Is the new recommendation enough?
Children should get 400 units daily of vitamin D, double the usually recommended amount, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics.
While primarily generated after the skin soaks up the sun's ultraviolet B rays, Vitamin D can be obtained from oily fish and supplemented products like cow or soy milk and orange juice.
But Bruce Hollis, professor of pediatrics at the Medical University of South Carolina has long said the recommended daily allowance—200 to 400 international units per day—is a joke.
Instead, he suggests supplementing with at least 2,000 IU's or higher, especially between October and April for Chicagoans. At these levels though, food isn't a good option, since you'd have to drink a gallon of milk a day and no one needs those calories, Hollis said. He says to take a supplement instead.
Other potential benefits from vitamin D besides keeping bones strong, include suggestions that it might reduce risks for cancer, diabetes and heart disease.
Vitamin D has been shown to help with seasonal affective disorder, Hollis said. It may also have an anti-inflammatory effect and increase the flexibility of cell membranes, thereby enhancing the brain’s neurotransmitter function.
But there's no consensus on how much of the vitamin would be needed for disease prevention.
|
