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Recommendations Around the World
United States
(Latitude 19-71° N)
Vitamin D . . . may need to be given before 6 months of age in selected groups
of infants (vitamin D for infants whose mothers are vitamin D-deficient or
those infants not exposed to adequate sunlight."1Note: This policy is
currently under revision.
American Academy of Pediatrics
Sweden
(Latitude 55-69° N)
400 IU/day of vitamin D supplements are recommended for all children from birth
through five years of age. After one year of age, supplementation is not necessary
from May through August.2
Ministry of Social Welfare (Socialstyrelsen-SOS)
Canada
(Latitude 42-83° N)
"
[V]itamin D supplements (10 µg/d or 400 IU/d) are recommended for all
breastfed full-term infants. Supplementation should continue until the diet
provides a source of vitamin D. For infants living in northern communities,
20 µg/d (800 IU/d) of vitamin D is recommended."3
Canadian Paediatric Society
United Kingdom
(Latitude 50-61° N)
"
. . . appropriate use of supplements for those most at risk. The most vulnerable
groups include: infants, young children and pregnant women from Asian families
as well as young African-Caribbean children being reared on strict exclusion
diets . . . [and] people who rarely go out of doors or who, when they do so,
wear clothes which fully conceal them."4
Department of Health
Australia
(Latitude 11-44° S)
"
It is recommended that pregnant women and young children should receive reasonable
exposure to summer sunlight. Those who are housebound . . . could benefit from
an oral intake of 10 µg [400 IU] vitamin D per day if they are not exposed
for 1-2 hours per week to direct sunlight in summer."5
National Health and Medical Research Council
New Zealand
(Latitude 33-53° S)
"
Only 10 to 15 minutes per day of sunlight on the face, hands and arms is sufficient.
To avoid burning, this should not occur at the hottest part of the day. Vitamin
D supplements should only be used to treat a proven deficiency."6
Ministry of Health
Global
"
Outside temperate regions with weak sunlight, vitamin D deficiencies can be
found in certain communities. They are the result of overprotection from the
sun. . . . The best prevention is to change these habits, and health professionals
must insist on the need to be in the sunlight. . . . As well, preventive doses
of vitamin D can be prescribed. 400 IU (10 µg) per day of ergocalciferol
(vitamin D2) or of cholecalciferol (vitamin D3) are sufficient."7
UNICEF
Global
"
Some UV radiation is essential to the body as it stimulates the production
of vitamin D. . . . There is no doubt that a little sunlight is good for you!
But 5 to 15 minutes of casual sun exposure of hands, face and arms two to three
times a week during the summer months is sufficient to keep your vitamin D
levels high. Closer to the equator, where UV levels are higher, even shorter
periods of exposure suffice."8
World Health Organization
NOTES
1. American Academy of Pediatrics, "Breastfeeding and the Use of Human
Milk (RE9729)," Pediatrics 100, no. 6 (1997): 1035-1039.
2. SOSFS 1978:25; Ted Greiner, PhD, Associate Professor, International Child
Health, Department of Women's and Children's Health, Uppsala University, personal
communication, November 5, 2002.
3. Canadian Paediatric Society et al., Nutrition for Healthy Infants (Ottawa:
Minister of Public Works and Government Services, 1998).
4. Committee on Medical Aspects of Food and Nutrition Policy, Nutrition and
Bone Health with Particular Reference to Calcium and Vitamin D, Department
of Health Report 49 (London: The Stationery Office, 1998).
5. National Health and Medical Research Council, Recommended Dietary Intakes
for Use in Australia (Commonwealth of Australia, 1991).
6. Ministry of Health, Food and Nutrition Guidelines for Healthy Infants and
Toddlers (Aged 0-2 Years): A Background Paper (Wellington, New Zealand: Public
Health Commission, 2000).
7. UNICEF, "Vitamin D: Rickets in Children and Osteomalacia in Pregnant
Women," The Prescriber: Guidelines on the Rational Use of Drugs in Basic
Health Services 8 (Dec. 1993): 11.
8. World Health Organization, "Frequently Asked Questions," Intersun:
The Global UV Project; see www.who.int/peh-uv/FAQ/faq3.htm
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