# Vitamin D - nightmares



## Alice In TX/MO (May 10, 2002)

I've been taking a (large) Vitamin D supplement due to poor absorption of calcium. What I've discovered is that it gives me horrible nightmares. Just thought I'd post this in case anyone else had that problem.


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## suzfromWi (Jun 1, 2002)

I take vitamin D and have not experienced that. Of course I dont sleep real well so that may be why.


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## ginnie5 (Jul 15, 2003)

vitamin doesn't bother me but I tried valerian awhile back and oh boy...night terrors is a better description of what happened to me.


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## Quint (Nov 12, 2004)

If Vitamin D gives you nightmares I hear there is a cure for it. Send baby to Reno with the vitamin D, get a couple of couches and sleep on the love seat.


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## Helen Harrier (Dec 19, 2020)

Alice In TX/MO said:


> I've been taking a (large) Vitamin D supplement due to poor absorption of calcium. What I've discovered is that it gives me horrible nightmares. Just thought I'd post this in case anyone else had that problem.


Absolutely. I am very sensitive to chemicals and I have just tried Vitamin D for two nights and I am definitely badly effected and tonight, it's early hours here, I woke up making loud noises because I was having a nightmare. Very concerning. I won't take it any more. Glad you posted.


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## HDRider (Jul 21, 2011)

Now I want to take vitamin D


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## newfieannie (Dec 24, 2006)

this is from 2008. i wonder does Alice still have the same problem? doesn't seem to bother me. i take 5000 iu a day. i know some here who take 10000. everyone is different. i only need 3 or 4 hours a night anyway . sometimes i have nightmares but that started long before the vitamin d


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## Alice In TX/MO (May 10, 2002)

Yes. I do. I simply cannot tolerate Vitamin D because of the nightmares.

I tried three separate times.


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## backwoodsman7 (Mar 22, 2007)

Alice In TX/MO said:


> Yes. I do. I simply cannot tolerate Vitamin D because of the nightmares.
> 
> I tried three separate times.


Does it make a difference if you take it in the morning instead of at night?


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## 101pigs (Sep 18, 2018)

Alice In TX/MO said:


> Yes. I do. I simply cannot tolerate Vitamin D because of the nightmares.
> 
> I tried three separate times.


Ask my Dr. if i should take any Vitamins. He told me not to. Seems i am health without them. Speaking of nightmares i have two odd ones every couple weeks same ones. One is in deep water and slowly going down. another one in a big downtown area and the area has all burned down


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## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

Alice, how much vitamin D were you taking?

My orthopedic surgeon told me to start taking it when I broke my foot several years ago. I never got a sensitive sunburn until after taking vitamin D. Had nightmares all my life, sometimes I wake up because of the sound of me screaming or crying. Come to think of it, they haven't been that terrible since starting vit D.

I take 5,000 iu plus what is in my multivitamin on days I remember to take it.


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## mzgarden (Mar 16, 2012)

Interesting. I'm tucking this away in my memory in case I develop nightmares. I take D3 with Melatonin, zinc and calcium at night. So far, no issues but if nightmares were to begin, I sure would not have immediately considered the D3. Thanks for posting.


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## Rodeo's Bud (Apr 10, 2020)

I used to have a recurring nightmare a few times a week.

Eventually I realized it was a nightmare and began to enjoy it and could control what was happening. Not sure if most people can do that, but I seem to be able to often.

Haven't had one I a while, or a good cogent dream either. I kind of miss them.

Anyway, just my I'm up too late and am blathering on.


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## wdcutrsdaughter (Dec 9, 2012)

Alice In TX/MO said:


> Yes. I do. I simply cannot tolerate Vitamin D because of the nightmares.
> 
> I tried three separate times.



Maybe this is obvious, but have you tried a different brand? Some vitamins aren't made very well and have a lot of junk in them. It would seem you could get lots of good D from the sun down there in the south Alice. 

I take mega foods D3 and no nightmares here.


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## backwoodsman7 (Mar 22, 2007)

101pigs said:


> Ask my Dr. if i should take any Vitamins. He told me not to. Seems i am health without them.


Doctors aren't trained in anything to do with vitamins or other supplements, and many are biased against anything that wasn't part of their training. So, if you do your own research, you'll find that you'll be even healthier with some vitamins. Most people are deficient in vitamin D unless they take a supplement.


