We believe that a key to the success of the Out-Thinking Parkinson’s approach is its holistic nature. Indeed, looking back, we can now see the very significant signs that this programme of self-experimentation has improved my own quality of life considerably. This holistic theme doesn’t simply refer to the interventions and the combinations we are prepared to try over the long term, but also the way in which we research broadly and deeply, for ourselves, always hunting for empowering information. Our project is delving very deep for knowledge. More importantly, we are joining the dots of seemingly, at first, disparate pieces of information. One such important Eureka moment, I feel, was when we started digging into Vitamin D and Parkinson’s. In fact, we did not have to look far, because even on the Wikipedia page for Vitamin D and Neurology some very pertinent knowledge nuggets came to light:
“Vitamin D is a steroid hormone that plays a vital role in calcium and phosphate absorption. In recent studies, several associations between low levels of vitamin D, and neuropsychiatric disorders have begun to surface....including Parkinson's”
“Several vitamin D metabolites are found in cerebral spinal fluid and have the ability to cross the blood brain barrier....Derivatives of these metabolites are highly expressed in the substantia nigra and the hypothalamus. These two brain structures are responsible for motor functions and linking the nervous system to the endocrine system. The expression of these metabolite derivatives in these areas suggests that these structures have the ability to synthesize these products from vitamin D.”
Although these snippets do not provide a completely clear picture of the potentials of Vitamin D to assist in Parkinson’s recovery, we feel there are a number of key points here which lead us towards the possibility that a high quality Vitamin D supplement may be well worth introducing to my mix of self-experimental interventions. Recall that it is precisely the substantia nigra which is the part of the brain malfunctioning in Parkinson’s Disease! We felt that this direct linkage between Vitamin D deficiency and Parkinson’s was remarkable enough to try adding this in, even if only for long term potentials to delay the degeneration through its suggested neuroprotector benefits. An article on the Mercola website is much more bullish in regards to the benefits of Vitamin D and Parkinson’s. There vitamin D3 combined with vitamin K2 is also recommended, which is apparently an important combination.
I currently am taking a maximum strength D3 supplement in the form of an oral spray, which ensures effective absorption, meaning that the supplement does not have to pass through the gut.