Being very conscious about what I put in my body, I am a subscriber to Consumer Lab. A review about Vitamin D caught my attention to share with my readers, because receiving vitamin D daily is so vital! When living in a cold climate, making it impossible to get skin exposure to natural Vitamin D from the sun, supplementation is an option. But in order to get the benefits we need, we need to know how good the products are.
Below are some products reviewed by Consumer Lab that did not meet the labeling
CONSUMERLAB.COM RESULTS FOR VITAMIN D SUPPLEMENTS
(INCLUDING COMBINATIONS WITH CALCIUM AND/OR VITAMIN K)
(INCLUDING COMBINATIONS WITH CALCIUM AND/OR VITAMIN K)
Vitamin D Only:
NOT APPROVED
Found only 31.7% of claimed Vitamin D3
Vitafusion Vitamin D3 (2 gummy bears, 2 per day) Ingredients
Mfd. by Northwest Natural Products, Inc.
1,000 IU (D3) NOT APPROVED
Found only 83% of claimed Vitamin D2
DEVA Vegan Vitamin D 800 IU (1 tablet, 1 per day) Ingredients
Dist. by DEVA Nutrition, LLC
800 IU (D2)
Vegetarian and Vegan
NOT APPROVED
Labeling Infraction3
Nature's Life D-2 2,000 IU (1 vegetarian capsule, 1 per day) Ingredients
Mfd. by NutraPure, Inc.
2,000 IU (D2)
Vegetarian
Vegetarian
Vitamin D, Calcium, and Vitamin K:
NOT APPROVED
Labeling Infraction4
Found lead contamination: 3.9 mcg and 5.2 mcg, in servings of 3 and 4 capsules, respectively
Dist. by AlgaeCal Inc
1,200 to 1,600 IU (D3)
540 to 720 mg (calcium from algae)
75 to 100 mcg (K2 MK7)
540 to 720 mg (calcium from algae)
75 to 100 mcg (K2 MK7)
NOT APPROVED
Labeling Infraction4
Pure Essence Labs Ionic-Fizz Super D-K Calcium Plus (1 level scoop powder [7 grams], 1 to 2 per day) Ingredients
Dist. by Pure Essence Laboratories, Inc.
1,000 to 2,000 IU (D3)
250 to 500 mg (calcium lactate)
45 to 90 mcg (K2 MK7)
Vegetarian
Assorted minerals
250 to 500 mg (calcium lactate)
45 to 90 mcg (K2 MK7)
Vegetarian
Assorted minerals
Vitamin D and Calcium:
NOT APPROVED
Found only 43.9% of claimed Vitamin D3
Mfd. by Kirkman
41 IU (D3)
311 mg (calcium carbonate)
311 mg (calcium carbonate)
Vitamin D and Vitamin K:
NOT APPROVED
Labeling Infraction4
Found only 73.6% of Vitamin K2
Dist. by DaVinci Laboratories of Vermont
200 to 400 IU (D3)
50 to 100 mcg (K2 MK7)
50 to 100 mcg (K2 MK7)
Consumer Tips:
What to Consider When Buying:
Before buying a vitamin D supplement, be aware that vitamin D can be obtained in sufficient amounts from exposure to sunlight, fortified milk (400 IU per quart or 100 IU per cup), and other fortified foods (e.g., many breakfast cereals and nutrition bars, some brands of orange juice, yogurt, margarine, and soy beverages). Fatty fish are also good sources of vitamin D. Small amounts of vitamin D are found in beef liver, cheese, egg yolks, and mushrooms.
