DoH backs vitamin D for pregnant women

The Department of Health (DoH) has called on women who are pregnant or breastfeeding to increase their intake of vitamin D over the winter months.

It notes that while deficiency in the vitamin is prevalent among white members of the population, the incidence of rickets among children of Asian, Afro-Caribbean and Middle Eastern origin could be as high as one in 100, as dark-skinned people do not absorb as much sunlight through the skin.

The DoH claims that, during the darker winter months, there is not sufficient ultraviolet light of the appropriate wavelength at latitudes of 52 degrees north – Birmingham – and above.

Dawn Primarolo, health minister, said: “We particularly encourage women who are pregnant or breastfeeding to take vitamin D, to protect the health and wellbeing of their baby and help them get the best possible start in life.”

She advised pregnant and breastfeeding mothers to take advantage of the free vitamins available through the government’s Healthy Start scheme which aims to enhance the health of the vulnerable parts of the community.

In May 2007, scientists from Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School claimed that young women with a high intake of calcium and vitamin D could have a reduced risk of developing breast cancer.