Studies show millions of US kids are lacking in vitamin D

When I came into work this morning and pulled up my homepage on the internet, one of the top stories was entitled "Studies: Millions of U.S. Kids Lacking Vitamin D." I immediately clicked on the link to read the article. The first two paragraphs are as follows:

"Millions of U.S. children have disturbingly low Vitamin D levels, possibly increasing their risk for bone problems, heart disease, diabetes and other ailments, according to two new studies that provide the first national assessment of the crucial nutrient in young Americans.

About 9 percent of those ages 1 through 21 — about 7.6 million children, adolescents and young adults — have Vitamin D levels so low they could be considered deficient, while an additional 61 percent — 50.8 million — have higher levels, but still low enough to be insufficient, according to the analysis of federal data being released Monday."

This is a HUGE problem and kids are being set up for failure. Parents in general are taking a back seat to their children's health. It is assumed that they are getting all the vitamins and nutrients they need in their Poptarts, school lunches, and happy meals.

According to the article, about 70% of children have insufficient amounts of the super important vitamin in their bodies. You think we have health problems now?! Just wait and see what happens if nothing is done to correct this problem. Heart disease, cancer, viral infections, and so on will go through the roof.

I am not trying to point a finger at anyone and say you stink as a parent. I'm only trying to raise your awareness of a very serious problem that could easily go overlooked and have damaging effects to your child's health. I have 3 kids of my own and never really thought about this vitamin until Dr. Mercola started touting it's importance recently, so I'm preaching to myself at the same time.

I'm sure by now you're thinking to yourself, "So how do I make sure my child is getting enough of the good stuff?" I'm so glad you asked.

First, we need to turn off all the video games and cartoons and get kids outside playing. It's not the playing part for the vitamin D but the sun exposure. Your body will naturally make the vitamin when your skin sees the light of day. In fact, one theory behind why the flu is more prevalent in the winter is because of dips in the general populations vitamin D levels from keeping skin covered up.

Getting kids more active will have a lot of positive health benefits besides boosting their vitamin D levels. It will also help their bodies develop neurologically, promote a healthier immune system, and help prevent type 2 diabetes. Of course, regular exercise for kids does a lot more for their body then just those few things. I just wanted to hit some highlights.

Second, you need to find a high quality Vitamin D supplements for your kiddos. I say high quality because that is important in the world of supplements. In general, vitamins and herbs are still very loosely regulated. Brand X in the grocery store doesn't always make sure that what they have in their pills match what the label says on the outside and the vitamin in said pills aren't always of a good absorbable form of whatever you are taking. If you don't take the time to know who you are buying your supplements from then you are literally urinating or pooping your money away.

I would also like to point out that there is no 1 company that is the "best" with a secret formula to get you more vitamin D. There are several companies that produce quality vitamins. The company I recommend is web-based because I can't find any brands in the grocery stores that are reliable.

I hope that I have raised the awareness of at least 1 person. Have an excellent day!

5 myths of vaccines

"Vaccines: Top 5 myths about childhood vaccines" was the title of an article on the front page of MSN Health. I just couldn't pass this up.

Now before I get started I'll throw out my disclaimer. This will only be for information purposes to try and get you to think outside of the box a little and make informed decisions when it comes to injecting your child or yourself with anything. I am not telling you whether or not to vaccinate your child - only you can make that choice. (and YES, it is a choice)

The reason I am writing on this because "they" call it the 5 myths. According to my trusty iPhone dictionary app., the definition of myth is "an imaginary or fictitious thing; an unproved or false collective belief that is used to justify a social institution." So let's take a look at these 5 "myths" (I think I've already used up my quota for quotation marks and I'm just getting started).

Myth #1: Vaccines aren't necessary

This myth is anything but a myth. In fact, it couldn't be any farther from a myth and closer to the truth. The only way vaccines would be completely necessary would be if our body could not code an antibody for whatever illness we are being vaccinated against. Your body is more than capable of killing off any infection you are told to vaccinate against. Your immune system has the ability to code for several trillions of antibodies for diseases we haven't even discovered yet. In fact, your immune system can code for more antibodies than your own DNA would allow for. In order for this statement to be true, then all children who do not get vaccinated would surely acquire the sickness and die because the body would not be able to defend itself from such a powerful infection like those "they" want you to vaccinate against.

Myth #2: Vaccine side effects are dangerous

This one is very puzzling to me. Why did "they" set up special government funds that pays millions and millions of dollars every year to parents whose children were permanently or fatally injured from a vaccine. But here lies the thought process of the system. Your little boy or girl is a necessary sacrifice to ensure "herd immunity" or higher public health. If their side effects are so minor, then why do "they" make it so hard for the public to get a true list of side effects.

Myth #3: Vaccines cause autism

I guess this one is a partial truth. It's not the vaccine causing autism but the mercury they use to preserve the mercury that does the damage. I personally know 2 families with children who were fine until receiving a round of vaccines containing mercury and soon developed autism. Mercury is one of the most dangerous neurotoxins known to man. I don't care how many methyl groups you add to it. IT'S TOXIC! Do not be fooled that they have removed mercury from the vaccines. They have only lowered the amount in them. All the stats show an exponential growth in autistic children right along with the increased use of mercury containing vaccines. Just because the vaccine makers haven't produced research to show a definite link, and why would they, doesn't mean there isn't a connection. It's like the OJ thing. No definite connection was ever made but most people know he was at least connected to it if not guilty of committing the act. All they have to do to silence the accusations is inject newborns and toddlers with mercury and observe for any side effects. They won't do that research because they know it's not safe.

Myth #4: Vaccines are given too early

This one cannot be called a myth because they are given too early. There is a much less lower risk of adverse reaction with delayed vaccination. We're talking about injecting newborns with mercury, aluminum, animal parts, formaldehyde and much more. You can't tell me that it's not dangerous to do that to a body with little or no immune system to defend itself. It's also safer to break up the shots into single shots and not all at once. MMR is the equivalent of taking 3 different vaccines. It's a lot easier for a young immune system to defend itself against 1 vaccine at a time than 3 to 6.

Myth #5: It's OK to skip certain vaccines if you have safety concerns

This one down right makes me mad. Here's the translation: You don't have a choice parents! Wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong.........oh yeah.....and...WRONG! This multibillion dollar industry would love for you to believe that you don't have a choice on whether or not you want to all vaccines, a few vaccines, or no vaccines. You always have a choice. These are your kids, not theirs. 2 of my 3 kids have never been vaccinated against anything and my oldest stopped at age 2, and none since. Guess what?! They are all healthier than most of the kids we know. The two that have been adjusted since birth and no vaccines have never had ear infections. My oldest had ear infections all the time before we stopped vaccinating and adjusting him. I"m not saying vaccines cause ear infections. I'm saying when you give the support an immune system needs to be healthy and not drug it the first chance you get, the better it works.
Here are the 3 real myths about vaccines "they" want you to believe:

#1 All vaccines are totally effective

#2 All vaccines are safe

#3 Vaccines are mandatory, you have no choice

I have no problem when my patients tell me that they vaccinated their children. Far be it from me to tell anyone what's best for their kids. All I ask is for parents to make educated decisions.