Question reference: S6W-02128
- Asked by: Gillian Mackay, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Green Party
- Date lodged: 9 August 2021
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Current status: Answered by Maree Todd on 25 August 2021
Question
To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to review the current guidance on vitamin D supplementation.
Answer
We currently have no plans to revise our advice on vitamin D supplementation. We will continue to be guided by the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN) and others as the evidence base on vitamin D develops. We will review our advice as necessary based on their recommendations.
Our current advice on vitamin D supplementation, which is based on recommendations by SACN, advisors to the four UK nations, is available at https://www.gov.scot/publications/vitamin-d-advice-for-all-age-groups/
In terms of supplement dosage, our advice is a supplement containing 10 micrograms of vitamin D (400 IU). This applies to adults and children over one year of age. Ten micrograms per day is the average amount needed by the majority (97.5%) of the population to maintain adequate vitamin D levels when UVB sunlight exposure is minimal to maintain bone and muscle health. Our advice is based on SACN’s 2016 report; Vitamin D and Health.
This report is available at:
In December 2020, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), SACN, and Public Health England published updated guidance on vitamin D in relation to COVID-19 following a rapid review of recent evidence. The guidance states that there is still currently not enough evidence to support taking vitamin D solely for the prevention or treatment of COVID-19. It reiterates that people should continue to follow current advice on vitamin D supplementation to maintain bone and muscle health.
The NICE guideline is available at https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/NG187
SACN published an updated rapid review on Vitamin D and acute respiratory tractinfections (ARTI) in December 2020. In it, SACN recommended the reference nutrient intake for vitamin D remain unchanged, at 10 micrograms per day.
The review is available at https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/945179/SACN_December2020_VitaminD_AcuteRespiratoryTractInfections.pdf
In June 2021, SACN published a paper summarising monitoring of recent evidence on nutrition and COVID-19. It did not identify any new trials in relation to vitamin D and COVID-19 that would require the re-review of the current rapid guideline from NICE, SACN and PHE, or that would change current dietary advice.
The paper is available at:
SACN will continue to support NICE with their monitoring of evidence on vitamin D.
The UK COVID-19 Therapeutic Advisory Panel (UK C-TAP) continues to monitor ongoing COVID-19 related Vitamin D trials. It is responsible for reviewing and prioritising suitable compounds based on promising scientific evidence. Evidence on vitamin D and on COVID-19 is also being monitored by RAPID-C19, a multi-agency initiative aiming to get treatments for COVID-19 to NHS patients quickly and safely, as well as by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Innovation Observatory (IO), a national medical horizon scanning facility at Newcastle University. SACN has agreed it will no longer monitor evidence in relation to vitamin D and COVID-19/ARTI, as monitoring is being continued by these organisations.