Delicious UK - (02)February 2020

deliciousmagazine.co.uk 91

your health.

Vitamin D’s role

in human health

is complex, not

completely

understood and

hotly debated

Vitamin D supports healthy bones,

teeth and muscles T TRUE T FALSE

Around 17 per cent of British adults

are said to have low vitamin D levels

in winter T TRUE T FALSE

The more vitamin D you take the

better T TRUE T FALSE

Large doses of vitamin D protect

against cancer and other diseases

T TRUE T FALSE

It’s easy to meet your vitamin D

needs from food alone in winter

T TRUE T FALSE

TRUE OR FALSE?

disease and type 1 diabetes have
produced inconsistent results.
Most of the health claims about
the protective or curative properties
of vitamin D supplements have
not been proven in robust clinical
studies. It could be that low vitamin
D levels don’t actually cause disease

• rather, it’s possible that disease
  can cause low vitamin D levels.
  What is clear is that too much
  vitamin D isn’t healthy. “At high
  doses, vitamin D is toxic, as it’s fat
  soluble and the body has no
  satisfactory mechanism for excreting
  excess,” Thornton-Wood says. The
  maximum recommended daily limit
  in the UK – from diet and
  supplements combined – is 100mcg
  for adults and children aged
  11 to 17; 50mcg for children aged
  1 to 10 years; and 25mcg for infants.
  (Some countries list vitamin D in
  international units (IU): 1mcg/μg
  is equal to 40 IU of vitamin D.)

DISAGREEMENT AND DISSENT
Not all doctors believe it’s
necessary to take vitamin D.
“Vitamin D is one of the most
commonly used supplements in the
UK, yet evidence for its benefit is
sorely lacking,” says Tim Spector,
professor of genetic epidemiology
at King’s College London and
regular delicious. contributor.
“Studies have suggested that vitamin
D is beneficial for more than 150
diseases, yet virtually none of these

studies has stood up to scrutiny.”

Professor Spector says there’s

little agreement about what a

healthy level of vitamin D is,

and he argues that the health

benefits of taking supplements

are unproven. “They should be

discouraged, and sunlight and

vitamin D foods prioritised

instead.” In fact, he says, some

studies suggest that mega-doses of

vitamin D increase the risk of falls

and fractures in older people.

For those who choose to take

supplements, Dr Laura Wyness, a

registered nutritionist, says vitamin

D3 (cholecalciferol) is more effective

than D2 (ergocalciferol) – check

packaging for details. She also

recommends taking supplements

with food. “Studies have shown

that taking a vitamin D supplement

with the largest meal of the day

improves absorption and results

in about a 50 per cent increase in

vitamin D blood levels,” she says.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Public Health England recommends

everybody take a daily 10mcg

vitamin D supplement in the

autumn and winter. However,

not all doctors agree on the dose

or that supplements are necessary.

Vitamin D is needed for healthy

bones, teeth and muscles, but

many claims about the benefits

of supplements are not supported

by robust clinical evidence.

Take one daily

October to

March