl Cancer Inst. 2005 Feb 2;97(3):199-209.

One thing about this report should be pointed out:
initially the aim of the research was to look for
an eventual INCREASE of lymphoma risk after longer
exposure to UV light...
...but the exact opposite effect has been found!
Talking about serendipity.

Instead of the predicted chain of events:

UV light -- DNA damage -- mutagenic effect -- abnormal clone -- LYMPHOMA

Surprisingly, fewer lymphomas were found in people more exposed to sunlight.
Consequently you may easily hypothesize:

UV light -- higher production of vitamin D -- immunomodulation
-- enhanced anti-infectious plus anti-mutagenic effect -- fewer lymphomas.

Neat!

ikod   [^]

"Il sole dona la vita, il sole se la riprende"  M.U. Dianzani, 1975.

Thank you Zoey,
for asking about my favourite quote.  Well, to explain it properly, in a short 'essay' in english... it will take me more than a few minutes!  But translating it is the easiest thing:

"The sun gives life, the sun takes it back"

These words concluded one of the best lectures I attended in my life. At the 3rd year of Medical school, General Pathology course, more than thirty years ago. Professor Mario Umberto Dianzani was our teacher, Dean of the Medical Faculty and a distinguished scientist, totally dedicated to his students.  Later on he has been Rector of the University of Turin for several years before retiring.
In those days biochemistry was 'the' thing: new cofactors and vitamins were deeply explored by medical research.
I'm sure I owe to his excellent lectures my following research interest in cofactors.

"Aging of cells and living organisms" was the subject of the lecture.
In less than one hour we went from the origin of life on our Planet to the present time.
Volcanoes and oceans plus UV light to catalyze the synthesis of organic compounds (Miller's experiment), then nucleic acid formation after million years of random combinations.
Primitive organisms, bacteria and algae.  Again the sunlight creates energy through photosynthetic processes and here come trees and forests! Different species of primitive life, unicellular, multicellular towards more and more complex forms of life thanks to spontaneous mutations, natural selection and evolution. For the whole 'biosphere' survival is always tightly bound to the origin, to the sunlight.
Sunlight and ultraviolet rays give energy and feed the whole system, nevertheless they are responsible -in the end- for lipid peroxidation and DNA damage.  A series of biochemical reactions lead to senescence in multicellular organisms too.
Complex systems are progressively deranged: skin, bones, muscles, nerves, glands and immune cells get older...diseases follow.
The sun itself puts an end to our lives.

Magic


... 

http://blogs.bootsnall.com/Chuck/uploads/_Beautiful%20Sunrise.jpg

 

[Karen W.]

Thats beautiful Iko!

[iko (OP)]

Thanks Karen,

uhm...do you mean the Lecture or the picture?

ikoD   []

[Karen W.]

The picture is beautiful also, but your lecture seems to have a way of teaching which is beautiful. To be able to cover so much in one lecture and make it interesting and have your students come away having enjoyed and learned from the lecture is wonderful and not always an easy accomplishment. That in itself is beautiful!