Vitamin D3
The 14th January is officially/traditionally the most depressing day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere. The lack of sunlight at this time of the year greatly reduces Vitamin D3 levels in our bloodstream. This deficiency can lead to serious conditions such as Rickets in infants and toddlers. For the general population the deficiency has less obvious effects such as Seasonal Adjustment Disorder and a general feeling of malaise. Daily tablet supplements of Vitamin D3 can help.
Why has vitamin D deficiency become a problem in Ireland?
• Vitamin D is mainly produced in the body by exposure of the skin to sunlight. However, because of Ireland’s northerly latitude, in the months between November and March there is inadequate quality and quantity of sunlight to enable sufficient production of vitamin D by the body (the current recommended dietary daily amount of vitamin D is 5 µg). Even on sunny days in the winter, the sun’s rays are of the wrong type for the production of vitamin D. In addition, with more people working indoors and using sunscreen when outside, vitamin D from sunlight exposure has decreased.
• Darker skinned people living in Ireland are particularly at risk as they require more sunlight to produce vitamin D (10 to 50 times more exposure to sunlight required). Also, some religious practices preclude any skin exposure.
• Dietary sources of vitamin D are not consumed in sufficient quantities to counter the lack of sunlight exposure and do not form part of the weaning diet for infants. Examples of dietary sources of vitamin D include oily fish (e.g. salmon, mackerel, sardines), egg yolks and fortified foods such as milk and breakfast cereals. In addition, offal meat such as liver and kidney are a good source of Vitamin D but these foods are not suitable for infants and pregnant women because they provide too much Vitamin A.
There are three supplements available in Ireland that provide vitamin D only. These are:
Q. What is the recommended daily intake of vitamin D? The current healthy eating guidelines for Ireland are being revised and this will include an updated recommendation for vitamin D intake. However, recently updated dietary guidelines in North America recommend an intake of 5µg of vitamin D per day for infants and young children up to 3 years of age. In Canada, which is at a similar northerly latitude to Ireland, all babies taking less than 500ml of infant formula are supplemented with 10µg of vitamin D.
The latest recommended dosage for adults stands at 600iu daily, or 700iu for adults of 70+ years.
In cases of deficiency, daily dosage of 1000iu+ has been recommended.
Lamberts vitamin D3, available in 400iu or 1000iu dosage, is an excellent product toensure you are getting your daily D3 intake
