Dear Healthy Friend,

Diabetics don’t have it easy. Always making sure their blood/sugar levels are in check, eating at regular intervals, avoiding certain foods and ensuring they look after their feet

But now there’s one less thing to worry about...

Christine O'Brien reveals a study about a vitamin that could actually reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease.

Keep reading to find out more about this vital vitamin...

In the name of good health,

Taryn Strugnell
Managing Editor of Nutrition & Healing

P.S. Water retention is a common side-effect of hormonal treatment, and Dr Wright tells us here how to combat this...

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Diabetics! Control your vitamin D levels
Christine O’Brien
Contributor to Nutrition and Healing

Long-time readers of Nutrition & Healing and Health Bytes know we're big on vitamin D around here. There's already a list a mile long of reasons why we should all be getting plenty of it - but here's one more that could actually help treat you if you have diabetes.

Low levels of vitamin D are known to nearly double your chances of cardiovascular disease if you're diabetic. And researchers at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis think they know why.

Basically... If you have diabetes and you’re not getting enough vitamin D, your body simply can't process cholesterol normally.

Cells called macrophages uncontrollably gobble up much more cholesterol than they should and become what scientists call foam cells - one of the earliest markers of atherosclerosis. These foam cells stiffen blood vessels and block blood flow.

Get enough vitamin D, though, and it slashes the risk. Researchers found vitamin D keeps those macrophages from taking in more cholesterol than they should.

Why is this of special interest to diabetics?

Well, the immune system sends macrophages to respond to inflammation - and diseases like diabetes activate them. So, with more macrophages wandering around gorging themselves on cholesterol, you have all the more reason to get that extra D.

In fact, the researchers that conducted the study believe that diabetics could actually reverse atherosclerosis once vitamin D levels are back where they should be.

So, how much vitamin D should you be getting? Dr. Wright recommends 4,000IU (International Units) daily for adults and teenagers, and 1,000IU for infants and children.

Revealed! The tablet that relieves water retention for about R1.85 a day

Q: I’ve been taking bio-identical hormone replacement therapy for several months and I already feel a tremendous amount of relief from my menopause symptoms. The only negative thing I’ve noticed is that I seem to be retaining a lot more water than usual. Is this normal? Is there anything I can do to alleviate it?

Dr. Wright: I'm glad to hear of your success using bio-identical hormone replacement therapy. Water retention is a common side effect of oestrogen treatment of any sort. You can almost always eliminate it with extra vitamin B6. Try adding 100mg of vitamin B6 twice daily to your current supplement programme.