Remodeling of Bone Length in Old Age

Posted on June 4, 2017 by Mark Pegram

bone Can a bone increase in length after you have reached sixty years old? This happened to me. I was evaluated by x-ray with a shortened right leg of 3/4 inch in 2003 by an orthopedic surgeon and was verified in 2004 by another orthopedic surgeon. The second surgeon had operated on my low back for a ruptured disc in 1998 and 2003. I was prescribed an adjustment of my right shoe. A visit last week to the surgeon that performed my back surgery confirmed with x-ray that my legs are now normal equal length.

I had noticed over the last two years that there was minor pain in my left hip that became a noticeable limp. Just three weeks ago, I went to pick up the morning paper (I rushed out barefoot) and noticed that my gait was normal. I was confused. Had my right leg increased in length? The next morning on the way to the gym, I stopped at a Walmart and purchased a normal pair of gym shoes. My limp disappeared as I worked out. I made the appointment with the surgeon and found my legs are equal length.

If you are a reader of this blog, you know that I have successfully repaired my cartilage and required no more back surgery. This included a repair of stenosis through nutrition at C3-C4. The stenosis was causing severe sleep apnea as this is the location for the nerve to the lungs. This was accomplished with an increase of all vitamins and minerals. I had no idea that it could affect the bone growth plates to allow my bone length to remodel to my genetic map. It is interesting to note that over a ten month period in 2005 my height increased by approximately three inches. Imagine 23 vertebral discs and each increasing in thickness by about one tenth inch. The cartilage had repaired and freed me of disease.

I believe the remodeling of my right femur was from the increase of several significant factors for bone and cartilage health. This includes vitamin D3, vitamin A (from cod liver oil), methyl folate (not folic acid), gelatin for bone and cartilage protein, iodine, selenium (from Brazil nuts), manganese, sulfate, and magnesium as the key factors. The shoe lift worked just fine until 2014 or eleven years. The change started when I added iodine, selenium, gelatin, and sulfate. I added increased amounts of these in 2013 as I researched the need for cartilage repair. There may have been the factor of Metadichol as well. I started to supplement infrequently with nanoemulsion of policosanol in 2015. Based on the gene studies and intracellular receptor studies of nano-policosanol by Dr. Raghavan, this may have also had an effect.

What are the mechanisms of this action? I don’t have a clue. However, my thoughts from at least ten thousand hours of reading on nutrients has lead me to this belief, without describing actual mechanisms. The methyl folate along with B vitamins as cofactors (methylation cycle) leads to the increase of chondrocytes through stimulation of mesenchymal stem cells. I believe the methylation cycle is one of the most significant repair mechanisms of human physiology, but nothing works in isolation. Vitamin D3, vitamin A, iodine, and selenium act for differentiation of the chondrocytes in cartilage as well as the bone growth plate and the bone remodeling pathways. These same vitamins and minerals act in many mechanisms of repair for our organs. The addition of sulfate acts in many ways with the most important being detoxification, gut lining repair, neuron development, bone mineralization, and cartilage stability. The addition of gelatin assures that the necessary proteins are available. The result, bone and cartilage repair. Iodine and selenium are very significant for hormonal control through the thyroid and associated endocrine actions. With iodine deficiency during pregnancy, the worst case is cretinism and associated bone deformity and mental capacity loss. WHO says that iodine deficiency is the leading cause of mental disorders.

I tried to keep the intake of vitamins and minerals at levels that have been described for health as stated by many research papers. I tried not to exceed levels that are known to cause damage. An example is vitamin D3. I consume 10,000IU/d whether I spend time in the sun or not. This tends to keep my serum vitamin D level at high normal of 60 to 90 ng/ml of 25(OH)D. This is much higher than the current government suggestion of 600 IU per day of vitamin D3. My intake of iodine is much higher than the suggested 150 mcg/d. I take either Iodoral or Lugolâ’s solution for an intake of 12.5 mg/d of iodine/iodide combination. This is one hundred times higher than the recommendation but is consistent with the intake of the Japanese population. There is no suggested intake for sulfate and this is a huge error in medical science. I consume 3 to 4 grams of MSM per day.

