Are You Vitamin D Deficient? Why Your Doctor Says 23 Is Normal but Functional Medicine Targets 60-80
Episode Summary
Dr. Rose walks through vitamin and mineral deficiencies in a practical, patient-focused conversation covering why deficiencies are so common, how to actually find out which ones you have, and why testing is more valuable than guessing with a multivitamin. The episode covers the gut-absorption connection, genetic methylation variants that affect nutrient utilization, optimal versus normal lab ranges, and how deficiencies affect mood, energy, hormones, and sex hormone metabolism. A real patient case is shared showing rapid energy and mood improvement from targeted supplementation. The first half of the episode covers vitamins and minerals. The transcript ends mid-episode as the second segment (hormones) was beginning.
Key Topics
- 1
What vitamin and mineral deficiencies actually are and why most people do not know they have them
- 2
Americans tend to be more deficient in minerals than vitamins, primarily due to low plant intake
- 3
Multivitamins: when they are appropriate and when they fall short of what targeted testing can reveal
- 4
How food quality, soil depletion, industrial food production, and seasonality affect nutrient content
- 5
Whether optimal health is achievable through food alone (theoretically yes; practically difficult for most Americans)
- 6
Why two people with the same diet can have different nutrient levels (gut microbiome, stress state, absorption differences)
- 7
How stress and trauma burn through B12 and magnesium faster
- 8
The MTHFR genetic variant and methylation: why some people cannot utilize standard B vitamins
- 9
The difference between taking methylated vs. non-methylated B vitamins
- 10
Normal vs. optimal vitamin D ranges: why functional medicine targets 60-80 ng/mL and conventional medicine accepts 22-23 ng/mL
Quotable Moments
“It is kind of like going through your daily life with extra weight around your ankles. Not feeling great, but not knowing why. Not knowing that at least part of that might be because of certain vitamin deficiencies.”
“We tend to be more deficient in minerals than vitamins, largely because we do not eat enough plants.”
“Unless we are testing, we do not really know what somebody's deficiencies are.”
“Ninety percent of new patients I have seen this past winter have a vitamin D deficiency.”
“She came in once a week for an injection and she would leave every time just feeling so much better. Her mood just lifted.”
Treatments Mentioned
FAQ
Vitamins FAQ
Functional medicine targets 60 to 80 ng/mL for optimal immune function, bone density, and inflammation control. Conventional medicine often considers 22 to 23 acceptable. Toxicity does not typically occur until 150 ng/mL, so there is significant room for safe optimization.
MTHFR is a genetic variant that impairs your body's ability to methylate (convert and utilize) B vitamins. People with this variant cannot properly process standard B vitamins, leading to elevated homocysteine and impaired estrogen metabolism. Taking methylated B12 and B complex bypasses this problem.
Yes. Vitamin D affects neurotransmitter metabolism and inflammation. B12 fuels the nervous and adrenal systems. Iron deficiency causes fatigue and brain fog. Approximately 90% of new patients present with at least one deficiency contributing to their symptoms.
Multivitamins are not efficient for targeted deficiencies. Without testing, you do not know which nutrients are low, how low, or why. Targeted supplementation based on blood work produces faster and more effective results than a broad-spectrum multivitamin.
Americans eat fewer plants than needed, and plants are the primary source of magnesium, calcium, selenium, and chromium. Food quality has also declined due to industrial farming, long-distance shipping, and the loss of seasonal eating patterns.
Yes. Gut microbiome differences, stress levels, genetic methylation variants, and absorption capacity all affect nutrient utilization. Someone under chronic stress burns through B12 and magnesium faster than someone relaxed, even with identical diets.
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