Vitamin D levels not enough for winter: Study

Nutra Ingredients reports:

Current recommended intake for vitamin D during winter months and need to be at increased by five, says a new study from California.

Recommended intakes for people with darker skins should be increased to a whopping 2100 to 3100 International Units per day all year-round, up from the current adequate intakes set at 5 micrograms per day (200 International Units).

Researchers from University of California, Davis report their findings in the Journal of Nutrition. The study, led by Laura Hill, represents the latest in a long line of studies calling for increases in the recommended levels for vitamin D.

Concerns are growing over the health implications of living with insufficient and deficient vitamin D levels. A recent study from China reported that 94 per cent of people aged between 50 and 70 enrolled in the study were vitamin D deficient or insufficient, which may increase their risk of metabolic syndrome.

In adults, it is said vitamin D deficiency may precipitate or exacerbate osteopenia, osteoporosis, muscle weakness, fractures, common cancers, autoimmune diseases, infectious diseases and cardiovascular diseases. There is also some evidence that the vitamin may reduce the incidence of several types of cancer and type-1 diabetes.