Health Advice and Testimonials

Is Vitamin D deficiency casting a cloud over your health?

New research showing that vitamin D may protect against cancer of the colon is the latest in a long line of studies suggesting that there is far more to this vitamin than its traditional role in helping to maintain healthy bones. Although this new study involved more than 500,000 people from ten different European countries, it is pertinent to the UK because so many of us have low levels of vitamin D, especially at this time of year. The problem is compounded by the use of sunscreens, which further reduce natural UV exposure during the summer months when vitamin D stores are replenished. The scale of the potential problem is nicely outlined by researchers from the University of Sheffield, who looked at vitamin D levels in the cord blood of babies born in hospital at the end of spring - the time when their mothers’ vitamin D stores were likely to be at their lowest. Seven out of ten of the babies had lower than ideal levels of vitamin D, 90% of whom were white, dispelling the myth that deficiency is principally a problem in ethnic minorities with darker skin (the extra pigment reduces UV penetration even further).

Vitamin D is required to help the body make proper use of calcium - the basic building block of bones - which is why interest in it has traditionally centred on rickets, a condition that results from severe deficiency. It is now understood that it does far more than maintain the skeleton, and that milder degrees of deficiency may predispose to a range of other illnesses including diabetes, lung disease, osteoporosis, multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, various cancers, and even Alzheimer’s disease.

It is now widely agreed that the following groups are most likely to benefit from vitamin D supplementation: Women who are pregnant or breast feeding; children under 5 (particularly breastfed infants); the over fifties; vegetarians; anyone who is housebound or who covers up when outside; those who are dark skinned - particularly Asian people.

People with darker skin need to supplement 2,100 - 3,100 international units a day all year round. People of European ancestry need to supplement 1,300 international units in the winter.

If you are pregnant, nursing, taking any medication or have a medical condition, please consult your healthcare practitioner before taking any of the products discussed in this article.

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