Give children vitamin D daily, urges Scotland’s senior doctor

SCOTLAND’S chief medical officer has issued a directive that pregnant women and babies should be taking daily vitamin D drops to protect against illness and bone disease.

Sir Harry Burns has written to Scotland’s health professionals asking them to promote a campaign to encourage parents to ensure that children aged six months to five years take daily vitamin D drops.

The letter from the chief medical officer came as a leading baby charity, Tommy’s, warned that pregnant women not taking “enough vitamin D to protect their baby from deficiency” could risk the onset of rickets – a disease that causes a softening of the bones in young children and is widely known as a childhood disease in developing countries.

Linda Suttill, a midwife at Tommy’s, said: “Pregnant women must make sure they have enough vitamin D to protect their baby from deficiency, which can cause rickets.”

Meanwhile, Sir Harry talked about the “risk of vitamin D deficiency”, as he called on medics to take steps to make sure that babies and pregnant mothers get “access to these important daily supplements”.

Sir Harry said: “My colleagues and I are writing a joint letter to health professionals to increase awareness of this important issue, highlighting the fact there are steps that people who may be at risk of vitamin D deficiency, such as pregnant women, infants and young children, can take to avoid low levels.

“This is a restatement of advice I sent to health professionals in Scotland last year and contains important information about prescribing and recommending vitamin D supplements to those groups of the population at risk of vitamin D deficiency. Health professionals can make a significant difference to people’s health by making those at risk aware of how important it is to make sure they get enough vitamin D, and how they can get access to these important daily supplements.”

The chief medical officer also said a lack of sunshine and a diet low in oily fish are thought to be the main factors in Scots having a low level of the vitamin.

Scottish Labour health spokesman Dr Richard Simpson, a former GP, said that Sir Harry’s intervention over Vitamin D was a “very welcome move.”

He said: “Vitamin deficiency plays a great part in diseases that affect mothers and babies in Scotland and also accounts for the high levels of multiple sclerosis that we have in Scotland.

“This is an excellent initiative from the chief medical officer and will be seen as a very welcome move by health professionals across Scotland.”

THE FACTS

Vitamin D is found in a small number of foods:

– oily fish, such as salmon and sardines

– eggs

– fortified fat spreads

– fortified breakfast cereals

– powdered milk

However, most of our vitamin D comes from sunlight on our skin. It helps protect against chronic diseases such as cancer, type 1 diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, and autoimmune diseases.

Vitamin D deficiency is associated with low bone mass, osteoporosis, poor muscle strength, chronic conditions, such as autoimmune disease and some forms of cancer, and it can also lead to rickets.