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Vitamin D intake in the United States

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Abstract

Mean intake of vitamin D in the United States was estimated from food and food plus supplements and compared with recommended intake levels. US men, nonpregnant and nonlactating women, and nonbreastfeeding children aged 1 year and older who participated in the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES III, 1988–1994) or the Continuing Survey of Food Intakes by Individuals 1994–1996, 1998 (CSFII 1994–1996, 1998) were included in the estimates. Intake of vitamin D from food sources and dietary supplements was not meeting recommended levels. The lowest intakes of vitamin D from food were reported by female teenagers and female adults. The highest intakes of vitamin D from food sources were reported by male teenagers. Dairy products were the primary sources of both vitamin D and calcium. Additional food fortification as well as dietary and supplement guidance are needed for the general population.

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Sample

Estimates of vitamin D intake were based on food consumption data collected in the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 1988–1994 (NHANES III) (5) and the 1994–1996 Continuing Survey of Food Intakes by Individuals and its 1998 Supplemental Children’s Survey (CSFII 1994–1996, 1998) (6). NHANES III is a nationally representative database of 24-hour dietary recalls from 29,105 nonbreastfeeding individuals (5). Data from infants and pregnant or lactating women were excluded to

Intake of vitamin D from food and supplements

The Table presents mean estimated intakes of vitamin D by life stage groups from food, food plus supplements, and the percent of people using supplements. Nearly three fourths of the supplements consumed provided 400 IU vitamin D.

Mean dietary vitamin D intake from food was primarily from foods in the dairy products group (45.0% CSFII and 47.3% NHANES III). Likewise, mean total dietary calcium intake was obtained primarily from the dairy products group (approximately 48% in both surveys).

Adequacy of vitamin D intake

A

Discussion

Children, adolescents, male teenagers, and young male adults were most likely to consume recommended levels of vitamin D. The lowest dietary intakes of vitamin D were reported by female teenagers and female adults. The highest intakes of vitamin D from food sources were reported by male teenagers.

Less than 10% of older adults (51 to 70 years old) and no more than 2% of the elderly (older than 70 years old) met requirements from food sources alone. These decreases in vitamin D intake paralleled

Conclusions

Encourage consumption of vitamin D-fortified dairy products, fortified juices, juice drinks, and grain products such as cereals.

Consider recommending vitamin D supplements (200 to 400 IU) for females older than 13 years, men older than 50 years, and people with limited intakes of concentrated sources of vitamin D such as fortified milk, yogurt, and calcium-fortified juices.

C. Moore is director of nutrition with The Beverage Institute for Health & Wellness, Coca-Cola North America, Houston, TX.

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    However, VitD deficiency was reported in almost half of studied samples of healthy Saudi Arabian adults (Al-Daghri, 2018; Alsuwadia et al., 2013) This could be partially due to low dietary and supplemental VitD intake, traditional dress that reduces the area of exposed skin, genetic factors, and individual preference to avoid hot sunny weather (Alsuwadia et al., 2013). The current recommended daily calcium and VitD intakes for adults are 400–600 IU and 1,000–1,200 mg, respectively (Moore et al., 2004). Thus, increasing calcium and VitD intake through natural sources and oral supplementation has been shown to be essential for bone and oral health (Dixon et al., 2009; Heaney, 2002).

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C. Moore is director of nutrition with The Beverage Institute for Health & Wellness, Coca-Cola North America, Houston, TX.

M. M. Murphy is science manager with ENVIRON Health Sciences Institute, Arlington, VA.

D. R. Keast is a graduate student, Michigan State University, East Lansing.

M. F. Holick is professor of medicine, dermatology, and physiology and director of the Vitamin D, Skin and Bone Research Laboratory, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA.

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