Children may be given free vitamins

English pre-school children could be given free vitamins due to health problems triggered by a lack of direct sunlight.

Under-fours may be handed vitamin D supplements amid government concerns over the return of rickets, a disease common during Victorian times but virtually eradicated during the Second World War.

About 10m people across England may be low on the vitamin, which also risks leaving them prone to weak bones and tenderness.

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Alastair Sutcliffe, a leading expert on vitamin D deficiency and a consultant paediatrician at University College London Hospitals, told The Sunday Times: “Nothing is free but the cost of the ill-effects of deficiency, such as rickets and anaemia, from families not providing children with these supplements is greater for the NHS.”

According to figures by Vitamin D Mission, published in October, the average British toddler is only getting 27% of the daily dietary vitamin D recommendation.

Some pregnant women and children under four already qualify for free vitamins under the government’s Healthy Start programme.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellent is carrying out an analysis of the Healthy Start vitamin programme to determine whether it would be cost-effective to move from the current targeted approach to a universal offering.

The Nice final report is due in June.

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