Different Types Of Vitamin D
The type of vitamin D added to milk alternatives may differ from what’s added to dairy milk. Cows milk is fortified with vitamin D3 , which is derived from the lanolin found in sheeps wool. Plant-based milks may be fortified with D2 , which is produced by irradiating yeast. That may be a plus for those who avoid consuming animal products, researchers say.
Both types seem to be absorbed similarly. A 2012 study from Kings College in the United Kingdom involving people who drank milk fortified with either D2 or D3 found that their blood levels of D rose equally no matter which vitamin D-fortified milk they drank.
What Happens If I Take Too Much Vitamin D
Taking too many vitamin D supplements over a long period of time can cause too much calcium to build up in the body . This can weaken the bones and damage the kidneys and the heart.
If you choose to take vitamin D supplements, 10 micrograms a day will be enough for most people.
Do not take more than 100 micrograms of vitamin D a day as it could be harmful. This applies to adults, including pregnant and breastfeeding women and the elderly, and children aged 11 to 17 years.
Children aged 1 to 10 years should not have more than 50 micrograms a day. Infants under 12 months should not have more than 25 micrograms a day.
Some people have medical conditions that mean they may not be able to safely take as much. If in doubt, you should consult your doctor.
If your doctor has recommended you take a different amount of vitamin D, you should follow their advice.
You cannot overdose on vitamin D through exposure to sunlight. But always remember to cover up or protect your skin if you’re out in the sun for long periods to reduce the risk of skin damage and skin cancer.
Page last reviewed: 03 August 2020 Next review due: 03 August 2023
Sunlight And Vitamin D
Vitamin D is a unique vitamin. This is because your body can make it when it is exposed to sunlight.
Many factors can reduce how much vitamin D your body makes, including:
- smog
- amount of skin exposed to sunlight
- age:
- you make less vitamin D as you get older
These factors make it hard to estimate the amount of vitamin D you make from sun exposure.
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Is There A Difference Between 2% And Vitamin D Milk
A wide range of milk products stock the shelves of the average grocer these days. You can choose from whole fat cows milk to nonfat and anywhere in between as well as almond, rice, or soy milk. All the options and various information might leave you wondering if there is a difference between 2% and Vitamin D milk as well as all the other options. Lets consider the categories and characteristics of milk products.
Clover Farms is the superior choice when considering cows milk options regardless of the type you decide is right for your diet and taste preferences. We have over 80 years of experience under our belt and partnerships with 170+ local dairy farms. All of our milk is produced with zero antibiotics or artificial growth hormones and produced with standards that exceed federal mandates.
Advice For Adults And Children Over 4 Years Old
During the autumn and winter, you need to get vitamin D from your diet because the sun is not strong enough for the body to make vitamin D.
But since it’s difficult for people to get enough vitamin D from food alone, everyone should consider taking a daily supplement containing 10 micrograms of vitamin D during the autumn and winter.
Between late March/early April to the end of September, most people can make all the vitamin D they need through sunlight on their skin and from a balanced diet.
You may choose not to take a vitamin D supplement during these months.
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Skim Milk Vs Whole Milk
Skim milk became popular in the U.S. in the 1980s, when people began paying more attention to the amount of fat in their diets. Many thought that the more fat you ate, the more fat your body would store, making you gain weight.
Nonfat milk has become a popular choice because it is lower in fat and calories than whole milk. Whole milk has a bad reputation because it has more saturated fat and may raise cholesterol.
There are two kinds of cholesterol: LDL, the bad cholesterol, and HDL, the good cholesterol. When you drink whole milk, your LDL goes up more than if you drank skim milk. But the saturated fats in whole milk and dairy products also raise your levels of HDL.
Experts recommend getting fewer than 20 grams of saturated fats each day, which is why many people avoid whole milk and opt for skim. Also, the fats in whole milk arent the healthy fats that are in products like:
- Nuts
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Foods High In Vitamin D
The human body may produce vitamin D on its own, but most people dont get enough sunlight to produce the amount they need every day. You can take over the counter vitamin D supplements to ensure that youre getting enough. You can also get vitamin D from a variety of different food sources. The following six foods are some of the best dietary sources of vitamin D available:
1.Fortified Cereals
Dietary sources of vitamin D are limited. Many breakfast cereals are fortified with the vitamin, along with other essential vitamins and minerals, which can help to boost your intake. Cereals fortified with 10% of your recommended daily intake of vitamin D contain 2mg per 1 cup serving. While cereals may be fortified with vitamins and minerals, they may also contain added sugars, so you should read the label.
