Vitamin D

Non-cow’s milk may put children at vitamin D deficiency risk

21-Oct-2014 By Nathan Gray

Children who drink non-cow's milk such as rice, almond, soy or goat's milk, have lower levels of vitamin D in their blood than those who drink cow's milk, say researchers.

Vitamin D3 can reduce atopic dermatitis in kids via 'innate immunity': Study

13-Oct-2014 By Lynda Searby

Vitamin D supplementation improves winter-related atopic dermatitis (AD) in children at risk of vitamin D deficiency and could provide a safe alternative to UV light treatment, according to a new study led by Boston researchers.

High-dose vitamin D may not aid critically ill: RCT data

09-Oct-2014 By Nathan Gray

High-dose vitamin D3 supplementation ‘does not improve outcomes’ for deficient ICU patients, according to new RCT data.

Science short

Actions urged to combat widespread European vitamin D deficiencies

02-Oct-2014 By Shane STARLING

Greater vitamin D fortification of foods and supplementation can help tackle vitamin D deficiencies that remain prevalent across Europe – with Finland a good example of the success of such measures, a review has found.

Vitamin D associated with 'a range of important health outcomes', says new study

19-Sep-2014 By Stephen DANIELLS

Increased blood levels of the sunshine vitamin are associated with significantly lower risks of cardiovascular disease, respiratory disease, and fractures, according to data collected in the UK over 13 years.

Vitamin D ‘should be considered’ for epileptics: Study

08-Sep-2014 By Kacey Culliney

Patients with epilepsy on antiepileptic drugs should consider vitamin D supplementation as they are often deficient and are at higher risk of poor bone health and fractures, suggest researchers..

More vitamin D in UK foods than previously: Study

26-Aug-2014 By Shane STARLING

The UK should update vitamin D food and supplement content estimations that have the knock-on effect of distorting population intake levels of the sunshine vitamin by about 3%, a study has concluded.

New Omega-3 product sourced from Alaskan Pollock stresses freshness, sustainability, traceability

25-Aug-2014 By Hank Schultz

A new omega-3 product sourced from Alaskan Pollock has hit the market. Offered by Seattle-based American Marine Ingredients, the new ingredient is in the form of a finished product branded as 54°North Omega-3 with Vitamin D3.

Special edition: Sunshine and clouds for vitamin D

Experts claim sun still shines for vitamin D despite naysayers

22-Aug-2014 By Hank Schultz

Vitamin D, the ‘sunshine vitamin,’ forms the core of one of the longest fortification stories in the nutritional sphere. Originally added to milk to combat rickets, the bone disease that results from deficiency, new research now supports claims of ever-wider...

Research supports ever-wider role for vitamin D, CRN says

13-Aug-2014 By Hank Schultz

The outlook for vitamin D is getting ever brighter, as scientific results continue to pile up for the prohormone’s benefits. The latest study on the relationship of vitamin D to the risk of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease reinforces that picture, said...

Vitamin D supplementation should start at birth, says new study

07-Aug-2014 By Stephen DANIELLS

Breastfed newborns should start receiving vitamin D supplements at the time of birth in order to help raise blood levels of the sunshine vitamin, says a new study.

Largest-ever study of its kind

Vitamin D deficiency could double dementia risk, says six-year study

07-Aug-2014 By Annie Harrison-Dunn

Vitamin D deficiency in older people may double the risk of developing dementia and Alzheimer’s disease, according to the largest study of its kind.

NYU professor questions supplements; vitamin D expert supports efficacy of oral forms

Does vitamin D belong on the Nutrition Facts panel?

05-Aug-2014 By Maggie Hennessy

FDA proposals to list "added sugars" on the Nutrition Facts panel have already generated heated debate, so it's unsurprising that its plan to include vitamin D is proving equally controversial, with critics claiming it could encourage over-consumption...

Vitamin D supplements may ‘protect against cardiac failure in older people’, says study

29-Jul-2014 By Stephen DANIELLS

Daily supplements of the sunshine vitamin may reduce the risk of heart failure in older individuals by 20%-25%, says a new study.

Supplier says vitamin K2 is helping to turn the corner on calcium

01-Jul-2014 By Hank Schultz

Calcium is yet another nutrient that has taken a recent hit in the press and the marketplace with associations of high calcium intake with increased heart disease risk. But a manufacturer of vitamin K2 believes that education on the beneficial interaction...

Calcium and vitamin D may improve metabolic profile of women with 'pregnancy diabetes'

26-Jun-2014 By Annie Harrison-Dunn

Supplementation of vitamin D and calcium may reduce fasting plasma glucose and insulin, improve insulin sensitivity and reduce low-density lipoprotein 'bad' cholesterol while boosting 'good' cholesterol for women with Gestational Diabetes...

Calcium supplements and heart health: New study ‘does not support the hypothesis of increased CVD risk’

05-Jun-2014 By Stephen Daniells

Data from almost 75,000 women collected over 24 years do not support the hypothesis that calcium supplements may increase the risk of cardiovascular disease in women, researchers report.

PLT to debut whole food vitamin D mushroom powder at IFT

05-Jun-2014 By Hank Schultz

PLT Health Solutions will debut a new vegetarian source of vitamin D with a whole food mushroom powder at the Institute of Food Technologists trade show later in June in New Orleans. The new ingredient brings together several developing skeins in the...

Canadians set for run at calcium constipation market

04-Jun-2014 By Sarah Hills

A health science company is positioning for launch into the calcium bone health market after coming out top in a clinical trial that put it head-to-head with Pfizer’s Caltrate brand. Reduction of constipation side-effects were the main benefits.

Vitamin D deficiency may indicate prostate cancer

05-May-2014 By Annie Harrison-Dunn

Vitamin D deficiency may be an indicator in the diagnosis of aggressive prostate cancer, according to researchers.

SunDaily founder: Existing multivitamins are based on decades-old standards

02-May-2014 By Maggie Hennessy

When a former corporate finance executive and MIT grad’s own growing interest in nutrition and fitness turned to disillusionment with existing supplement offerings, he launched a company dedicated to overhauling the most popular supplement categories...

“Which way up was the umbrella? Did this review collect knowledge or shield us from it?”

BMJ vitamin D research attacked: 'un-nuanced', 'flawed', 'irresponsible'

07-Apr-2014 By Shane STARLING

The ‘umbrella’ review of vitamin D studies that found a myriad of health links for the sunshine vitamin were unconfirmed in the scientific literature, has been criticised for containing too many flawed studies that warped the overall findings.

BMJ: Vitamin D benefits unconfirmed – even bone density

04-Apr-2014 By Shane STARLING

Vitamin D’s health links including its ability to boost bone density are not backed in the scientific literature, the British Medical Journal has found after an extensive review of published studies on the nutrient.

Vitamin D may reduce inflammatory markers for obese women, but only if you take it

19-Mar-2014 By Stephen DANIELLS

Daily supplements of vitamin D may reduce levels of C-reactive protein (CRP), a marker of chronic inflammation, in obese and overweight women, but only if the women take the supplements every day, says a new study.

Vitamin D may boost heart’s ability to respond to a stressor

10-Mar-2014 By Stephen DANIELLS

Daily supplements of vitamin D may improve the heart’s response to a stressor, says a new study from Canada with implications for healthy people and those at high risk of cardiovascular mortality.

Vitamin D linked to better breast cancer patient survival

10-Mar-2014 By Nathan Gray

Breast cancer patients with high levels of vitamin D in their blood are twice as likely to survive the disease as those with lower levels, new research has suggested.

Calcium and vitamin D may improve cholesterol in postmenopausal women

06-Mar-2014 By Nathan Gray

Supplementation with calcium and vitamin D after menopause could help to improve women's cholesterol profiles, according to new research.

Vitamin D deficiency linked to compromised immune function: Study

26-Feb-2014 By Nathan Gray

Seniors who are deficient in vitamin D also tend to have compromised immune functions including inflammation and biomarkers for heart disease, according to new research.

Simpler blood test for vitamin D could enhance preventive care, developer says

13-Jan-2014 By Hank Schultz

In another way point in the personalized healthcare movement, Purity Labs of Portland, OR has announced the development of a vitamin D blood test that involves obtaining only small spots of blood applied to cards. The new test lowers costs, simplifies...

Want a stronger baby? Get a higher vitamin D intake, suggests study

10-Jan-2014 By Nathan Gray

Children are likely to have stronger muscles if their mothers have a higher level of vitamin D in their body during pregnancy, according to new research.

Researchers unlock how vitamin D may benefit people with multiple sclerosis

13-Dec-2013 By Nathan Gray

Vitamin D may block damage-causing immune cells from migrating to the central nervous system, offering a potential explanation for why the so-called 'sunshine vitamin' may prevent or ease symptoms of multiple sclerosis (MS), according to new...

Higher vitamin D dose needed for bone health benefits for older women: Study

12-Dec-2013 By Stephen DANIELLS

Vitamin D doses closer to 1,000 IU per day may be needed to lessen bone loss in postmenopausal women, says a new study from the UK.

Review questions vitamin D for reducing chronic disease risk

06-Dec-2013 By Stephen DANIELLS

Low vitamin D levels may be a consequence of ill health and not the cause of chronic disease, says a new review, but industry groups have responded that supplementation is vital for bone health and should not be dismissed.

Dispatches from Supply Side West 2013

Supplements are cost effective, survey finds

25-Nov-2013 By Hank Schultz

Dietary supplement use isn’t just about health; certain supplement regimens can be shown to deliver significant cost savings, said Steve Mister, president of the Council for Responsible Nutrition.

New vitamin K2 form will help build better bone health products, distributor says

12-Nov-2013 By Hank Schultz

A new vitamin K2 form that that increases product stability will cement the vitamin’s position in bone health formulations, says the ingredient’s North American distributor.

Vitamin D has longer than expected half-life: Tests may not show true 'plateau'

30-Oct-2013 By Nathan Gray

Tests to assess levels of vitamin D status months or years after supplementation finishes may not be showing a true rise - or plataeu - in vitamin D status, according to new research that suggests it may take up to three years for stocks of the vitamin...

Low vitamin D status may raise anaemia risk in children, warns study

24-Oct-2013 By Nathan Gray

Low levels of vitamin D in blood serum appear to be linked to an increase in children's risk of anaemia, according to new research.

Large scale vitamin D study aims to explore diabetes link

23-Oct-2013 By Nathan Gray

A multiyear clinical trial backed by the US National Institute of Health (NIH) will examine whether vitamin D supplementation can help to prevent or delay the onset of diabetes.

Vitamin D does not contribute to kidney stones, says study

18-Oct-2013 By Nathan Gray

Previous research linking vitamin D supplementation to an increased risk of developing kidney stones has been cast in to doubt with new findings that find no statistically relevant association.

CRN warns of ‘dire consequences’ if consumers heed meta-analysis conclusions that vitamin D pills for bone health are ‘inappropriate’

11-Oct-2013 By Stephen DANIELLS

The use of vitamin D supplements to reduce the risk of osteoporosis in healthy adults is ‘inappropriate’, says a new meta-analysis from New Zealand, but such claims should not discourage healthy people from taking vitamin D for all the possible benefits,...