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Nutrition 227 — at a Glance
| Course: | Vitamin D & Musculoskeletal Health · 2 PACE-approved CE hours |
| Faculty: | Howard Benedikt, DC, DCBCN · Clinical Nutrition Faculty, CCEDseminars |
| Format: | On-demand online video with assessment · downloadable handouts · instant certificate |
| Pricing: | $20/hr · automatic 10% off at 6–9 hrs, 20% off at 10+ hrs in one order · no promo codes |
| Approval: | PACE Provider #34015544 · co-sponsored by Texas Chiropractic College · acceptance varies by state |
Board-approved · PACE Provider #34015544 · CE Broker auto-reporting for states served · Instant certificate
Vitamin D is a steroid prohormone with a receptor in virtually every tissue — and its deficiency is a global public-health problem that shows up in your practice as low bone density, weak muscle, falls and fractures. Nutrition 227 delivers a rigorous, evidence-based review of vitamin D physiology, the downstream effects of deficiency on bone and skeletal muscle, and actionable clinical guidance on serum 25(OH)D testing, supplementation dosing, cofactors and patient management.
Dr. Howard Benedikt works through cutaneous UVB synthesis, hepatic 25-hydroxylation and renal activation to calcitriol and its genomic signaling through the vitamin D receptor in bone, intestine and muscle; the epidemiology and risk factors of deficiency — limited sun, darker skin pigmentation, obesity, malabsorption, aging; calcitriol’s role in calcium and phosphate absorption, bone mineral density, osteomalacia, osteoporosis and fracture risk; VDR expression in muscle and the type II fiber atrophy that costs grip strength, gait speed and balance; and the clinical program — 25(OH)D as the standard biomarker, deficiency below 20 ng/mL, insufficiency 20–29 and sufficiency at 30 or above, cholecalciferol versus ergocalciferol, loading and maintenance dosing, vitamin K2 and magnesium as cofactors, and monitoring.
Choose Your Nutrition Path — Three Lanes, One Curriculum
The Nutrition library — sixty-eight courses by Howard Benedikt, DC, DCBCN — organizes into three working lanes: the gut, the brain, and the conditions you already treat. Nutrition 201–210 is the foundation block, 211–220 the second, 221–230 the third, 231–240 the fourth, 241–250 the fifth, and 201–224 together form the 48-hour Clinical Nutrition Certification (CNC). Two hours each.
1 · Gut, Microbiome, Digestion and Detoxification
Where nutrient status is decided and where systemic inflammation is won or lost — from the intro principles of micronutrients and absorption to the microbiome, the liver’s biotransformation pathways, the GI disease files, the gut/brain connection, functional GI testing, and digestive enzymes.
201: Introduction to Clinical Nutrition
205: Detoxification
207: Microbiota & the Musculoskeletal System
208: Detoxification II
213: Gastrointestinal Disease & Nutrition
214: An Integrative Approach to Gastrointestinal Disease II
221: The Gut/Brain Connection
225: Functional Medicine Testing for GI Disturbances
248: Maximizing Health Through Proper Digestion and Absorption
258: Oxidative Stress Detoxification — Better Responses to Chiropractic Care
2 · Brain, Mood, Stress and the Nervous System
Nutritional neurology — the headache patient, the stress physiology your patients carry through the door, the brain-game files on how food drives cognition, the nutrition-and-mood pair, the fatigued patient, memory and dementia, nervous-system function, chronic fatigue with myofascial pain, the concussion protocol, the maladaptive stress response, and the fatigue work-up.
203: Nutritional Management of Headaches
204: Chiropractic Nutrition for Stress Management
211: The Brain Game — How Nutrition Impacts Brain Function
212: The Brain Game II — How Food Impacts Brain Function
218: Nutrition and Mood
219: Nutrition and Mood II
228: Dealing with Fatigue in Clinical Practice
233: Memory, Dementia, and Chiropractic Care
234: Optimal Nervous System Function & Nutrition
237: Chronic Fatigue and Myofascial Pain Syndrome — an Integrative Approach
240: Nutritional Management of Concussions in a Clinical Setting
242: Maladaptive Stress Response & Musculoskeletal Disease
244: Managing the Fatigued Patient
247: Optimizing Nervous System Function with Nutrition
251: Autonomic Nervous System Regulation
253: Stress Management II
254: Stress I — How Managing Stress Leads to Better Patient Outcomes
263: Stress Update — Supporting Our Patients During Uncertain Times
264: Brain Game III — How Food Impacts Brain Function
3 · Musculoskeletal, Immune, Hormonal and Clinical Conditions
Nutritional management layered onto what you already treat — arthritic and autoimmune joints, neuropathy and neuropathic pain, immune resilience and the cold-and-flu season, lipids and cholesterol, antioxidants, endocrine disruptors, the thyroid and hormone-testing files, menopause and estrogen, vitamin D, sports injuries, diet and chronic disease, women’s musculoskeletal health, the pain files, the pediatric pair, osteoporosis, and the commonly seen conditions. You are here: Nutrition 227.