2.Fortified Dairy
Many dairy products, such as milk and yogurt, are fortified with vitamin D as well, as are non-dairy alternatives like soy milk, almond milk, and oat milk. Fortified milk typically has around 3mg of vitamin D, and non-dairy alternatives have between 2.5 and 3.6mg per 1 cup. Yogurt has between 2 and 3mg of vitamin D per serving. Like cereals, some brands of fortified milk and non-dairy milk may contain added sugar.
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3.Orange Juice
Orange juice is another beverage thats often fortified with vitamin D. A 1 cup serving has 2.5 mg of vitamin D.
4.Cod Liver Oil
5.Fish
6.Mushrooms
Cleveland Clinic: Vitamin D Deficiency.
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Does Skim Milk Provide The Same Nutrients As Whole Milk
Yes, skim milk has all of the same nutrients as whole milk but without extra fat. If whole milk is not homogenized to reduce the size of fat particles, it naturally separates into skim milk with the cream layer on top. Skim milk has the same amount of calcium, vitamin D, riboflavin, and protein as whole milk does. However, skim milk is a better dietary choice for healthy heart and healthy weight since it has less calories, saturated fat, and cholesterol. A cup of skim milk has 12 grams of carbohydrate, 8 grams of protein, 0 grams of fat, and 128 mg of sodium.
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How Much Calcium Do You Need
Depending on your age and sex, the daily calcium requirements vary from 360 milligrams per day to more than 1,000 mg for teens and older women.
One 250ml cup of cows milk contains about 300mg of calcium, which is equivalent to one standard serve. This same amount is found in:
-
200 grams of yoghurt
The recommended number of daily serves of dairy and non-dairy alternatives varies:
-
children should have between 1 and 3.5 serves a day, depending on their age and sex
-
women aged 19 to 50 should have 2.5 serves a day, then 4 serves when aged over 50
-
men aged 19 to 70 should have 2.5 serves a day, then 3.5 serves when aged over 70.
However, the average Australian intake is just 1.5 serves per day, with only one in ten achieving the recommendations.
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Vitamin D Fortification Strategies
Vitamin D3, administered through cod liver oil, has been used in infant nutrition in northern Europe since the 1700sat a daily dosage of a small teaspoon . This experimental dose of cod liver oil was really effective, as discovered in studies performed two centuries later the 375 IU of vitamin D3 in one teaspoon was confirmed as being the most appropriate for children .
Milk fortification with vitamin D started in the USA in the 1930s . Milk was initially fortified using two different methods: by irradiating milk with vitamin D or feeding the cows irradiated yeast . In the 1940s, a simple and valid method based on direct supplementation of vitamin D concentrate to milk was developed it is still in use today .
When considering vitamin D food fortification, it is important to evaluate whether such a public health intervention is likely to be cost-effective . Usually, micronutrient fortification is considered the most cost-effective public health intervention . With reference to vitamin D food fortification, there are only a few reports available on its cost-effectiveness. The available studies have reported that systematic vitamin D fortification may indeed be highly cost-effective . The following distribution of costs for a typical food fortification programme was determined as follows: 80% recurrent production costs, 8% marketing and education costs, 7% food control and monitoring costs, and 5% other production costs .
The Real Reason The Dairy Industry Adds Vitamin D To Your Milk
Chances are, theres more than just milk in your carton. If you take a look at the ingredients on your milk jug, youll likely see vitamin D listed, even if the milk doesnt advertise that its been fortified with a vitamin. These days, milk is almost always fortified with vitamin D and the reason dates back to the 1900s.
At the turn of the century, rickets a childhood bone disorder that can lead to weak and soft bones, stunted growth and sometimes skeletal deformities was rampant. Roughly 80 percent of children in Boston suffered from it. The cause of rickets is a deficiency in vitamin D or calcium. Vitamin D is synthesized in our bodies when our skin takes in the sun, and our bodies need Vitamin D to be able to absorb calcium.
Rickets became an epidemic as you had the Industrial Revolution and with it, childhood labor, explains Patsy M. Brannon from the division of nutritional sciences at Cornell University. She told HuffPost that children were simply not exposed to enough sun. Since vitamin D does not naturally occur in many foods, deficiencies became widespread.
Looks like milk really does do a body good as long as its boosted with vitamin D.
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Alternatives To Traditional Milk
If regular milk troubles your tummy or youd like a non-dairy milk option for some other reason, several alternatives to milk exist. Almond milk, soy milk, and rice milk appeal to those consumers, but finding the right option for you will take some taste-testing. Clover Farms even produces several products that would fill this demand including Cream-O-Land Lactose-Free Milk and Blue Diamond Brand Almond Milk.
