Vitamin D Supplements
For many years, the assumption has been that supplementing vitamin D would improve health in all the areas of the body where there are receptors (virtually every tissue in the body). Levels for what should be considered insufficient and deficient were decided upon (somewhat arbitrarily) at <30 and <20 ng/ml. Blood testing and vitamin supplementation have been the norm ever since – despite a lack of prospective, randomized controlled studies of the benefits (or harms) of this practice.
That all changed in 2011, when the VITAL study set out to evaluate the purported benefits of vitamin D with a prospective, randomized, placebo-controlled research project consisting of over 25,000 participants. This was a huge, gold-standard study: tens of thousands of participants divided up with one group taking vitamin D, the other taking an identically-appearing fake, or placebo. Then, researchers sat back and waited for five years to see what would happen.
According to the latest striking update published last month in the New England Journal of Medicine: There was no population of individuals (even groups with baseline vitamin D levels below 20) that had a reduced fracture risk with vitamin D supplementation. Given the study size, we can be certain that almost every common patient scenario (including those with preexisting osteoporosis or osteoporotic fracture) was included.
Bonus information from other studies: Vitamin D supplementation appears to increase risk of falls and decrease strength, for reasons no one completely understands. This interview effectively puts vitamin D into the garbage bin – watch it for a high-level discussion of the research. And with annual vitamin D testing costs of $300 million, it’s an expense even a rich country like America can’t afford.
Bottom line: stop testing vitamin D levels. Stop taking vitamin D.
There was one caveat: vitamin D supplements are still recommended for a small subset of people, such as those who live in institutional settings with little access to sunlight, or those with absorption issues such as celiac disease or a history of bariatric surgery.
Monkeypox Vaccine Information
The Baskin Clinic will not be administering the monkeypox vaccine. However, those at high risk of exposure may be eligible to receive it from a local health department. If you are interested in seeing if you are eligible for the monkeypox vaccine, call the number for your county health department (listed here). Supplies are limited, so you will likely be put on a waiting list.
For more information about Monkeypox, please visit: https://www.cdc.gov/poxvirus/monkeypox/index.html
988 Suicide and Crisis Hotline
The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is now the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline.
The 988 Lifeline provides 24/7, free and confidential support for people in distress, prevention and crisis resources for individuals or their loved ones, and best practices for professionals in the United States. When people call, text, or chat 988, they will be connected to trained counselors that are part of the existing National Suicide Prevention Lifeline network.
In Oregon, 988 call centers are operated by Lines for Life statewide, and Northwest Human Services in Marion and Polk counties. Trained counselors will listen, understand how problems are affecting the individual, provide support, and connect them to resources if necessary.
The previous Lifeline phone number (1-800-273-8255) will always remain available to people in emotional distress or suicidal crisis, even after 988 is launched nationally.
For more information and answers to frequently asked questions, visit: https://www.nami.org/NAMI/media/NAMI-Media/PDFs/NAMI-FAQs-for-Nationwide-Availability-of-988.pdf
New Pneumococcal Vaccine Recommendations
Be sure to discuss the new pneumonia vaccine with your doctor at your next physical. If you are 65 years of age or more and have not been vaccinated, or are unsure of your vaccine history, contact the office to determine the next steps in completing your immunization. Because of the high cost of the vaccine, we will not be stocking this in the office. If you meet the eligibility requirements, Medicare or your other insurance will cover the cost of the vaccine at the pharmacy of your choice.
COVID News
Paxlovid
Baskin Clinic is following the FDA guidance for this experimental medication, which is copied below:
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) for the emergency use of the unapproved product PAXLOVID for the treatment of mild-to-moderate COVID-19 in adults and pediatric patients (12 years of age and older) who are at high risk for progression to severe COVID-19, including hospitalization or death.
Paxlovid has been shown to reduce the risk of hospitalization and death in unvaccinated patients infected with earlier, more dangerous strains of the virus. But there is little data on Paxlovid’s benefits (or lack thereof) in the most common situation today: immunized persons infected with the much milder strains of virus now circulating.
Furthermore, while there has been much press about complication risk from various medical conditions, your age is the greatest risk factor for a bad outcome with COVID (see graphic above).
Is it Time for a Third Booster?
We’ve been getting questions about when to get additional booster doses of the COVID vaccine. At this time, all people over 50 and those aged 12-49 with an immunocompromising condition are eligible to get a second booster dose. That may change in the future, and if it does, we will let you know.
As always, we like to leave you with something fun. Maybe you remember the short-lived video platform Quibi — or maybe you don’t. To sum up, Quibi was supposed to be like TikTok for celebrities. It launched during COVID before the mask was a thing and was gone before the vaxx was a thing, losing about $1.5 billion along the way.
Luckily, the best content made its way to Youtube, and if you are a fan of fencing, fighting, torture, revenge, giants, monsters, chases, escapes, true love, or miracles….then you need to see this scene-by-scene home video remake of the 1987 classic film The Princess Bride. If you haven’t seen the original, then start there. Enjoy!
Take care,
Baskin Clinic