I am not suggesting that you try any of this. Research in multivariate vitamins and minerals is very limited as modern science continues in its fallacy of one cure for one disease. Vitamin D3 for only bone health is an example of one that has gotten us into extremely poor health outcomes. Who knows, maybe God has stepped in to help only me recover after three decades of chronic pain and illness. Now at 66 YO, I am grateful every day for this blessing and will continue to communicate with you how to live without drugs for chronic illness and pain. Was my bone-length increasing a miracle? It certainly is an answer to prayer. On this Pentecost Sunday when the Holy Spirit first came to Christians two thousand years ago, I am praying for your health, both spiritual and physical. –Pandemic Survivor

My eBook about recovery: Healed from Chronic Pain

Resources for more reading: Â Bone Growth in Length and Width, the Yin and Yang of Bone Stability, F. Rauch

Aging and Bone, A. L. Boskey Â

Assault on the Nervous Systems by Anti-Cognitive Chemicals

Posted on March 11, 2014 by Mark Pegram

What do chloramines, fluoridation, lead corrosion, vitamin D deficiency, bromine, mineral sulfate removal, and iodine deficiency have in common? They should all be classified as anti-cognitive biological chemical processes. We can be our own worst enemy. We have been highly successful in our use of chemicals for technological advancement. We try to protect ourselves from toxic substances and pathogens, while creating health problems through unintended consequences. This has been the case for increases in Alzheimer’s, ADD, ADHD, Autism Spectrum Disorders, and other general cognitive impairment. Halogen (iodine, bromine, fluorine, etc.) physiology along with mineral deficiencies needs to be significantly reviewed in the US and the use of halogens in our food supplies and water sources need to be adjusted accordingly.

Consider in the late 1990’s that the EPA decided it would be a really great thing to reduce the amount of chloromethane created from the chlorination of water. They did this by forcing the use of ammonia added to water at the treatment plants creating chemicals in the water called chloramines. Chloramines formed in water are so toxic that fish cannot live in it. However, it is a longer lasting water disinfectant and it does not seem to generate as much chloromethane, a carcinogen. However, the other toxic disinfectant byproducts (DBP’s) that are created and unregulated are of concern. One of these may be halogen acetic acids. HAA’s have a stated standard with standards for chloro-acetic acid and iodo-acetic acid, but no standard for fluoro-acetic acid.

Chloraminated water is much more corrosive, most likely from the created HAA’s. This causes the leaching of lead from water pipes in supply and distribution systems (my city has thousands of miles of iron pipe held together at the joints with lead like must municipalities) and home potable water systems that are joined with solder lead joints. There have been several studies showing an increase in lead content in water after the start of chloramination or the use of chloramines.

Fluoride has been shown to aid the build-up of the concentration of lead in the human body. So by fluoridation of water to supposedly improve our dental health along with the use of chloramines, we have inadvertently created higher amounts of lead. This is of major concern for the developing brains of our children and the aging brains of elderly.

The US is the only country in the world that allows the use of bromine in baking and in cloudy citrus drinks. This iodine mimic causes significantly physiological malfunction in the thyroid as well as other functional biological iodine processes. Consider that children have a ten to fifteen times higher uptake of iodine versus adults and consider the damage. Bromine is not used in other countries because it is a carcinogen.

Add to this vitamin and mineral deficiency. Vitamin D is responsible for mineral balance in the body, in particular the sodium-sulfate co-transporter. Adequate sulfate is necessary for the formation of cerebroside sulfate that is necessary for proper neuron development. Also consider that iodine deficiency is considered by the World Health Organization as the number one cause of mental illness in the world. Sulfate also is the body’s best defense against toxins as it removes them through water soluble sulfate esters. Cities remove the sulfate minerals from the water because it is stinky and plugs the pipes. Iodine, D3, and sulfate deficiencies combine as a disaster for mental function.

Take away iodine, vitamin D3, sulfate and add neuro-toxins and iodine mimics and you have the perfect conditions necessary for cognitive impairment. Well the cause is idiopathic the experts claim. Is Dr. M. Scott Peck accurate in his description of group evil through specialization? One thing is certain, idiots and unintended consequences always seem to find each other. In the case of water disinfection and vitamin and mineral deficiencies, you might say that this meeting of idiots and unintended consequences has created epicentric waves of causation for cognitive impairment. For now, your cognizant commenter – Pandemic Survivor

Migraines – The Unknown Pain

Posted on December 12, 2013 by Mark Pegram

It starts as jagged little lines in your vision otherwise known as an aura. Usually one side of the head fills like it is ready to explode or implored. Bright lights really do you in and the doctor does not seem to be able to help you. “We are not sure of the cause”, she says. “Take this jagged little pill and why don’t you call me later this week if you still cannot function.” – OUCH!

