Vitamin D reduces joint pain!

This interesting snippet appeared in the Houston Chronicle a few days back as a part of a question and answer session with Dr. Mitchell Hecht.

http://article.wn.com/view/2009/02/23/Peoples_Pharmacy_Vitamin_D_can_ease_joint_pain/ “A couple of weeks ago, my husband saw his endocrinologist, and the doctor ordered a test of his vitamin D level. It was very low, so my husband was put on 2,000 units per day. My Husband has been having pain in his shoulder with a limited range of motion. An orthopedic surgeon told him he had a tear in his rotator cuff and the only option was surgery. In less than a week and a half on the vitamin D supplement, he has no pain and full range of motion. This is like a miracle! I think we need a second opinion on that surgery.”

As Dr. Hecht pointed out, it is unlikely that vitamin D could reverse a rotator-cuff tear, so there must have been a misdiagnosis. A rotator cuff tear is something that cannot be fixed without surgery, so it is likely that the pain was due to inflammation in the joint due to arthritis. As my posts have previously documented, vitamin D is a potent anti-inflammatory hormone. The total recovery from pain, along with a recovery of full range of motion, was likely due to its anti-inflammatory properties.

Chalk up one more victory for this amazing hormone!