Originally published August 15 2011
Relieve joint and muscle pain, maintain healthy bone density with high doses of vitamin D
by Jonathan Benson, staff writer
(NaturalNews) A recent study published in the journal Breast Cancer Research and Treatment has found that taking high doses of vitamin D can help relieve the joint and muscle pain caused by taking aromatase inhibitor drugs for breast cancer. The research, which appears to apply generally to joint and muscle pain, also helps confirm that vitamin D helps to maintain bone density and prevent bone loss.
Researchers from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Mo., tested the effects of a weekly 50,000 international unit (IU) dose of vitamin D on women taking anastrozole, one of three FDA-approved aromatase inhibitors currently available to women with breast cancer. Compared to women taking a placebo, those given the 50,000 IU dose of vitamin D experienced less overall pain and discomfort.
"High-dose vitamin D seems to be really effective in reducing the musculoskeletal pain caused by aromatase inhibitors," said Dr. Antonella L. Rastelli, assistant professor of medicine and lead author of the study. "Patients who get the vitamin D weekly feel better because their pain is reduced and sometimes goes away completely."
And although the context of the study involved pain specifically caused by breast cancer drugs, the findings apply to all who experience general joint and muscle pain as well. Vitamin D itself is also a powerful anti-cancer nutrient, which means taking it in high doses can actually be more effective at treating breast cancer than taking aromatase inhibitors.
Vitamin D deficiency directly linked to joint, muscle pain
A comprehensive review of 22 different clinical studies conducted back in 2009 revealed a definitive link between vitamin D deficiency and chronic pain, including that of joints and muscles. Supplementing with high doses of vitamin D was shown to help alleviate and even cure such conditions (http://www.naturalnews.com/025237_Vitamin_D_...).
Vitamin D prevents, treats breast cancer
At the 2010 "Diagnosis and Treatment of Vitamin D Deficiency" conference put on by the University of Toronto School of Medicine, Dr. Cedric Garland announced that breast cancer can be "eradicated" by vitamin D. He presented research showing that vitamin D is crucial for healthy cell growth, and people who get plenty of it -- meaning daily doses of 2,000 IU or more for healthy individuals -- can prevent the onset of cancer (http://www.naturalnews.com/028119_vitamin_D_...).
Sources for this story include:
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2011-...
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