Modern medicine seems to be at a loss for what causes migraines. As a suggestion by one of my readers, I have decided to spend some time in exploring what is available. The findings – not much, but don’t despair there is hope as research and clinical practice has provided some clues. There are quite a few research papers on migraines and the treatment with IV magnesium sulfate. The question then becomes what are the mechanisms involved so that we can make a drug to treat migraines. Of course I don’t ask questions like that. Better is the question is it sulfur or sulfate deficiency or a magnesium deficiency or is it a combination of the two.

We know that sulfites are a significant trigger for migraines. But I would not discount sulfate as an aid to the solution to migraines. I find it extremely interesting that IV magnesium sulfate is used for the treatment pre-eclampsia. Is it the sulfate or the magnesium or both that helps with the high blood pressure in pregnant women? It has been shown by Dr. Hollis of the Medical University of South Carolina that higher levels vitamin D significantly reduces the possibility of pre-eclampsia during pregnancy.

The question then becomes how does something as simple as Epsom salt relieve both pre-eclampsia as well as migraines? We also know from an earlier post that magnesium sulfate is significant in treating pulmonary hypertension. Another yet unexplored clue. As always statements give us a state but questions lead on a quest.

If we take all the clues and toss them into the air and let then rotate in quantum permutations, it would seem that vitamin D, magnesium, and sulfur as sulfate act both independently and together. Acting independently vitamin D controls a significant amount of mineral balance and hormonal activation and balance. The mineral balance of course leads to fluid balance across membranes. Vitamin D3 is the gate keeper for the sodium-sulfate transport through all dermal layers. The magnesium is the ion of choice for the ATP/ADP energy transfer and is the ion of choice for over 350 of the body’s enzymes. Sulfate acts in many ways as in helping to control fluid pressure in arteries and membranes. As an example, since I have assured an adequate amount of sulfate intake, my blood pressure has stabilized at 115/70- not bad for a fat sixty plus grumpy. Also the sulfate makes a water soluble ester of super oxide dismutase that is your body’s cellular waste removal system. Blocking of the mitochondrial bodies in their effort to produce usable energy, whether from not having enough magnesium for transport or sulfate for waste removal is certainly an issue.

So what to do? I guess if I had migraines, I would assure that I was getting an adequate amount of each of these nutrients. You could start by taking 40 IU of vitamin D3 per pound of body weight. The serum for vitamin D or 25(OH)D is critical and should be maintained above 60 ng/ml- get tested. Magnesium and sulfate may be solved by simply soaking in an Epsom salt bath about three times per week once your serum vitamin D is high enough to allow for the transport of sulfur to take place properly. Alternative would be to take about 1000 mg of MSM per fifty pounds of body weight (found at your local vitamin store) and 3.5 to 4.5 mg per pound of body weight of magnesium as a chelate like, aspartate, malate, glycinate or an amino acid chelate. I would suggest not taking magnesium hydroxide like milk of magnesia or magnesium oxide. It you are taking magnesium oxide, just throw it into the commode because that is where it will end up – not absorbed in your gut. Also for sulfate, you may consider that you eat at least three cups of the combination of cruciferous and alliums vegetables each day. Think cold slaw with an onion diced into it or asparagus with garlic. Also be sure to take a multiple vitamin to assure you are getting the minerals necessary to make the sulfate esters, i.e. manganese, copper, zinc, etc.

To recap: vitamin D, magnesium as a chelate, sulfate, and a multiple vitamin. Sounds too simple – it must be right. The key is to get enough of each. Also be sure to eliminate all foods that contain sulfites. This may be a difficult task as it is used as a preservative and in wine and sometimes even on salads to keep them fresh. The body will preferentially take on the sulfite and interfere with the desired sulfate reactions.

My wife recently complained that she thought she was getting a migraine which seems to run in her family. Distorted vision and a low throbbing in her head were her symptoms. I had her take 800 mg of magnesium as magnesium malate along with ten thousand IU of D3 and the symptoms left. I would not have any suggestions otherwise unless it is so severe that you may want to consider IV magnesium sulfate – see your doctor. You could try a teaspoon full of Epsom salt in coffee or tea. More than two teaspoons full and you will start to reach bowel tolerance as Epsom salt is used as a laxative.

