Page 50 - Spring2010

Calcitriol is an extremely potent hormone, What causes arthritis? The conventional view is that arthritis is
thousands of times more potent than vitamin D . the result of the joint “wearing out.” If this were the case, then arthritis
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It has been said that calcitriol is the most power- would always be accompanied by inflammation. Think of parts in a car.
ful hormone in the human body. Production of If they “wear out” due to friction, there is heat, which could be likened
calcitriol is very tightly regulated by the kidney. to inflammation in our bodies. However, osteoarthritis typically has no
Why is it so tightly regulated? inflammation, so it really should be called osteoarthrosis.
Calcitriol signals the intestines to absorb What if calcinosis could explain most, if not all these osteoarthritic
calcium from our diet. While we absolutely changes? Instead of your joints wearing out, what if nightshades and their
need calcitriol to maintain proper bone density, calcitriol content were causing the joints (cartilage, tendons, ligaments) to
too much calcitriol, from any source, leads to slowly calcify? Bone spurs are calcium deposits in tendons or ligaments.
hypercalcemia, also known as high blood cal- Many people are told that they have “no cartilage left” in their joints, but
cium. The body does not like this situation and what if the truth was that the cartilage had slowly calcified? It would be
wants to get the calcium levels back down to nearly impossible to tell the difference between the two situations unless
normal as quickly as possible, as an imbalance one knew exactly what to look for.
of minerals in the blood particularly affects the Scleroderma is a widespread connective tissue disease that involves
heart. The quickest solution for the body is to changes or hardening in the skin, blood vessels, muscles and internal or-
deposit the extra calcium into the soft tissues. gans. The cause is said to be unknown. Could it be caused by nightshades,
Each hypercalcemic episode likely lasts for only leading to calcinosis?
a short while, however, each episode leaves a Some physicians are giving calcitriol or its analogs for simple vitamin
small deposit behind. Over time, these deposits D deficiency. This is overkill and not good for the system. In bypassing
lead to the condition known as calcinosis. the body’s control systems we are creating the same situation I described
Overconsumption of calcitriol from night- above. If your doctor insists on using calcitriol, ergocalciferol (vitamin
shade foods can circumvent the kidney’s control D , an unnatural form of vitamin D made by irradiating a fungus with
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and over time lead to calcium deposits in the ultraviolet light), or any other expensive analogue of vitamin D other than
soft tissues such as the tendons, ligaments, car- vitamin D (cholecalciferol), you may want to find another doctor who is
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tilage, cardiovascular tissues, kidneys and skin. more educated in vitamin D supplementation.Please note that there are
Osteoarthritis is basically calcium deposits in medical conditions where administering calcitriol is necessary, but simple
the soft tissues of joints. Chronic hypercalcemia vitamin D deficiency is not one of them.
can lead to generalized vascular (blood vessel) According to Medline, common side-effects of calcitriol injections
calcification, which is coronary artery disease. include weakness, headache, somnolence, nausea, vomiting, dry mouth,
Nephrocalcinosis is calcification of the kidneys. constipation, muscle pain, bone pain and metallic taste. Note the muscle
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We are not supposed to bypass the body’s and bone pain—do these sound like nightshade problems I’ve mentioned
control mechanisms for calcitriol. Nightshades already? The liver and gall bladder can be affected, resulting in pale or
do this to our detriment. Many of us do not notice fatty stools, an indication you are not digesting your fats well. Yellowing
because it happens so slowly and gradually. of skin or eyes (jaundice) is another symptom, indicative of liver issues.

VITAMIN D PATHWAY

50 Wise Traditions SPRING 2010