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## newfieannie (Dec 24, 2006)

it's D3 i take also. i bought more when i was out today. D3,vitE, C, zinc etc to replenish mine so i wont have to go out when the hoards are around. i paid twice as much as i usually pay. prices are gone nuts out there. ~Georgia


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## chopsieflores123 (3 mo ago)

Alice In TX/MO said:


> I've been taking a (large) Vitamin D supplement due to poor absorption of calcium. What I've discovered is that it gives me horrible nightmares. Just thought I'd post this in case anyone else had that problem.


 I've been taking same and after three weeks, I started having horrible nightmares. I don't know if this goes away after reaching a healthy level, but I hope it does. Disturbing.


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## Alice In TX/MO (May 10, 2002)

I am not sure enough of the “science” behind taking substantial doses of Vitamin D to continue taking it.


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## muleskinner2 (Oct 7, 2007)

Alice In TX/MO said:


> I am not sure enough of the “science” behind taking substantial doses of Vitamin D to continue taking it.


Alice, sorry about the nightmares. But you can't just leave me hanging. Can you remember any of the details? I usually only remember if a dream was good or bad. Only occasionally do I remember the details.

My worst reoccurring nightmare is where the bad guy or big hairy critter is about to get me, and I keep pulling the trigger but the gun won't fire.


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## Alice In TX/MO (May 10, 2002)

Many of my nightmares are classroom related, as I taught in a small school on the coastal bend of Texas for 15 years. In the recurring nightmare, I have a classroom full of junior high male students who will NOT follow instructions.

Sometimes, I dream of family strife. Not good at all.

On a positive note, the other night I dreamed that I met Brad Pitt at a convention. He was quite polite. Definitely not a nightmare.


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## nodak3 (Feb 5, 2003)

The nightmares may be a good but temporary thing. That is, if your serotonin level was low, the vitamin d may be allowing your body to make more. One of the side effects of rising serotonin for some folks is temporary night mares.


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## backwoodsman7 (Mar 22, 2007)

Alice In TX/MO said:


> I am not sure enough of the “science” behind taking substantial doses of Vitamin D to continue taking it.


There's been a lot of research into vitamin D, and the science is solid. In fact I didn't realize anyone still seriously questioned it; thought it had more or less gone mainstream. As far as whether it works or not, it's certainly been the magic bullet for me. I still get sick occasionally, but far less often than I did before vitamin D, which was about the same as most people do. I don't even worry anymore about being exposed to someone infectious, because it doesn't seem to matter; I only get sick if I'm really run down.


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## Alice In TX/MO (May 10, 2002)

Just information. Not saying this happened to me.









Why high dose vitamin D supplements could cause side effects


Since vitamin D accumulates in the body, taking a high-dose supplement may lead to vitamin D toxicity. This causes nausea, vomiting, and weakness.




www.insider.com


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## backwoodsman7 (Mar 22, 2007)

Alice In TX/MO said:


> Just information. Not saying this happened to me.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Well, it would be information, had they consulted any of the research before publishing it. As it is, it's closer to misinformation. A clinical study I saw several years ago gave a large number of subjects 50,000 I.U. per day for an extended period (I forget, but at least 6 months). None had any side effects whatsoever.

What you have to remember is that the medical establishment is extremely resistant to change, and many are strongly biased against anything that wasn't included in their training, like nutrition, vitamins, etc. It doesn't matter that there's mountains of clinical research and empirical evidence going back many decades; if it's different than they were taught, they just pretend all that doesn't exist. You surely know of many medical advances over the last couple centuries that faced the same thing, often for many decades, before finally being accepted. Even things that now seem obvious, and absurd that anyone ever would've questioned, like basic sanitation during surgery and doctors washing their hands between patients so they don't transmit diseases from one to another, were strongly resisted by the medical establishment for many years.

I used to look into every clinical study I saw referenced that claimed to find a negative result with something I take. The last one, 10 or so years ago, made the news with a headline something like, "Study finds a study that found vitamin C is effective, is wrong." They claimed they duplicated a recent study that found very good results with vitamin C, but they really didn't; they made several major changes that were guaranteed to get the negative result they wanted. For example, they used a small fraction of the amount of vitamin C. But they still said they duplicated the study, and that's what everyone read in the news. That's pretty much what I found with every one I looked into, so I don't bother looking into those fraudulent mainstream "studies" anymore.