Ten to fifteen minutes of sun exposure at least two times per week to the face, arms, hands, or back without sunscreen is usually sufficient to provide adequate vitamin D. It was recently estimated that getting the equivalent of a 1,000 IU dose of vitamin D requires exposing the face, hands and arms to full sunlight at noon for 6 to15 minutes in Miami or 9 to19 minutes during non-winter months in Boston, based on a darker-skinned Caucasian. Times are shorter by about 33% for people with very fair skin and double for those with dark skin. To get only 400 IU, times would be 40% as long. All of these exposures are significantly less than the amount required to cause sunburn. Nevertheless, the researchers who made these calculations suggest that oral supplements of vitamin D would probably represent the safest way to increase vitamin D status due to the difficulty getting just the right amount of sun exposure and the detrimental side effects of UV exposure.12
Furthermore, inadequate vitamin D intake is common in people who live in northern climates (north of a line from Boston to the northern border of California), especially if they are dark-skinned. Also, increased concern about skin cancer has caused people to avoid the sun or use sunscreen. This creates a potential risk of reduced vitamin D. Americans aged 50 and older are at increased risk of vitamin D insufficiency because, as people age, skin cannot synthesize vitamin D as efficiently and the kidneys are less able to convert vitamin D into its active hormone form. People who are obese also tend to have a low plasma concentration of 25-hydroxyvitamin D, as subcutaneous fat may sequester the vitamin. Consequently, many people may benefit by taking vitamin D as a supplement either alone or in combination with a calcium supplement. Because vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin, people with reduced ability to absorb fat in the gut may also require vitamin D supplementation.
What to Consider When Buying:
Before buying a vitamin D supplement, be aware that vitamin D can be obtained in sufficient amounts from exposure to sunlight, fortified milk (400 IU per quart or 100 IU per cup), and other fortified foods (e.g., many breakfast cereals and nutrition bars, some brands of orange juice, yogurt, margarine, and soy beverages). Fatty fish are also good sources of vitamin D. Small amounts of vitamin D are found in beef liver, cheese, egg yolks, and mushrooms.
Ten to fifteen minutes of sun exposure at least two times per week to the face, arms, hands, or back without sunscreen is usually sufficient to provide adequate vitamin D. It was recently estimated that getting the equivalent of a 1,000 IU dose of vitamin D requires exposing the face, hands and arms to full sunlight at noon for 6 to15 minutes in Miami or 9 to19 minutes during non-winter months in Boston, based on a darker-skinned Caucasian. Times are shorter by about 33% for people with very fair skin and double for those with dark skin. To get only 400 IU, times would be 40% as long. All of these exposures are significantly less than the amount required to cause sunburn. Nevertheless, the researchers who made these calculations suggest that oral supplements of vitamin D would probably represent the safest way to increase vitamin D status due to the difficulty getting just the right amount of sun exposure and the detrimental side effects of UV exposure.12
Furthermore, inadequate vitamin D intake is common in people who live in northern climates (north of a line from Boston to the northern border of California), especially if they are dark-skinned. Also, increased concern about skin cancer has caused people to avoid the sun or use sunscreen. This creates a potential risk of reduced vitamin D. Americans aged 50 and older are at increased risk of vitamin D insufficiency because, as people age, skin cannot synthesize vitamin D as efficiently and the kidneys are less able to convert vitamin D into its active hormone form. People who are obese also tend to have a low plasma concentration of 25-hydroxyvitamin D, as subcutaneous fat may sequester the vitamin. Consequently, many people may benefit by taking vitamin D as a supplement either alone or in combination with a calcium supplement. Because vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin, people with reduced ability to absorb fat in the gut may also require vitamin D supplementation.
When buying vitamin D, be aware that it is measured in International Units (IU) of vitamin D activity or as micrograms of cholecalciferol (D3) or ergocalciferol (D2). One microgram is equivalent to 40 IU.
A small news article appeared in 2010 regarding research on the content of vitamin D supplements presented at a Multiple Sclerosis conference by a team at Johns Hopkins University. The results showed the mean actual dose in 10 supplements to be only 33.5% of the labeled dose, with a range from 0.24% to 81.7%. ConsumerLab.com contacted the research team to learn more about the findings. We spoke with Dr. Norman Haughey who oversaw the testing. It appears that the report was preliminary: The team had not yet performed extraction efficiency testing, i.e., making sure that they got all of the vitamin D out of the tested samples. Poor extraction recovery will yield low results and is a well-known problem with vitamin D in supplements where other components of the product can interfere with measurements. As noted earlier, we were not able to accurately measure the amount of vitamin D in one product for this reason.
