We need vitamin D, although exactly what you mean by vitamin D is open to debate, there are several different chemicals that come under the umbrella of that term and you won’t always get the most appropriate from a supplement. Indeed, a given product might not even tell you which form you’ve bought over the counter. This beggars the question, what is it exactly that the SACN report commissioned by the UK government is recommending we take? The report suggests that many of us don’t go outside enough to get adequate exposure to sunlight for vitamin D production in our skin (sunscreen blocks the UV necessary to make the stuff, ironically enough). So, we should all be taking vitamin D in the autumn and winter and some of us all year round…
There’s been a massive backlash against taking vitamins, antioxidants and other supplements because it seems that they can sometimes do more harm than good unless you have a specific condition or deficiency. Indeed, there are no good clinical trials that show any benefits to any otherwise healthy person with a half-decent diet of taking any food supplements at all. It’s all marketing hype all that stuff about extracts and essential oils. Pure quackery. So, is it any surprise that this new “research” by a government-commissioned body is now suggesting that we take vitamin D supplements?
Would we be hearing about it in the news this week if the agency’s conclusion had been to not recommend taking extra vitamin D? Doesn’t it just smack a little of industry lobbying to get such studies carried out in the first place, because they’re almost always bound to err on the side of caution and make a positive suggestion with respect to the subject rather than a negative one and pretty much disregard the risks of overdosing on fat-soluble vitamins, which is a real issue?
There is, of course, a case for vitamin D and other supplements and nobody wants the widespread return of rickets, which is caused by a deficiency, but it does feel like more than a coincidence. Other similar suggestions from health bodies will follow, just you watch…