202: Nutritional Management of Arthritic Disease
206: Management of Neuropathy
209: Nutrition & the Immune System
210: The Fat Story & Cholesterol
215: Antioxidants in Health and Disease
216: Antioxidants in Health and Disease II
217: Endocrine Disruptors in Health & Disease
220: Management of Autoimmune Disorders — Rheumatoid Arthritis
222: Assessing Thyroid Health in Clinical Practice I
223: Assessing Hormones in Clinical Practice I
224: Assessing Hormones in Clinical Practice II
226: Women’s Health Issues — Focus on Menopause and Estrogen
227: Vitamin D & Musculoskeletal Health
229: Nutritional Management of Sports Injuries
230: A Primer on the Role of Diet and Chronic Disease
231: Women’s Health Issues and the Musculoskeletal System
232: An Integrative Approach to the Musculoskeletal System
235: Pediatric Nutrition & Chiropractic I
236: Pediatric Nutrition & Chiropractic II
238: Chiropractic and Osteoporosis
239: Treating Commonly Seen Conditions in Chiropractic Practice
241: Strengthen Your Immune and Musculoskeletal System through Nutrition and Chiropractic
243: Joint Pain & Inflammation
245: Natural Remedies for the Pain Patient
246: Keeping Healthy During Cold and Flu Season
249: New Strategies for Pain Management in the Chiropractic Setting
250: Neuropathic Pain Management
252: Special Topics in Nutrition
255: Autoimmune Disease II
256: Sports Injury Management in a Chiropractic Office
257: Bone Health
259: Path to Wellness
260: Nutrition and Musculoskeletal Health
261: Wellness and Chiropractic
262: Women’s Health and Nutrition
265: Neuropathy — Pathophysiology and Therapeutic Approaches
266: Comprehensive Approach for Treatment of Joints, Tendons and Ligaments
267: How Nutrition and Chiropractic Go Hand in Hand
269: Nutritional Management of Neuropathy
Every course in the series is 2 PACE-approved CE hours at $40, and the automatic bundle discounts apply across the whole lane. The full 68-course catalog continues on the Nutrition category page.
What You’ll Learn in Nutrition 227
Understand how vitamin D is synthesized, metabolized and activated — UVB photosynthesis, hepatic 25-hydroxylation, renal 1-alpha-hydroxylation to calcitriol and signaling through the vitamin D receptor.
Describe the prevalence of deficiency and its risk factors — limited sun exposure, darker skin pigmentation, obesity, malabsorption and aging.
Identify the musculoskeletal consequences of deficiency, including effects on calcium absorption, bone mineral density, osteomalacia, osteoporosis and fracture risk.
Explain vitamin D’s role in skeletal muscle — type II fiber atrophy, grip strength, gait speed and fall risk — and the intervention evidence in older adults.
Evaluate serum 25(OH)D testing and interpret results — deficiency, insufficiency and sufficiency thresholds — to guide patient care.
Apply evidence-based supplementation strategies — D3 versus D2, loading and maintenance dosing, vitamin K2 and magnesium cofactors, and monitoring — in chiropractic practice.
Your Nutrition Faculty
Howard Benedikt, DC, DCBCN — instructor of this course. Board-certified chiropractic clinical nutritionist, Diplomate and President of the Chiropractic Board of Clinical Nutrition, with more than 30 years in clinical nutrition and functional medicine. He authors all 68 courses in the CCEDseminars Nutrition library and the Clinical Nutrition Certification (CNC) track at its core, and is known for translating complex nutritional biochemistry into practical, office-ready protocols — here, vitamin D physiology and the bone-and-muscle consequences of deficiency.
