Heart Failure as a Symptom of Vitamin D Deficiency

by HELEN
(MICANOPY, FL)

Is Heart Failure a Symptom of Vitamin D Deficiency?

Is Heart Failure a Symptom of Vitamin D Deficiency?

My dad has Congestive Heart Failure (CHF). As of 4 months ago,his BNP (a marker of damage to the heart indicating congestive heart failure) was around 1000 and his Ejection Fraction (the amoung of blood pumped per heart beat- with a normal range of about 55-75%) was approximately 35%.


After reading your articles, I became sure that he HAD to be Vitamin D deficient so I urged him to get tested.

Soon, when I visit him, I will find out if he got the correct test and what his exact levels are. In the meantime, I sent him Vitamin D Supplements and he's been taking 6000 IU/day.

All of a sudden, his fatigue has disappeared and he has developed a lot of energy and has even started oil painting again,his lifelong pursuit.

(Also, recently he got off Lipitor and began taking 600 mgs/day of Coenzyme Q-10 in the form of Ubiquinol.)



I'm wondering if low Vitamin D levels are associated with high BNP and if so,could the 6000 IU/day be enough to make any impact on reducing that BNP #, thus giving him more energy?

Thank you for your informative website. I'm really learning a lot.

Looking forward to your reply.

Helen


Photo by David Dennis


Comments for Heart Failure as a Symptom of Vitamin D Deficiency

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Yes, yes, yes! Congestive Heart Failure and Vitamin D Deficiency are Connected
by: Kerri Knox, RN- The Immune Queen!

Hi Helen,





More About Vitamin D



I'm SO HAPPY to hear about your dad! Congestive Heart Failure is such a terrible illness. Not that other chronic illnesses are 'better', but CHF REALLY robs people of their life and they end up hospitalized time after time after time, have no energy and really so much less quality of life in their later years.

I'm SO glad that you dad is back oil painting and has energy again! Whew!

So, I'm sorry to have got back to you so late, but this was a subject that I had been wanting to write about for a while and hadn't been able to get around to it, so I used your question as the impetus to write a few pages on The Nutritional Causes of Congestive Heart Failure, of which not only Vitamin D, but Carnitine and Selenium can also be the PRIMARY CAUSES of Congestive Heart Failure.

And by that I mean that in many cases, these problems CONTRIBUTE to Congestive Heart Failure, but in some cases, these nutritional deficiencies are the PRIMARY CAUSES of this disease!! That is big!

So, in honor of you and your dad, I've finished writing pages on:


The Nutritional Causes of Congestive Heart Failure

AND


Congestive Heart Failure and Vitamin D



So, I'm curious what your dad's level was?



Kerri Knox RN Immune Health Queen

Kerri Knox, RN- The Immune Health Queen
Functional Medicine Practitioner
Easy Immune Health.com
my dad's D test
by: helen

Kerri,


Just as you said, my dad got the wrong D test from his doctor(1,25 hidroxy..),showing that his levels were in the "normal range."


This even after I had written down the correct test to show the doc! My dad then promptly signed up for Vitamin D Home Test Kit for a real D test. I'll let you know his number soon.

Thank you
Booo. Dumb Doctor...
by: Kerri Knox, RN- The Immune Queen!

Arggh. Since your dad has been on Vitamin D already, you won't be able to show his doctor how low his Vitamin D Level was darn it!!




Doctors just still don't have a clue about that so they just really need to be shown these super low levels so that they understand. Anyway, I'd still love to know his numbers.

Helen, I've just been on a writing spree about the Causes of Heart Failure and you might be VERY interested in some more interesting studies that I found about Carnitine and Heart Failure and the importance of Magnesium in Heart Failure Deaths!


While we don't like thinking about that so much, magnesium AFTER diagnosis of heart failure is just something that your doctor is NOT going to tell you about. Especially since the American Heart Association is essentially recommending SURGERY to prevent the complications of heart failure caused by Magnesium Deficiency!


So, let us know how he's doing. I'm glad that your dad is so open to all of this. Some people find it SO hard to accept ideas that don't come from their doctors.


Kerri Knox RN Immune Health Queen

Kerri Knox, RN- The Immune Health Queen
Functional Medicine Practitioner
Easy Immune Health.com
D level results
by: Helen

My dad just got the real D test and his level is 47ng/ml! He has been taking apx 6-9000IU's(spray) daily for about 2 months, so I think that has to be why.


He had a heart attack 5 years ago and ever since then has either been holed up in the house or the hospital, never seeing the sun for years really, like most elderly people. He will get tested again in 6 months and continue on the same D dosage unless I advise him to reduce it.

Would you please advise?


Thank-you.
P.S. We are keeping his dumb doctor out of it

That's pretty good
by: Kerri Knox, RN- The Immune Queen!

Hi Helen,

So, 47 is pretty good. That's right where you want to keep it and you still have a little wiggle room to the upside and downside, so that's great.

So, according to the Vitamin D Requirements page says to take 5000 IU's to maintain your levels. So, 5000 IU's of Vitamin D3 per day is about right unless your dad is particularly big.

But that's a good place to start and then when he's retested, let me know and we can go from there.


Kerri Knox RN Immune Health Queen

Kerri Knox, RN- The Immune Health Queen
Functional Medicine Practitioner
Easy Immune Health.com

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