Councils should provide free vitamin D supplements in a bid to support people at risk of illness, according to new health guidelines.
It is thought around 10 million people across England might suffer from vitamin D deficiency, which can lead to problems such as rickets in children as osteomalacia in adults.
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has today urged local authorities to consider handing out free supplements for at-risk groups, including pregnant women, children, older adults and people with darker skin.
Town halls were also called on to encourage pharmacies and outlets to make low cost supplements available and promote them to the public.
However council chiefs warned local authorities had a number of competing health priorities to meet amid a period of shrinking budgets.
While the main source of vitamin D is sunlight, the correct wavelength of light is unavailable between mid-October and early April.
Guidance from NICE recommends that national awareness about the importance of vitamin D supplements must be raised.
Professor Mike Kelly, director of the NICE Centre for Public Health, said: ‘People with darker skin are particularly at risk – during winter months nearly 75% of adults from Asian or African and Caribbean backgrounds may have low vitamin D levels. People who are over 65 years old are another group at risk of having low vitamin D levels, and so are also at risk of conditions like osteomalacia – soft bones.’
Professor Susan Jebb, professor of diet and population health at the University of Oxford, added: ‘Clearer recommendations are needed from all organisations involved in tackling low vitamin D levels. For example, the uptake of Healthy Start supplements among pregnant and breastfeeding women and young children is reported to be less than 10%.’
Responding to the calls, Cllr Izzi Seccombe, chair of the Local Government Association’s community wellbeing board said: ‘Councils take this extremely seriously and already distribute free Vitamin D supplements for a range of different health issues. This includes supporting pregnant and breastfeeding women and young children, to help their bodies absorb calcium, keep bones healthy and ensure unborn babies grow strong bones and teeth.
'While recognising the importance of this issue, councils must balance competing health priorities within a limited budget.’
