How much Vitamin D do you need each day?

Your body can create its own vitamin D from the sun. To do so, you need to expose your skin to enough sunlight. It's also not very commonly found in food. Some of the best sources of Vitamin D are fortified, which means that it's added by food manufacturers.

Professionally Reviewed by Charles Li, MD

Key Points

Vitamin D Requirements

You can make vitamin D

Unlike Vitamin C, your body can create its own vitamin D from the sun. To do so, you need to expose your skin to enough sunlight.

2. It's not very common in food

It's also not very commonly found in food. Some of the best sources of Vitamin D are fortified, which means that it's added by food manufacturers.

3. It's very important

Vitamin D plays important roles across your whole body. Without enough Vitamin D, you can get osteomalacia, a condition characterized by weak bones.

Adults

Vitamin D Requirements

Adults and Children, from ages 1-70, need the same amount of Vitamin D per day. 600 IU, which corresponds approximately to 15 mcg of Vitamin D, is the recommended dietary allowance. This is assuming minimal sun exposure. This translates to a small portion of fish or a cup of sliced mushrooms. You can also get Vitamin D in fortified foods such as milk.

Each day, adults need about 600 IU of Vitamin D. This is the recommended daily allowance given by the NIH. This is set based on minimal sun exposure. You can generate your own Vitamin D with enough sun exposure.

Age Based Requirements

Daily Vitamin D with Age

Generally, you need more Vitamin D as you get older. Babies need 400 IU of Vitamin D. Adults need 600 IU of vitamin D per day. The elderly need 800 IU of Vitamin D per day. These figures assume that you don't get a lot of sun. With more sun, you may need less Vitamin D in your diet.

Babies need 400IU of Vitamin D each day. Children and adults ages 1-70 need 600 IU of Vitamin D each day. The elderly need the most Vitamin D, with a recommended daily allowance of 800 IU per day. These figures are calculated based on minimal sunlight.

Background

Vitamin D

Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin that you get from sunlight and from your diet. Below, we've outlined the most important reasons why.

what is it?

where to get it

Vitamin D

what is it?

Key Facts

type
fat soluble
source
diet, skin
other names
calciferol, cholecalciferol

Appearance

Use List

bone growth

calcium

immunity

Vitamin D

where to get it

the sun

your body can create vitamin D with assistance from the sun

diet

some foods such as milk and fish contain vitamin D

supplements

Vitamin D can also be obtained from dietary supplements

Key facts: Vitamin D plays a key role in bone growth, calcium absorption, and your immune system. Unlike some vitamins, your body can produce it with the help of the sun. Sunlight helps catalyze a key reaction in the production of Vitamin D.

Top Benefits

Vitamin D

click for the latest research

Multiple Sclerosis

Cancer

Immunity

Benefit #1

Multiple Sclerosis

Studies have associated high Vitamin D levels with a lower risk of multiple sclerosis. This autoimmune disease tends to be more common in areas that receive less sunlight, which further supports the idea that Vitamin D may play a role in this disease.

A prospective study found that nurses who took the most Vitamin D supplements had the a significantly lower risk (p=0.006) of developing Multiple Sclerosis compared to those who took the lowest amount of Vitamin D.

Benefit #2

Vitamin D & Immunity

Your Daily Vitamin D might also help protect you from getting sick. One study showed that students who received Vitamin D were far less likely to get the flu.

A study found that students were just over half as likely to get Influenza A if they were given vitamin D supplements compared to students who received a placebo. This study was conducted in Japan and was designed to investigate whether Vitamin D supplements could reduce the incidence of the flu among schoolchildren. Only Influenza A was studied.

Data Source

"In conclusion, our study suggests that vitamin D3 supplementation during the winter season may reduce the incidence of influenza A. This effect was prominent in specific subgroups of schoolchildren. Moreover, asthma attacks were also prevented by vitamin D3 supplementation. "

Source: Randomized trial of vitamin D supplementation to prevent seasonal influenza A in schoolchildren

Benefit #3

Cancer Risk

Your daily Vitamin D might also protect you from dying from cancer. A meta-analysis found that those who took Vitamin D had a 13% lower risk of dying from cancer.

Data Source

"In an updated meta-analysis of RCTs, vitamin D supplementation significantly reduced total cancer mortality but did not reduce total cancer incidence."

Source: Vitamin D supplementation and total cancer incidence and mortality: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials