Vitamin D is involved in calcium metabolism and is necessary for good bone health,it plays a role in the prevention of serious chronic diseases which affect the Irish population, including cardiovascular disease; diabetes mellitus; some inflammatory and autoimmune disorders; as well as some types of cancer. So why are Irish people so deficient in this vital substance??

If you have been following the articles on this site over the last 6 months you will be aware how strongly i feel about the importance on Vitamin D and why it could well be behind allot of the chronic illnesses we are seeing in Ireland today.

The Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) have published a report recommending the implementation of a national policy of vitamin D supplementation in all infants aged 0-12 months in Ireland. This recommendation follows a review undertaken by the FSAI's Scientific Committee which highlights the re-emergence of rickets in infants in Ireland, a medical condition caused by severe vitamin D deficiency.

What the research on vitamin D tells us is that unless you are a fisherman, farmer, or otherwise outdoors and exposed regularly to sunlight you are unlikely to obtain adequate amounts of vitamin D from the sun. Due to Ireland’s northerly latitude, very little UVB light reaches the earth’s surface resulting in reduced production of vitamin D, especially in winter. Historically in Ireland the balance of one's daily need was provided by food. Many years ago Irish people instinctively chose vitamin-D-rich foods including the intestines, organ meats, skin and fat from certain land animals, as well as shellfish, oily fish and insects. Many of these foods are now unacceptable to the modern palate – and for this reason are difficult to purchases anywhere and are rarely consumed. My butcher lets out a big laugh every time he sees me coming – im the only one that asks him for specific organs, a source of lard and extra fat on the chops. The foods with the highest content of Vitamin D are listed below(1):

Food (100 g unless otherwise specified)	Vitamin D (IU)
Anglerfish Liver	4,400
Summer Pork or Bovine Blood (1 cup)(2)	4,000
High-Vitamin Cod Liver Oil (1 tablespoon)(3)	3,450
Lard (Pork Fat)	2,800
Indo-Pacific Marlin	1,400
Chum Salmon	1,300
Standard Cod Liver Oil (1 tablespoon)	1,200
Herring	1,100
Cultured Bastard Halibut and Fatty Bluefin Tuna	720
Duck Egg	720
Grunt and Rainbow Trout	600
Eel	200 - 560
Cultured Red Sea Bream	520
Mackerel	345 - 440
Salmon	360
Canned Sardines	270
Chicken Egg	120
Pork Liver	50
Unfortified Summer Milk (1 liter)(4)	40
Beef Liver	30
Pork	28

Note:One rich source of vitamin D from land animals that is generally overlooked is blood. Since mammals store their vitamin D primarily in the blood as calcidiol, which is roughly five times as potent as unconverted vitamin D,(5) the concentration of vitamin D activity in the blood will be much higher than that of other tissues


For food sources to provide us with D the source must be sunlight exposed. With exposure to UV-B sunlight, vitamin D is produced from fat in the fur, feathers, and skin of animals, birds and reptiles. Carnivores get additional D from the tissues and organs of their prey. Lichen contains vitamin D and may provide a source of vitamin D in the UV-B sunlight-poor northern latitudes.(6) Vitamin D content will vary in the organs and tissues of animals, pigs, cows, and sheep, depending on the amount of time spent in UV-B containing sunlight and/or how much D is given as a supplement. Poultry and eggs contain varying amounts of vitamin D obtained from insects, fishmeal, and sunlight containing UV-B or supplements. This is one of the important reasons among many to get organic free range poultry and eggs. Fish, unlike mammals, birds and reptiles, do not respond to sunlight and rely on vitamin D found in phytoplankton and other fish. Salmon must feed on phytoplankton and fish in order to obtain and store significant vitamin D in their fat, flesh, skin, and organs. Thus, modern farm-raised salmon, unless artificially supplemented, may be a poor source of this essential nutrient.

Modern diets usually do not provide adequate amounts of vitamin D;(7) partly because of the trend to low fat foods and partly because we no longer eat vitamin-D-rich foods like naturally reared poultry and fatty fish such as kippers, and herring. Often we are advised to consume the egg white while the D is in the yolk or we eat the flesh of the fish avoiding the D containing skin, organs and fat. Sun avoidance combined with reduction in food sources contribute to escalating D deficiencies. Vegetarian and vegan diets are exceptionally poor or completely lacking in vitamin D predisposing to an absolute need for UV-B sunlight. Using food as one's primary source of D is difficult. So here is some pointers on how to naturally obtain adequate levels of Vitamin D in Ireland:

Take a good quality Cod Liver Oil Supplement ( I take Nordic Naturals, but its not available in Ireland yet so Eskimo oil or SevenSeas cod liver oil will do) A tablespoon or equivalent in capsule per day – 2 table spoons in the winter months

Get as much sun as possible! Without getting burned. Get at least 20 minutes per day exposure on you face and arms (through glass in no good)

Eat fatty fish at least 3 times a week (fresh and not farmed)

Use Lard to fry with (Only use if 100% animal fat source – some are mixed with vegetable oils which is not good)

Eat organic free range eggs (eat up to two a day if you wish – from duck if possible)

Use organic butter liberally(never use margarine)

Eat organic organs (liver, kidney, hearts etc.. – may be hard to source organically - occasional conventional will be good also)

Eat organic meat – with the fat on it (Don’t be too scared of saturated fat – see article The Benefits Of Saturated Fats. Organic will ensure that the animal gets more sunlight. Cook meat as rare as you can handle)

Drink organic full fat milk – if you can take it

One can also supplement directly with a high dose of Vitamin D3 taken orally in capsule form. This can be dangerous and should be done under guidance by your health care professional




To view the full report by the FSAI it can be downloaded from their website by clicking here



In health Gabriel





References

1. Vieth, R. "The Pharmacology of Vitamin D, Including Fortification Strategies." In Feldman, D. Pike, J. W. Glorieux, F. H., eds., Vitamin D: Second Edition, Burlington: Elsevier Academic Press (2005) 995-1015. (Review)
2. Assuming 60 ng/mL of calcidiol, for which 5 ng = 1 IU, and 100 ng/ml of vitamin D, for which 25 ng = 1 IU. The reasonableness of this calculation was confirmed by Dr. Bruce Hollis (personal communication).
3. Green Pastures, "High Vitamin Cod Liver Oil – High Vitamin Butter Oil, Cod Liver Oil – Green Pastures," http://www.greenpasture.org/products/cod_liver_oil. Published January 1, 2006. Accessed August 28, 2006.
4. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Center for Food Safety & Applied Nutrition, "Grade 'A' Pasteurized Milk Ordinance: 2001 Revision: Appendix O. Vitamin Fortification of Fluid Milk Products," http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~ear/pmo01o.html. May 15, 2002. Accessed August 26, 2006. (Review)
5. Institute of Medicine, Food and Nutrition Board, Standing Committee on the Scientific Evaluation of Dietary Reference Intakes. "Vitamin D." In: Dietary Reference Intakes for Calcium, Phosphorus, Magnesium, Vitamin D, and Fluoride, Washington, DC: National Academy Press, 1997; 250-287. (Review)
6. Bjorn LO, Wang T. Vitamin D in an ecological context. Int.J.Circumpolar.Health 2000;59:26-32.
7. Xue L, Lipkin M, Newmark H, Wang J. Influence of dietary calcium and vitamin D on diet-induced epithelial cell hyperproliferation in mice. J.Natl.Cancer Inst. 1999;91:176-81.