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## Alice In TX/MO (May 10, 2002)

I wonder why humans survived millions of years without Vitamin D capsules.


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## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

Alice In TX/MO said:


> I wonder why humans survived millions of years without Vitamin D capsules.


They survived, but their lifespan wasn't very long.


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## Alice In TX/MO (May 10, 2002)

I don’t think that was Vitamin D.


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## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

Alice In TX/MO said:


> I don’t think that was Vitamin D.


It was a combination of factors. Other than childhood rickets there aren't very many obvious signs of vitamin D deficiency. Fragile bones would be one sign of a deficiency which could lead to infection, complications and earlier death. Bad teeth would be another sign of a life long deficiency.


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## nodak3 (Feb 5, 2003)

Humans wear more clothing now, and interior areas have been settled, meaning we don't get much fresh seafood which can be high in vitamin d. We spend more time indoors also, so between that and clothing we don't get as much vitamin d. And we live longer. As you age your body gets less efficient at converting sunlight to vitamin d.

One caution: 50,000 IU of d3 might very well be very toxic. Sounds like a d2 dose. There is a difference. And your doc can monitor your blood level and let you know if you are going toxic.

Too much d might give you monster constipation long before you get toxic due to how it reacts with calcium.


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## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

Women expose a whole lot more skin now than they did 50 years ago, or at least before short shorts and Daisy Dukes became popular.


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## Alice In TX/MO (May 10, 2002)

The vitamin D thing could go to Hades in a handbasket next week. I have lost faith in the "science" and the medical industry.

When I was in junior high school, the medical wizards said not to eat shrimp, butter, and avocadoes because they were high fat and caused clogged arteries. Now they have turned 180 degrees on that. Healthy fats.

I saw a report this morning that Cipro and that family of antibiotics are potentially lethal. 

Calcium supplements for bone density can cause arterial blockage in women.

The whole China flu fiasco has done NOTHING to enhance my trust in anything that cohort says. "If you get the jab, you won't get Covid." Yeah, right. You might get lethal blood clots instead.

Coffee is bad for you. Coffee is good for you. 

Vioxx killed 60,000 people. 

ON THE OTHER HAND, medical science saved my husband from kidney failure, my grandson from cancer, and etc.

I am cynical.


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## RJ2019 (Aug 27, 2019)

Alice In TX/MO said:


> The vitamin D thing could go to Hades in a handbasket next week. I have lost faith in the "science" and the medical industry.
> 
> When I was in junior high school, the medical wizards said not to eat shrimp, butter, and avocadoes because they were high fat and caused clogged arteries. Now they have turned 180 degrees on that. Healthy fats.
> 
> ...


Alice, thank you for this post. I haven't seen such a detailed, heartfelt and honest post from you in a very long time. I appreciate the glimpse into the thoughts that are really going on in your mind. I probably sound weird for saying that but I do appreciate the more detailed and opinionated posts.


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## Alice In TX/MO (May 10, 2002)

Another example of untended consequences 









Chemical hair straighteners linked to higher risk of uterine cancer for Black women, study shows


“If you care about Black women’s health, you have to care about our hair,” said professor Wendy Greene, a leading voice in the movement against Black hair discrimination.




www.nbcnews.com


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## backwoodsman7 (Mar 22, 2007)

nodak3 said:


> One caution: 50,000 IU of d3 might very well be very toxic. Sounds like a d2 dose.


No, it was D3, and the study proved that dose is not toxic. No one is recommending a dose anywhere near 50K; they did the study just to prove it's not toxic.


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## Alice In TX/MO (May 10, 2002)

Just wait. There will be another study that isn’t funded by a vitamin company.


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## backwoodsman7 (Mar 22, 2007)

Alice In TX/MO said:


> Just wait. There will be another study that isn’t funded by a vitamin company.


LOL I've never heard of a study on a vitamin done by a vitamin company. Vitamins are cheap, not proprietary, and available everywhere; there's very little money in them, so no incentive for them to spend money on research. Most of the studies are done by either (a) independent researchers whose attention the vitamin has attracted for some reason, to prove or disprove a theory; or (b) medical-establishment types trying to prove the vitamin doesn't work, usually by deliberately building a failing result into the design of the study, as I described above. If (b) were all I knew about vitamins, it would still tell me they work well enough to threaten the medical establishment in some way.

