Your body needs adequate amounts of vitamin D every day to function properly. This fat-soluble vitamin, produced naturally when your skin is exposed to sunlight, helps your body promote and maintain bone growth and health. It is also required for proper calcium absorption and to help keep a healthy amount of phosphorus and calcium in your bloodstream. Without enough vitamin D, children may develop rickets, while a similar deficiency may lead to osteoporosis in adults. The amount of vitamin D you need per day depends to a certain degree on your age.
Adults
Both men and women older than 18 years of age should get 600 international units or 15 mcg of vitamin D daily, the Office of Dietary Supplements recommends. This includes expectant and nursing mothers as well. Unlike other vitamins and nutrients, the vitamin D requirements for pregnant and lactating women are not different from the regular recommended dose for other adults. However, pregnant women should always consult their health care provider before starting intake of any supplement.
Infants and Children
Infants younger than 12 months of age need 400 IU or 10 mcg of vitamin D daily, while older children should get 600 IU or 15 mcg every day. However, take note that there are limits to dosage: Infants younger than 1 year of age should not exceed 25 mcg or 1,000 IU daily, while the safety limit for kids older than 1 year is 50 mcg or 2,000 IU, according to Mayo Clinic. Make sure that your child gets enough vitamin D in her diet and spends a little time outdoors every day.
Seniors
Seniors older than the age of 70 need to take larger amounts of vitamin D, since humans tend to lose bone strength and mass naturally as they get older. In addition, older people tend to spend more time indoors away from sunlight, and skin at this stage of life does not synthesize vitamin D as efficiently as before. Therefore, seniors should increase their vitamin D intake to 800 IU or 20 mcg daily. This is especially true for older individuals with a family history of osteoporosis or osteomalacia.
Dietary Sources
Vitamin D is naturally present in only a few foods. These include tuna, mackerel, salmon and other fatty fish, as well as fish liver oil. Smaller amounts are found in cheese, beef liver, oysters and egg yolks. Fortunately, more foods now have vitamin D added to them. These foods, which provide most of the vitamin D in the American diet, include milk, yogurt, breakfast cereals and some brands of orange juice.
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