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Tell us a little bit about yourself:
My name is Mike Scott. I am 73 years old and live in Cedar Park, Texas. I retired in 2007 from biochemistry. I have been happily married for 30 years, with 3 grown children, 6 grandchildren, and 1 great-grandson.
I am in wonder because of all of the positive health affects that have resulted from vitamin D.
How did you hear about GrassrootsHealth / vitamin D?
I learned about vitamin D first as a biochemist. I was interested in it because when you have adequate amounts of vitamin D it increases your anti-microbial peptides (AMP), which is great for fighting disease. I think it is very interesting that every cell in your body has receptors for vitamin D. I googled vitamin D and found out information from the Vitamin D Council and GrassrootsHealth.
How was your health before vitamin D?
 I had a concern about a diagnosis for prostate cancer (G7) in 2010. I went through all the specialists (surgery, chemo, hormones) - they all wanted to fix me. But I decided that I wanted to go into vigilant watching by having a PSA test done every 3 months.
In 2011, another biopsy was done and came up positive. At that point I decided to start taking much more vitamin D than was recommended at the time - 10,000 IU/day. About half of my doctors thought I was crazy and that it was going to be toxic. Most of the health people of the time were recommending 1,000 - 2,000 IU/day.
In 2012 I had another biopsy. It came up completely negative. I met with my oncologist, I asked "what happened?" He told me to wait for another year... 2013 - It was completely negative. The oncologist wouldn't go on record, but he said that high levels of D can starve tumors. He is now recommending vitamin D to all of his patients, because he saw my success.
I no longer have any symptoms. My PSA is still elevated, but I feel much better and no one can find any prostate cancer.
How much vitamin D do you take? How do you get it (sun or supplements)?
I take 10,000 IU/day. I never miss a day. I also go for a daily walk for half an hour with no sunscreen.
What is your vitamin D level?
I have my blood levels done twice a year, it is usually an average of 75 ng/ml. One summer it got as high as 120 ng/ml. Usually in the winter it doesn't go too low, the lowest I have had is 60 ng/ml. I am very good at taking it daily - summer or winter, I never forget. Just to make sure, twice a year I also have calcium levels analyzed. I have never had a problem with calcium either.
In addition, I get proper hydration, adequate sleep (7-8 hours), and exercise. I drink 2.1 L of water every day, half of my liquid weight in water.
What would you recommend to others who are in a similar situation?
I recommend that people take 45 IU/day per lb of body weight. I determined that number through my biochemistry research over the years.
For people in the middle of cancer treatments, I tell my story first. They usually get excited, especially my black friends. I let them know that if they have adequate levels of vitamin D it will enhance and help some of their chemotherapy. I remind them that my doctorate is in biochemistry, but it can't hurt for them to take vitamin D. I tell them to take a minimum of 4000 IU/day along with all of their other medicines.
How do you tell others about vitamin D?
I tell others with or without cancer to see their doctor and first establish their baseline of D. Test once in the winter and once in the summer. I have lectured twice - for my church and at an AARP event. All those old folks do not take vitamin D, only one person out of a hundred was taking vitamin D when I asked for a show of hands.
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Dr. Bruce Hollis received his Bachelors of Science and Masters of Science from Ohio State University. His PhD was obtained in Experimental Nutrition from the University of Guelph in 1979. He did an endocrine fellowship at Case Western Reserve University from 1979-1982 and was then appointed to Assisted Professor of Nutrition. In 1986 he moved to the Medical University of South Carolina as Associate Professor of Pediatrics. Today, Dr. Hollis is the Professor of Pediatrics, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at The Medical University of South Carolina as well as the Director of Pediatric Nutritional Sciences. He has been involved in vitamin D research for the past 35 years and has published in excess of 200 peer reviewed articles. He has had many National Institute of Health grants and currently has 2 active research project grants under the National Institute of Health.