I'm beginning to think a vitamin D capsule must've done something really nasty to you in a past life.


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## Alice In TX/MO (May 10, 2002)

This life. Thank you.


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## Alice In TX/MO (May 10, 2002)

Guess who funded the research:





Industry-funded study of the week: vitamin D supplements - Food Politics by Marion Nestle


The Study: Maaike J. Bruins and Ulla Létinois. Adequate Vitamin D Intake Cannot Be Achieved within Carbon Emission Limits Unless Food Is Fortified: A Simulation Study. Nutrients 2021, 13(2), 592; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu13020592 Conclusion: The present study shows that adequate intakes for...




www.foodpolitics.com


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## Alice In TX/MO (May 10, 2002)

Just information here.



https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/27/health/vitamin-d-bone-fractures.html



Vitamin D in sun dried mushrooms





Vitamin D Research | Endocrinology, Diabetes, Nutrition & Weight Management







www.bumc.bu.edu


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## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

I don't know if this is related, but I didn't take my vitamin d the past couple nights. Both nights I had horrid nightmares that woke me up and made me afraid to go back to sleep. If I get to sleep tonight, we'll see if the nightmares continue.


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## Alice In TX/MO (May 10, 2002)

This may be a case of “it may effect you differently.”


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## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

Alice In TX/MO said:


> This may be a case of “it may effect you differently.”


We don't get much sunshine here in Ohio, especially in the winter. I wonder if your vit d levels are adaquate and a supplement, for you, is too much. I know my d levels are low without supplements.


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## Alice In TX/MO (May 10, 2002)

That hadn’t occurred to me. I spend enough time in the sun to aggravate my dermatologist.


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## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

I don't tan if I don't take vit d supplements, not even one shade.


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## Paumon (Jul 12, 2007)

Alice In TX/MO said:


> I wonder why humans survived millions of years without Vitamin D capsules.


Well, it wasn't millions of years ..... but right up until the industrial age they got all the Vitamin D they needed from the sun and from wild caught fish and the animal fats, meats and organs they ate as well as eggs, mushrooms and (if available) milk and cheeses.

Just thought I'd throw this out here, speaking of nightmares and vitamin D. When I had to start taking 3 times more Vitamin D and other supplements one of the things I discovered immediately was that if I took Vit D in the evening it either kept me awake at nights or else would give me vividly hyper, excitable dreams. As soon as I started only taking it first thing in the morning my nights were no longer disturbed and I noticed I had more energy than usual during the day.

.


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## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

Milk and cheese don't naturally have vitamin d. 

This site has an image of a package of Kraft mozzarella cheese. Vitamin d is at 0mcg.









Nutrition Facts for Kraft Mozzarella Cheese


Good source of protein. View calories, net carbs, added sugars, sodium, protein, total carbohydrates, fats, vitamins, minerals, and more!



www.myfooddiary.com





Fish, organ meats and eggs would be the best early sources of vitamin d, if you don't count sunlight.

I am still noticing a huge reduction of nightmares as long as I take a D3 supplement. If I forget for a couple days I start having vivid dreams again. 

I think it is very interesting how each person responds to supplements.


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## vickinell (Oct 10, 2003)

I take vitamin D3. I take at least 12 vitamins am and pm . No nightmares. I take at least 4 kinds of magnesium in the pm. Helps me sleep and my bone density improved 3%. I do not take calcium. I go dancing 2 or 3 times per week at the senior center and I think that helps my bones.


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## Paumon (Jul 12, 2007)

Danaus29 said:


> Milk and cheese don't naturally have vitamin d.


Thank you, I did not know that and now I've learned something new. I was thinking because it occurs in ricotta cheese and in so many other proteinaceous foods that it would naturally be in milk and other dairy products too.

.


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## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

I did a lot of research before chosing to take a supplement. I don't absorb vit d from sunshine. I don't know why but I can be outside most of the summer and still not get enough vit d from sunshine. I like fish and liver but not enough to eat enough to get a decent amount of d from food. I can't drink milk so my only alternative was a supplement. If it was in cheese I wouldn't have a deficiency because I eat a lot (too much according to my doctor) of cheese.