Pain is not felt in the brain because there are no sensory nerve endings, which allows surgery on the brain while being conscious. So where is the pain felt in headaches? – don’t know, but when I have a headache it sure feels like it is in the brain. Maybe it is because the neurons are so clogged with waste, not enough energy, and improper sodium, potassium, calcium, and magnesium balance it pains you. -Pandemic Survivor

More info on migraines and magnesium: http://mgwater.com/listd.shtml#migraine
Note: The serum test for magnesium does not correspond to cellular levels of magnesium. It may take several months to become replete in magnesium.

Pain Reduction

Posted on December 7, 2013 by Mark Pegram

Pain crawls slowly over us as a wet blanket covered in fine grains of sand or slams us instantly into a knurled lump of screaming anxiety. Looking for relief leads us down paths that would not be otherwise chosen. Stumbling in excruciating pain leads to emotional anchors and then into a sad lightless black darkness. And through this you decide whether you whether to chose misery or embrace an outlook of hope. Love, joy, and peace seem to have left the station for other destinations, but always remember this is your goal.

I am no stranger to pain having suffered chronic pain for three decades. And then, vitamin D! It seems odd, something as simple as the sun gives us so much relief. I was caught up in a world of misinformation after having a heat stroke from exposure to the sun when I was three. The heat stroke almost killed me. The remedy of staying out of the sun would have killed if not for having walked through the door of societal dilemmas. Art called science being driving down the road of motivated institutional immorality left me in a sad darkness.

Vitamin D is hugely significant in helping to deal with all kinds of pain, in particular chronic pain. When you add to that the remedy of sulfur and magnesium, pain runs from your body like a scalded hound that was caught in the chicken house. Long have mud baths, mineral spring water, garlic, onions, and Epson salt soaks all have in common sulfur and magnesium and analgesic properties. The vitamin D controls the action of these minerals throughout the body. From the start of taking vitamin D, I was off of pain meds in about ten months. That is serious meds as in the form of 400 mg of tramadol(Ultram) along with 1600 mg of gabapentin(Neurontin). And now, seven years later with no meds there is only love, peace, and joy.

I like what Henry Lahore, Vitamindwiki, has to say about his understanding of vitamin D.

Note about pain and vitamin D from Henry Lahore

I emailed the following to a friend on our shared 66th birthday, March 2012
Ah, I am 66 years old now but feel like I am in my early 50’s (taking 12,000 IU vitamin D daily in the winter) Lots of vitamin D in the past 2 years

All aches and pains are gone.
My psoriasis on my knee is gone
My feet no longer develop cracked the skin
Essential tremor in my hands is gone
My neck is no longer sore
My back is no longer sore
My brain is back (able to think and remember much better)
The Raynaud’s pain in my fingers is gone
It is a great decade As (not just my day)
My wife feels 10 years younger too (she is taking 10,000 IU daily)

Take some time and go to Vitamindwiki’s page on pain. You will find way too much information there to consume. I would suggest Vitamin D for chronic pain -2008.pdf about half way down the page: “Vitamin D – A Neglected ‘Analgesic’ for Musculoskeletal Pain”, Hollis, et.al.

You may not be able to do anything about your pain, but you do get to decide if you want misery as well. – Pandemic Survivor

Folic Acid – the Horror Story

Posted on September 6, 2013 by Mark Pegram

We as the population of the world have suffered through many chronic diseases. We are no different than people, especially people that claimed to be medical professionals, from two centuries ago. Medicine is still practiced as an art with some science thrown in end to give credibility to our claims. Now has the medical industrial complex once again deceived us with the introduction of folic acid to make up for our L-methyl folate deficiency? A qualified answer to this question is yes.

Folic acid is not a naturally occurring molecule. It was first processed in the 1940’s in a laboratory. In 1998, folic acid was added to ‘fortify’ foods, especially grains. The reasoning was that the population and especially pregnant mothers were deficient. This was causing neural tubes defects. It is true that neural tube defects have been reduced and this is a good thing.

Now researchers are saying that folic acid that remains in the blood stream is causing an increased incidence in several cancers including breast, colon, and prostate cancer. It seems that at least ten percent of the population has the MTHFR polymorphism and keeps folic acid from quickly being converted to methyl folate, the natural occurring substance in foods that our body uses. Others have said that at least seventy percent of the population has some form of polymorphism that slows the process. The excess folic acid circulating in the blood causes a reduction in the action of our natural killer cells. This is believed to be the issue of increased cancer rates.