Full bio and the complete instructor roster: CCEDseminars faculty page.
Where Nutrition CE Hours Count — State Rules Worth Knowing
Nutrition coursework is clinical subject matter — assessment, clinical reasoning and nutritional management of patient conditions — which is exactly what several state boards ask for. In Iowa, these hours serve the 36-hour clinical case-management minimum; in Rhode Island, they address the 50-of-60 clinical requirement; and in Vermont — where practice-building coursework earns nothing — patient-care education like this counts fully under the clinical-focus rule.
Online-format allowances still vary by state — some accept every hour online, others cap distance learning or require in-person blocks. Check your state’s guide in the full state directory before building your renewal plan.
Build Your Nutrition Block — or Take the Credential
Every course in the Nutrition series runs 2 hours at $40, so the automatic discounts do the bundling for you: 6–9 hours in one order earns 10% off, and 10 or more earns 20% off — any ten courses from the series is 20 hours, which clears the 20% tier at roughly $320 instead of $400, with no promo codes. Vitamin D & Musculoskeletal Health pairs naturally with Nutrition 226 on menopause and estrogen and Nutrition 229 on sports injuries; the three together reach 6 hours and the 10% tier. Pursuing the credential? The Clinical Nutrition Certification (CNC) packages Nutrition 201–224 — 48 hours — in a single $960 checkout. Browse Nutrition Courses
Nutrition 227 — Frequently Asked Questions
What does Nutrition 227 cover?
Nutrition 227 covers vitamin D and musculoskeletal health for chiropractors: how vitamin D is synthesized and activated and signals through the vitamin D receptor, the prevalence and risk factors of deficiency, its consequences for calcium metabolism, bone mineral density, muscle-fiber composition, strength and fall risk, and the clinical program of 25(OH)D testing, dosing, cofactors and monitoring. Also known as vitamin D for chiropractors, vitamin D deficiency and bone health, or the vitamin D testing-and-dosing course.
Which laboratory test should chiropractors order to evaluate vitamin D status?
Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D — 25(OH)D — the major circulating form and the best index of overall status, reflecting both intake and cutaneous synthesis. The active hormone, 1,25(OH)2D, has a short half-life and is tightly regulated, so it is not a reliable measure of stores. The course gives the interpretation thresholds used in practice: deficiency below 20 ng/mL, insufficiency 20–29 ng/mL and sufficiency at 30 ng/mL or above.
How does vitamin D deficiency contribute to muscle weakness and falls in older adults?
Skeletal muscle expresses the vitamin D receptor, and adequate calcitriol is required for muscle protein synthesis and maintenance of fast-twitch (type II) fiber diameter. Deficiency selectively atrophies those fibers — the ones responsible for rapid, stabilizing contractions — producing impaired balance, slower gait, weaker grip and higher fall risk. Trials in older adults with low vitamin D show measurable improvements in muscle function and fall reduction with supplementation.
Which form and cofactors does the course recommend for supplementation?
Cholecalciferol (D3) is compared with ergocalciferol (D2) for potency and duration, with loading protocols, maintenance dosing and monitoring strategies laid out for clinical use. Vitamin K2 and magnesium are covered as the cofactors that direct calcium to bone and support the enzymes that activate vitamin D in the first place.
How many CE hours is it, and where does it sit in the Nutrition series?
It is 2 PACE-approved CE hours. Nutrition 227 sits in the musculoskeletal, immune, hormonal and clinical-conditions lane of the Nutrition series with Dr. Howard Benedikt, alongside Nutrition 202 (Arthritic Disease), 207 (Microbiota & the Musculoskeletal System), 226 (Menopause and Estrogen) and 229 (Sports Injuries).
State Approval and Licensing Reminder
Continuing education requirements — including online-hour caps and clinical-hour minimums — vary by jurisdiction. Review the online chiropractic CE guidelines page and contact CCEDseminars with questions about your specific licensing requirements before registering.
Ready to Enroll in Nutrition 227?
Low back pain, osteopenia, sarcopenia and the patient who keeps falling share a modifiable driver. Two hours here give you the physiology, the 25(OH)D thresholds and the dosing program to correct it.
CCEDseminars · PACE Provider #34015544 · Reviewed by Monte Horne, DC · Last updated September 2026 (CT)