Vitamin D discussions with the Doctor
Emphasizes vitamin D as “low-hanging fruit” for global health improvement.
Summary (with approximate timestamps)
(00:02–00:38) Introduction to Dr. David Grimes
Lifelong physician, consultant, medical researcher/teacher, and pioneer in vitamin D.
Early recognition of widespread vitamin D deficiency and its link to multiple diseases.
(01:16–03:15) Discovering Vitamin D Deficiency
Worked in Blackburn, NW England, a region with high poverty and a large South Asian population.
Began measuring vitamin D in ~5,000 patients in the 1980s, finding up to 85% of white patients and 95% of South Asian patients severely deficient.
(03:51–05:28) Tuberculosis and Vitamin D
TB risk soared in the South Asian community 6–8 years after arriving in the UK, likely triggered by lack of sunlight (vitamin D).
Vitamin D supports T-cell function (cellular immunity), helping contain TB bacteria.
(08:39–10:34) Historical Insights on Rickets and TB
Historical data (Glasgow, early 1900s) showed rickets (vitamin D deficiency) and TB clustered in poor, indoor workers.
A 1926 study in Bombay revealed wealthier families (who stayed indoors) suffered more rickets/TB, whereas poorer families working outdoors were healthier.
(14:13–15:10) Maternal and Childhood Vitamin D
Vitamin D deficiency in pregnancy can cause rickets and long-term health issues for children.
Babies born in winter months (when mothers have less sun exposure) have higher risks of certain diseases (e.g., multiple sclerosis).
(18:09–23:00) Broader Disease Links (Renal Disease, Diabetes, Heart Disease)
Chronic kidney disease and autoimmune conditions may be worsened or triggered by low vitamin D.
Cardiac disease (atherosclerosis, coronary artery disease) may involve chronic infection/inflammation, where vitamin D is crucial to immunity.
Type 2 diabetes correlates with low vitamin D, possibly due to effects on insulin resistance.
(27:30–31:52) Case Histories: Abdul and Frank
Abdul: Arrived from Pakistan as a child; spent most life indoors in poor conditions. Developed kidney failure, TB, strokes, heart attacks, diabetes—all tied to poor immunity and vitamin D deficiency.
Frank: Born in a deprived area, developed peptic ulcers, coronary artery disease, strokes, and peripheral vascular disease. Again, linked to chronic vitamin D deficiency and social deprivation.
(40:48–46:32) Decline in Heart Disease & Role of Infection
Heart attacks peaked around 1970, then declined—possibly related to shifts in infection patterns and immunity.
Vitamin D deficiency undermines the body’s ability to fight chronic inflammatory/infective processes in arterial walls.
(50:00–1:03:00) Public Health Implications
Advocates routine vitamin D testing, especially in pregnancy: “No child should be born deficient.”
Highlights the importance of vitamin D for immunity against all infections (rather than specific vaccines alone).
Notes that individuals vary widely in how much vitamin D they need (body weight, skin color, sunlight exposure).
(1:06:00–End) Conclusion and Next Steps
Emphasizes vitamin D as “low-hanging fruit” for global health improvement.
Dr. Grimes plans to reissue/update his book in PDF form for wider distribution.
Encourages broader public health policies to ensure universal vitamin D adequacy and break cycles of preventable disease.
Thank you John and guests for bringing information about Vitamin-D3 to light. The following quote is always apt in these situations. It is relevant to every population outside of the tropics.
"Because vitamin D is so cheap so clearly reduces all-cause mortality, I can say this with great certainty: Vitamin D represents single most cost-effective medical intervention in the United States." - Dr. Gregg Plotnikoff circa 2010
There is a very good site with collected Vitamin-D3 information about diseases that has been around for over a decade with extracts from thousands of papers. The site maintainer Henry Lahore is also here on Substack with the stack "Science-based Vitamin D"
https://www.vitamindwiki.com
There is the seminal site collecting efficacy of treatments and prophylactics for covid that has over 100 papers with treatment with Vitamin-D3 that shows overwhelming benefit. Cost of using Vitamin-D3 is at the low end. Using Calcifediol in critical situations is probably prudent where possible but usually not required if the regular supplementation is at a reasonable physiological level. Select the Vitamin-D menu option to drill down, however the whole site is very informative.
https://c19early.org
Then my small collection of extracts and highlights from various papers referring to Vitamin-D3 and covid that I started in February 2021 and mostly stopped at about 100 studies because there is no point in getting more whips to flog a dead horse, Vitamin-D3 works and if you will not believe 100 studies then you are brainwashed.
https://cholecalciferol.miraheze.org/wiki/DOI
MS nurses tell newly diagnosed young women to start taking VitD as they are usually very deficient. MS seems to be worse in more northerly latitudes.