Also, the methyl folate is the primary contributing nutrient to the genetic switching that occurs from the methyl cycle. How the methyl cycle is controlled in the body by methyl folate is extremely important and second only to the action of vitamin D. Genetic switching is what keeps you healthy. Whether the gene is properly turned on or off is critical to your health. Dr. Randy Jirtle in his work at Duke University has shown this to be the case with his study on mice and methyl donors. There is a host of chronic disease that you may review at the MTHFR.net website.

If you consider that fortification begin in 1998, I believe this is about the same time the incidence of autism significantly increased. The importance of folate to the neural system is that it acts directly in the mitochondrial body in the sulfur cycle. Here the various sulfate molecules that the body needs are created. The ones related to the neural system is the molecule that is created for the myelin sheath that covers the nerve pathways. Without the integrity of this sheath, the neurons cannot appropriately fire because the sodium, potassium, and magnesium are not held closely to the neurons.

Also a study in Italy that was designed to show the effect of folate on heart disease, it was found that there was thickening of the cartilage in patients with higher amounts of folate. I am sure this effect is caused by genetic switching with cofactors like B6, B12, and vitamin D.

I have not been able to find a vitamin B complex supplement that has methyl folate and not folic acid. In the practice of medicine, folic acid and folate are considered to be the same compound. Folic acid is the oxidized form of L-methyl folate NOT A NATURALLY OCCURING COMPOUND. This is the same error that was made with vitamin D when vitamin D2 was said to be equal to vitamin D3. In the 1930’s when the substitution was made to vitamin D2 is when the cases of vitamin D toxicity started to occur in the medical literature.

What can you do? Stop supplementing with all forms of folic acid. Be careful in how much food you consume that has been fortified with folic acid. Maybe this is one of the primary issues with wheat. Dr. William Davis in his book, “Wheat Belly” says there are many issues with wheat. Fortification of our cereal with folic acid may have exacerbated the situation and is causing more chronic disease. Methyl folate is available in many foods, especially dark leafy greens like spinach. A boiled half cup of spinach has about 134 micrograms of folate. In the consumption of beans, black-eyed peas are the highest at 105 mcg per one half cup. Liver has the highest amount in the meats at 215 mcg in one half cup.

There many brands of methyl folate supplements on the market. Try to get at least 400 mcg per day from your foods, if not supplement. As I was writing this my wife called to see what I wanted for dinner. I suggested boiled spinach, black-eyed peas, and liver cook with onions (for the sulfate). She hung up the phone. I did actually get turnip greens, black-eyed peas, and steak. Not the best but close. Maybe the popular attitude of the 50’s and 60’s was correct. “I’m strong to the finish ‘cause I eats me spinach, I’m Popeye the sailor man!” Sing along! What a medical professional – Popeye! – Pandemic Survivor

The Value of Spending Time in the Sun

Posted on February 22, 2013 by Mark Pegram

There are pundits out there claiming that making vitamin D in the sun is better than taking it orally because you will make more vitamin D3 sulfate which is very active in transforming health and not just in moving calcium around. In particular are the statements of Dr. Mercola in making this claim. He has made a leap in logic where there are no logical pathways. My contention is if cholesterol can be turn into cholesterol sulfate by replacing an OH group with a SO4 group then the same can occur with vitamin D3 through normal biological processes.

Sulfation (adding a sulfate) occurs with many different molecules. Some of the more common ones are the glycans that are responsible for giving you healthy joints. Another is keratin sulfate that gives you healthy skin. It seems that for some reason Dr. Mercola has reached the conclusion that the only way that you make vitamin D3 sulfate is from cholesterol sulfate in the skin with UVB incident light. It is my belief that you have more vitamin D3 sulfate when you have an adequate intake of sulfate. After all, the hypothesis of Stephanie Seneff was there are lower heart disease and other chronic diseases in countries with higher natural sulfur.

I believe the benefit from getting your vitamin D3 from sunning is more about forming water boundaries. Dr. Gerald Pollack, University of Washington bioengineering professor, discovered that water forms structured boundaries when exposed to infrared light (benefit of exposing our bodies to the sun?). There is a sixty minute you tube video where he presents his findings – “Water, Energy, and Life: Fresh Views from the Water’s Edge”. I believe these boundaries form when hydrogen in the boundary region has different bond angles in the water molecule. This higher energy level of water requires you to spend time in infrared light for the bond angles to form. Also you may consider that one of the practices of chiropractors is to treat people in infrared light to improve health. There are a number of infrared light therapy products on the market now for treating primarily pain.

