All adults should take Vitamin D, health committee says
Senator Sean Kyne called for a major campaign launch.
The Oireachtas Health Committee has recommended a new public health policy stating a Vitamin D supplement be taken by all adults in Ireland, and supplements should be given at Covid-19 test centres.
This follows evidence presented to the committee around links between Vitamin D deficiency and developing the more severe symptoms of Covid-19.
Key recommendations in a report launched on Wednesday include daily Vitamin D supplementation of 20-25µg/day be recommended to the entire adult population as a public health measure.
The committee called for the reduction or elimination of the current VAT rate on Vitamin D supplements.
A key plank of the report is the call for a nationwide education campaign on the benefits of these supplements.
The committee also recommended “specific measures need to be put in place for vulnerable groups, and for frontline and healthcare workers, so that Vitamin D supplementation is administered on an opt-out basis.”
Professor Rose Anne Kenny, from the Covit D consortium, welcomed the report. She said providing Vitamin D on an opt-out basis to healthcare workers is “a way to show our concern and interest and support” in their work during the pandemic.
Committee chair Sean Crowe said: “This new policy should be developed in time for consideration as part of Budget 2022 which will be presented to the Dáil in October 2021.”
And he said the report does not suggest Vitamin D as a cure for Covid-19, but evidence now suggests it can mitigate the more severe effects of the virus.
Cork North-Central Fine Gael TD, Colm Burke described this policy as “very important”. He said: “I think we need a major campaign on this matter, and money should be made available in next year’s Budget for a campaign.”
Senator Sean Kyne said he has already started taking Vitamin D himself having heard the health evidence presented to the committee.
He urged the public information campaign starts as soon as practical. He suggested pharmacies as a good location to allocate supplements to medical cardholders.
Vitamin D supplements are already cheap, and this proposal to remove VAT will make them even more accessible, Social Democrats co-leader Roisin Shortall said.
“We need to pursue this with the minister of health and Nphet. It is important that this is put on the agenda for the minister,” she said.
Senator Martin Conway suggested using influencers to target younger people in schools and universities with specific Vitamin D information.
The committee did not rule out the possibility of further discussion on fortified foods.
Research in the report shows 47% of 18 to 39-year-olds are deficient, and this rises to 64% of over-80s. Studies done with nursing home residents found 67% of them to be lacking in Vitamin D.
And Professor John Faul, a member of the Covit D consortium, who treats Covid-19 patients said it was noticeable how many patients in ICU were deficient in Vitamin D.
Dr Daniel McCarthy, also a member of the Covit D Consortium said this initiative will have benefits for a broad range of illnesses, not only Covid-19.
“Those legacy effects will hopefully be seen for years and years to come,” he said.
