Even at very high intake levels, vitamin D does not appear to cause toxicity, an American study reveals.

Some experts have warned people against taking vitamin D in doses that exceed the recommended daily allowance (RDA), claiming that excess vitamin D may lead to problems such as hypercalcemia, a condition characterized by elevated blood calcium levels that may cause weakness, kidney stones, and brain and heart disturbances. However, a study conducted by Mayo Clinic researchers has shown that vitamin D toxicity is not really an issue. The team of scientists analyzed blood data collected in the period 2002-2011 from patients in the Rochester Epidemiology Project and made some interesting observations.

Researchers have found that individuals who are genetically prone to low vitamin D status have an increased risk of multiple sclerosis.

A team of researchers from McGill University, Canada, has found a link between decreased vitamin D status and increased risk of multiple sclerosis (MS). In their study, which is published in PLOS Medicine, they compared data from thousands of participants with and without MS. As part of their research they looked at how genetic factors affected vitamin D levels in the participants. The researchers found that those people who were genetically prone to low vitamin D status were at least twice as likely to have MS. To explain their observations in more simple terms, when you increase a person's circulating levels of 25OHD (biologically active vitamin D) by 1.5-fold, it decreases their risk of developing MS by 50%.

American scientists have demonstrated that measurements of vitamin D levels in patients with early stages of sclerosis may predict how fast the disease will progress. If levels are low it may be a sign of faster disease progression and also a sign that this development may be slowed down if the patients increase their vitamin D intake.

Although there are two forms of coenzyme Q10 in the body - ubiquinone and ubiquinol - only one of them is able to document an effect. This was recently ascertained by one of the leading Q10 researchers in the world.

In October, the Norwegian government passed a law against the import of medical drugs that are not approved by the Norwegian health authorities. The whole purpose with this new law is to protect Norwegian consumers against narcotics and forged medical drugs. In fact, the new law includes food supplements and this has caused an uproar among Norwegian supplement users who feel that it is an infringement of their right to buy any imported food supplement they desire.

An increasing number of people have started using magnesium supplements against migraine attacks and headaches. Even physicians acknowledge that this mineral may actually have great potential.

More women than men die of cardiovascular disease. Diet and lifestyle play a crucial role in prevention, and there are certain supplements which have been shown to reduce heart-related deaths by over 50%.

The way in which selenium and iodine interact is determining for the thyroid gland and the metabolism. A deficiency of one or both nutrients coupled with exposure to environmental toxins may have grave consequences and contribute to some of the most commonly occurring metabolic disorders.

and can antioxidants prevent it?

Overweight often leads to type-2 diabetes and the early stage of the condition known as insulin resistance. A new scientific study suggests that oxidative damage, also known as oxidative stress, sets the stage for these disturbances in the body's sugar and lipid metabolism. The doctors behind this study therefore theorize that it is possible to prevent type-2 diabetes with antioxidants that are known to counteract oxidative stress.

The HPV vaccine that is used as protection against cervical cancer has been subject to massive media coverage lately because it has serious side effects. But how do people make an informed choice? And is it possible to use specific essential nutrients to boost the immune system against HPV and possible side effects from this vaccine?

A combination of the trace element selenium and the vitamin-like compound coenzyme Q10 appears to be a highly useful treatment for people with impaired cardiac function.

Heart failure is a major problem for the middle-aged and elderly but emerging science has shown a huge potential for selenium and coenzyme Q10 as a natural treatment that can help patients to increased heart muscle performance and improved quality of life.
Most recently, Iranian scientists from the Isfahan University of Medical Sciences demonstrated1 that selenium and coenzyme Q10 given to patients with heart failure significantly increased the contractile strength of the heart muscle and resulted in a number of improvements in the general condition of the patients, thereby enabling them to cope more easily with their condition.

A recently published study shows promising results of giving daily supplements of vitamin D to sufferers of Crohn's disease. Apparently, the vitamin improves the intestinal barrier dysfunction associated with the ailment.