I believe the benefit of getting vitamin D from the sun is no greater than taking it orally. The benefit of going into the sun is to help make healthy membranes so that our biological processes work the best. Of course I am referring to the separation of sodium/potassium which drives our whole neurological processes. Also the action of calcium and magnesium may be controlled to a degree by the difference in boundary potentials.

I know that this may sound odd, but infrared light is just as important to health as ultraviolet light. Be sure you are getting enough inorganic sulfates and spend time in the sun as it is very beneficial to you. What could be better than soaking in an Epsom salts bath while in the sun? – Pandemic Survivor

The Mystery of Vitamin D3 Sulfate

Posted on February 19, 2013 by Mark Pegram

When I first heard about vitamin D3 sulfate from the work of Stephanie Seneff, I was not sure what to think of her proposals. Vitamin D3 sulfate does the real work in our biological systems to fight off chronic disease. However, from a strictly chemical biological basis, it did seem to make sense. The distinction between vitamin D2 and D3 is extremely important and the distinction between vitamin D2 and D3 sulfate is even more important she writes.

Consider this abstract from the 1980 paper: “Synthesis and Biological Activity of Vitamin D3-Sulfate” (pdf) by Reeve, DeLuca, and Schones – University of Wisconsin.

Vitamin D₃-3Bsulfate has been synthesized using pyridine sulfur trioxide as the sulfate donor. It has been shown to be pure by high performance liquid chromatography and spectral methods. Unlike previous reports, the product has been identified unambiguously as the 3B-sulfate ester of vitamin D3 by its ultraviolet, nuclear magnetic resonance, infrared, and mass spectra. The biological activity of vitamin D3-sulfate was then determined in vitamin D-deficient rats. Vitamin D3-sulfate has less than 5% of the activity of vitamin D3 to mobilize calcium from bone and approximately 1% of the ability of vitamin D3 to stimulate calcium transport, elevate serum phosphorus, or support bone calcification. These results disprove previous claims that vitamin D3-sulfate has potent biological activity, and they further do not support the contention that vitamin D-sulfate represents a potent water-soluble form of vitamin D in milk.

Here you have the world renowned research of DeLuca at the University of Wisconsin, the bastion of vitamin D research, saying that vitamin D3 sulfate is not potent biologically. This is in direct opposition to what is stated by Stephanie Seneff. I believe that Seneff is correct and in this case DeLuca is just wrong. He is wrong because of his assumption vitamin D3 sulfate does not move calcium around that it is not biological active. After all, isn’t this the thing we are after to fight chronic disease? – A form of active vitamin D that does not spike serum calcium.

What has happened? At one point DeLuca stated that the University of Wisconsin had not published beneficial results for vitamin D so that others would not beat them in the race to develop marketable vitamin D analogs. Is that what is going on? Or is this just scientific ineptness? Could vitamin D3 sulfate be the natural molecule that fights heart disease through building muscle strength, fights off kidney disease, allows the immune system activity in fighting cancer to not be stopped by enzymatic action, stimulates the beta cells in the pancreas to fight type I and II diabetes, and fights brain disease by breaking up amyloid plaques – all of this without disturbing the delicate balance of serum calcium?

Only when the research institutions have the best interest of the tax payers and other contributors of funding in mind instead of maintaining a highly profitable institution will research breakthroughs occur to allow leaps in medical technology. Until this is resolved, the best thing that you can do for your health is to be sure that your body is getting enough of the proper nutrients so that chronic disease does not find a home in your biological systems. – Pandemic Survivor

Sulfate Combats High Blood Pressure

Posted on February 12, 2013 by Mark Pegram

In the journey of discovery of how nutrients, in various forms, affect our bodies, I have been really amazed at the importance of sulfur for our health. I guess this should not have surprised me as you think about many of the health remedies that have a sulfur connection. All mud baths and mineral waters have sulfur, usually as sulfate, in their make-up. Garlic has always been associated with its many curative properties. Garlic, even in low sulfur soils, will find a way to reach high sulfur content. There are over thirty sulfur compounds to be found in garlic. When soaking in Epsom salts baths, it has typically been thought that the magnesium was the curative ingredient in the magnesium sulfate.

As I discovered that vitamin D3 controls the transporters for sulfate in various organs, I now wonder if this is not part of the curative effect of vitamin D3. Vitamin D3 improves the ability of our bodies in how we handle sulfur. As you already know from my earlier post, sulfur is extremely important in many biological functions.

