Healthy adults do not need to take vitamin D supplements, suggests a study in The Lancet which found they had no beneficial effect on bone density, a sign of osteoporosis. University of Auckland researchers analysed 23 studies involving more than 4,000 healthy people.<\/p>\n
The New Zealand research team conducted a meta-analysis of all randomised trials examining the effects of vitamin D supplementation on bone mineral density in healthy adults up to July 2012. The trials took place in a number of different countries including the UK, the US, Australia, Holland, Finland and Norway.<\/p>\n
Prof Ian Reid, lead study author, from the University of Auckland, said the findings showed that healthy adults did not need to take vitamin D supplements.<\/p>\n
“Our data suggest that the targeting of low-dose vitamin D supplements only to individuals who are likely to be deficient could free up substantial resources that could be better used elsewhere in healthcare.”<\/p>\n
Writing about the study in The Lancet, Clifford J Rosen from the Maine Medical Research Institute agrees that science’s understanding of vitamin D supports the findings for healthy adults, but not for everyone.<\/p>\n
Dr Laura Tripkovic, research fellow in the department of nutritional sciences at the University of Surrey, said it was no good taking vitamin D supplements if people didn’t also maintain a healthy, balanced diet containing calcium and take plenty of exercise.<\/p>\n
She said most healthy people should be able to absorb enough vitamin D naturally, through sunshine and diet. We get most of our vitamin D from sunlight on our skin, but it is also found in certain foods like oily fish, eggs and breakfast cereals.<\/p>\n
However, taking too much vitamin D in the form of supplements can be harmful because calcium can build up and damage the kidneys.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"