I just checked the label on my store brand ricotta cheese and it says 0 mcg vitamin D.


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## Paumon (Jul 12, 2007)

Danaus29 said:


> I did a lot of research before chosing to take a supplement. *I don't absorb vit d from sunshine. I don't know why but I can be outside most of the summer and still not get enough vit d from sunshine.* I like fish and liver but not enough to eat enough to get a decent amount of d from food..... I just checked the label on *my store brand ricotta cheese and it says 0 mcg vitamin D*.


Try this nutrition website: Cheese, whole milk, ricotta nutrition facts and analysis.

With regard to Vitamin D gained due to exposure to sunlight, you don't get D _from_ sunlight but the body manufactures Vitamin D _because_ of sun exposure.

Do you use UV blocking sunglasses and skin products with UV blockers when you spend time outdoors? If you do then you might be inadvertently preventing your body from manufacturing Vit. D.

I once read a health article a few years ago about photoreceptors in plants and in animals. In animals photoreceptors are at the back of the retina, and in plants the photoreceptors are dotted all over the top and bottom sides of leaves (on plants they actually look like little open eyes when they are open in the daytime). It was stated that for a human or other animal sitting for 10 minutes facing directly up at the sun with the eyelids closed still allows some sunlight to penetrate through skin into the photoreceptors at the back of the eyes. It causes the body to manufacture more vitamin D from that 10 minutes of diffused sunlight going directly into the eyes than what it would manufacture throughout the course of a full day while not looking directly towards the sun.

The further and further north one goes in the winter the less hours of daylight there are which is one of the things that causes seasonal affective disorder in northerners after a couple of months going into winter, it causes a lot of problems. So there are many northern people who may be diagnosed with winter SAD who in addition to dietary supplements are prescribed to use light box therapy or to use special bands worn just above the eyes (like spectacles) that shine rays of full spectrum light (but not UV) directly into the eyes. Not too much though, only for the prescribed amount of time, otherwise too much light therapy into the eyes, like overdosing on Vitamin D, causes hyperactivity, sometimes manic behaviour and a host of other problems that are like the exact opposite of the symptoms of SAD.

If a person's system, and sleep and emotional behaviour is out of whack because their body isn't producing enough Vitamin D, with or without sunlight or supplements, properly administered light therapy might be helpful.

I've been experimenting with the photoreceptors in plants and the effects of artificial lights on plants, it's really interesting how responsive they are in both positive and negative responses.

.


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## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

Paumon said:


> Do you use UV blocking sunglasses and skin products with UV blockers when you spend time outdoors? If you do then you might be inadvertently preventing your body from manufacturing Vit. D.


Sunscreen wasn't available when I was a kid, so no. I never use sunscreen because no matter how long I was outside (before supplements) I never burned or tanned. Not even the tiniest bit of tan on my arms. I use UV blocking sunglasses now but that's only since hubby was diagnosed with macular degeneration. The photoreceptor angle is something I will have to look into.

I guess I'll have to start looking at the vitamin d levels in my dairy product purchases as well as the ingredient list. I bought the Kroger brand because the other cost almost 4 times more. But then, most of the sites in a google search say sour cream has vitamin D. The label on the Daisy container says 0 mcg.


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## DisasterCupcake (Jan 3, 2015)

Vit D can have an overall energizing effect, try taking it in the am.
Also the other ingredients could possibly be causing some of that if you're sensitive. 
Do you take magnesium as well?


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## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

DisasterCupcake said:


> Do you take magnesium as well?


I take only what is in a multivitamin. I tried taking more. The results were not pleasant.


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## Alice In TX/MO (May 10, 2002)

Ditto. Ingesting magnesium does unfortunate thing to my gut, too.

I now use a topical magnesium that works quite well.


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## DisasterCupcake (Jan 3, 2015)

Danaus29 said:


> I take only what is in a multivitamin. I tried taking more. The results were not pleasant.


The form makes all the difference. Mg oxide is pretty much useless, and Mg carbonate is difficult to absorb, also prevents absorption of other vitamins.
I mention it because as a fast soluble vitamin, D relies heavily on magnesium metabolism, and there is precious little available Mg in food. Especially on a high carb diet


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