I have some issue with high blood pressure, but not high enough to where I needed a med. Although at times, my blood pressure has been much higher than it should have been. It was not unusual to see numbers of 130/90. This is caller pre-hypertension. As I begin to supplement with vitamin D3 and then magnesium, my blood pressure became normal reading typically around 125/80. As I added sulfate to my diet through additional cruciferous vegetables and alliums and mineral water, my blood pressure has dropped again. It now typically runs at 115/70. This is a significant indicator of improving health.

It seems that our medical professional in the US have not considered sulfate when trying to reduce high blood pressure. It seems that they have always thought it was the magnesium in magnesium sulfate that was effective. Consider this article from Livestrong. The article starts by quoting a physician saying that magnesium sulfate is the only treatment for high blood pressure and then proceeds to discuss magnesium. The assumption has always been that we have an excess of sulfate available to us.

Intravenous magnesium sulfate has always been the choice in reducing high blood pressure issues like pre-eclampsia and pulmonary hypertension. Why have we not considered that it was the sulfate as the primary actor and not the magnesium? The Chinese seem to be ahead of us in their approach to discovering methods to combat hypertension with sulfate. Consider these two journal papers: Effects of sulfur dioxide on hypoxic pulmonary vascular structure remodeling, Sun, et.al. and Endogenously generated sulfur dioxide and its vasorelaxant effect in rats, Shu-xu Du, et. Al.

Sulfur dioxide, a toxic gas usually associated with acid rain, is the effective form of sulfur for hypertension. Sulfur dioxide is not to be confused with hydrogen sulfide, the toxic gas found in sewers. It seems that sulfur dioxide works in synergy with nitric oxide in this relaxation effect in our blood vessels. It is interesting to understand this because one of the catalysts for the production of acid rain from sulfur dioxide is also nitric oxide. How odd. Certainly the body cannot generate the sulfur dioxide as needed if we do not have enough sulfur in our bodies.

The intake of sulfur compounds most be made on a daily basis. As we have discussed before, sulfate in the body acts as our waste removal system. This constantly depletes the sulfur stores in our bodies. Nature has made sulfur as sulfate readily available to us through high mineral content water. However, we have consistently removed the minerals from our water because of issues like hardness and plugging water piping.

Eat your vegetables, drink your mineral water, and soak in an Epsom salts bath while being replete in vitamin D. Imagine yourself soaking in a mineral spring in the summer sun – ah, the curative effect. – Pandemic Survivor

Understanding Vitamin D with other Nutrients

Posted on January 12, 2013 by Mark Pegram

When the understanding that cod liver oil would help to prevent and heal rickets was made, there was no understanding as to the mechanisms of action of the components of cod liver oil. All that was known was that if you used cod liver oil, rickets and some other diseases were prevented and cured. When modern medical research began to decide mechanisms of action to predict the correct amount of vitamin D in combination with vitamin A, confusion has issued. There is currently a battle about the correct amounts of vitamin D and vitamin A between the Vitamin D Council and the Weston Price Foundation. Vitamin D Council on the ratio for vitamin D and A (please note the other articles in the left hand column on Vitamin A and CLO); Weston Price discussion; and update

I believe that the confusion arises from trying to extrapolate useful information from a nutritional or medical study considering one or two nutrients that is being evaluated using analysis of the variance -ANOV. Human biology is much more complicated as the interaction of many nutrients gives us health or disease. After decades of making the same error, manufacturing has been able to overcome this confusion by using analysis of the means. ANOM gives not only the outcome of the principle inputs but also the interaction of the various inputs. Until better methods are adopted by medical/nutritional research, we are just left with the best guess interpretation of the ‘experts.’

So where does that leave us? I believe it is about what gives you health or disease. I have been supplementing with the nutrients in which we are deficient for eight years now. The interaction and the amounts of daily intake of vitamin D, vitamin A, vitamin C, sulfate, iodine, and magnesium are critical. When I have started to feel bad or had other less than desirable symptoms, I have found that I have to change the balance of one of these deficiencies.

After much trial and error this is where I am now in units per pound of body weight per day:

Vitamin D3   40 IU
Vitamin A from fish liver Oil             20 IU
Vitamin C       20mg
Sulfate             40mg
Magnesium      4.5 mg
Iodine                 0.05mg (example 150 lb weight – 7.5mg)

This of course says nothing of the other nutrients from diet and supplementation that are essential to health. However, the ones listed above are typically difficult if not impossible to get from the American diet.

These amounts and the sources that you derive the nutrients from may be different for you as our bodies do not all process a given nutrient the same way. This is due to the fact that we may be deficient or have an over abundance of other nutrients in our bodies to say nothing of our state of health. Let’s examine an example and you can see what I mean.

Suppose you have low energy and feel cranky. Knowing that magnesium is responsible for the action of over 300 enzymes you may decide that you need to increase magnesium. However, there are several other things that may be the problem even if you are getting enough of the above nutrients. It may be that you are not absorbing enough vitamin B12 because of your age. Or, it could be that you are not getting enough of the correct types of fats and proteins. Or, it may simply be that you are eating too much sugar and you blood sugar spikes are the issue, etc.

Eating a great diet of fruits, vegetables, grains, nuts, and meats while supplementing with the nutrients in which you are deficient will give you optimum health. It is only through your record keeping of how you feel, trial and error of amounts, and types of foods that are consumed can you reach this desire. There is no magic formula. There is magic for health when the balance of nutrients is correct -Pandemic Survivor

Inorganic Sulfate and the Nervous System

Posted on January 9, 2013 by Mark Pegram

We had established earlier that inorganic sulfate has many roles for health in this post: Human Health – Sulfur and the Vitamin D Connection

We also found that the sodium-sulfate co-transporters are controlled by vitamin D. “Critical role of vitamin D in sulfate homeostasis: regulation of the sodium-sulfate cotransporter by 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D₃” Bolt, et.al. Journal of Endocrinology and Metabolism, May 27, 2004.

I would now like to consider what effects sulfate has on the central nervous system. In the article found on the USDA website, “Sulfate” (pdf), there is a list of many compounds that are critical to health that are formed out of the energy cycle ATP-ADP in combination with inorganic sulfate. One of the listed compounds is cerebroside sulfate. A variation of this compound (galactose) makes up two percent of grey matter and twelve percent of white matter. The glucose variation is found in many organ cells, neurons, and skin where it acts to maintain water permeability.

The galactose variation is the major component of the myelin sheath that protects your nerves throughout the body. The health of this sheath also dictates the speed and proper response of nerve signal transmission by maintaining a local reservoir of sodium and potassium. I think that this is the major pathway of vitamin D that reduces pain all over the body. Galactoslycerimides are not found in plants. I guess since there is not a nervous system there is no need.

I may have related a story to you earlier by a pharmacist that had difficulty in controlling a patient’s pain without having the patient pass out from the meds. At the insistence of a relative of the patient for a change in meds, the pharmacist decided to try adding a significant amount of vitamin D. With the addition of the vitamin D3, the patient was able to have the meds reduced by half and remained lucid. To me this is an amazing story that says generalized pain can be significantly reduced just by the addition of vitamin D3.

In the morning, I notice a significant clearing of the brain after drinking a mineral water that has a significant amount of sulfate added as magnesium sulfate. I go many times without any coffee because it is not needed with the mineral water.

There are two things that we do as a society that really bothers me. First, we spend huge amounts of money to take the hardness out of the water. The hardness is normally caused by calcium and magnesium sulfate and/or chloride. This water is not harmful to human health, but beneficial to human health. It has been promoted as theory that the reason the low death rate for heart disease in both Greece and Japan are because of the high sulfate in the water. This hardness is not a problem for water systems as long as carbonate is not introduced. If carbonate is introduced or occurs naturally, then the calcium carbonate precipitates out of solution fouling the water system. Our water supply systems should remove the carbonate and leave the rest of the minerals. Of course, we would not get many suds formation when washing. This could actually be a good thing in washing.

Second, when you have a blood test only three of the four major anions in the blood are measured routinely. Phosphate, chloride, and bicarbonate are routinely measured and the levels used as markers or indicators for various biological functions. However, the fourth, sulfate, is not measured. To me this is an extremely necessary part of health and standards should be developed for serum sulfate levels. It most likely could be used as a marker for various disease states like heart disease or the ability to cope with pain.

In whatever way you decide through diet, supplementation, or soaking in an Epsom salts bath; be sure that you are getting enough sulfates. – Pandemic Survivor

Vitamin D Deficiency Survivor

Changing the Face of Health with Vitamin D

Category Archives: sulfur