How Can I Get All The Vitamin D That I Need
Do you know whether you need a supplement? Find out.
Milk is an excellent source of vitamin D, as are fatty fish like salmon or tuna. To get the recommended amount of vitamin D, drink milk or eat fatty fish every day. If you are unable to meet your vitamin D needs through food, consider taking a vitamin D supplement.
Ideas for action:
To find Vitamin D sources in food, check out Food Sources of Vitamin D.
Did you know
According to the recommendations released in November 2010: 1
- Infants over one year old, children, teenagers and adults up to the age of 70 need 15 µg or 600 IU of vitamin D per day. These recommendations are the same for pregnant and lactating women.
- Adults age 71 or older need 20 µg or 800 IU of Vitamin D per day.
The new upper level intake for vitamin D is 2500 IU per day for children 1-3 years old, 3000 for children 4-8 years old and 4000 for children 9-13 years old, teens and adults. 1
40 IU of vitamin D is equivalent to 1 microgram of vitamin D. 1
References
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Tally Of Other Nutrients
The good news is that you can go with reduced fat or fat-free milk without giving up nutrients. Skim, 2 percent and whole milk all have 8 grams of protein in 1 cup and about the same amount of magnesium, zinc and B vitamins. A 1-cup serving of all types of milk also supplies almost 30 percent of your daily calcium and almost half of your daily allowance of vitamin B-12. As the percentage of fat goes down, you also lose calories. One cup of whole milk has 149 calories and 2 percent contains 122 calories.
Alternative Vitamin D Food Sources
Previously, it was mentioned that you only get up to 20% of your vitamin D needs with a glass of milk. So, you need to know other dietary sources of vitamin D to help you reach the amount that you need for the day.
Many everyday food products can help you achieve enough vitamin D. Other than fortified milk and cereal, vitamin D is naturally present on eggs, cheese and mushrooms. Also, in sardines, liver, beef, and tuna fish. These have lots of vitamin D in them. Furthermore, a tablespoon of cod liver oil can even give you as much as 1360 IU of vitamin D. that would surely help you meet your dietary needs.
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Do You Know How Much Vitamin D Is In Milk
Do you know how much vitamin D is in milk? Before 1933, there wasnt much. To address a potential health crisis, three prominent U.S. advisory groups the American Medical Association, the Council on Food and Nutrition and the National Committee on Food and Nutrition recommended milk producers add vitamin D to milk to help combat rickets, which is caused by vitamin D deficiency.
In response to the health crisis, milk producers instituted new measures to fortify milk with nutrients. This practice added vitamins A and D to milk prior to homogenizing and pasteurizing steps to ready milk for the consumer. Since the 1930s, the standard is to fortify all milk to provide 15 percent of daily value of vitamin D in every 8-ounce glass. This is how much vitamin D is in milk to this day.
Read more: Learn how milk travels from a local farm to your familys table.
What Other Food Products Have Vitamin D
As weve highlighted already, milk is an excellent source of vitamin D. Its also affordable, accessible, and full of other nutrients as well, such as calcium.
Since each serving of milk only contains about 100 to 180 IU of vitamin D, youll probably need additional food sources to meet the daily recommended 600-800 IU intake .
Experts agree a varied diet rich in foods with vitamin D is the best way to ensure youre meeting the daily requirement. Here are some everyday food products and how much vitamin D each contains :
- Cod liver oil, one tablespoon: 1,360 IU
- Salmon , cooked, three ounces: 570 IU
- Trout , farmed, cooked, three ounces: 645 IU
- Mushrooms, white, raw, sliced, exposed to UV light, ½ cup: 366 IU
- Egg, one large, with yolk: 44 IU
- Liver, beef, braised, three ounces: 42 IU
- Tuna fish , canned in water, drained, three ounces: 40 IU
- Sardines , canned in oil, drained, two sardines: 46 IU
- Cheese, cheddar, one ounce: 12 IU
- Ready-to-eat cereal fortified with vitamin D, one serving: 8 IU
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Understanding The Recommended Vitamin D Levels
The only way to measure vitamin D levels is to have a blood test, either at a doctors office or a laboratory. How much vitamin D you need every day depends on your age. Average daily recommended amounts from the Food and Nutrition Board at the Institute of Medicine for different ages are listed below in International Units :
What Is Vitamin D Milk Good For
What is vitamin d milk good for? In addition to helping maintain bone health, vitamin D plays many important roles in your body. Getting more vitamin D from fortified milk or other sources may help reduce your risk of heart disease, cancer, and autoimmune diseases.
Is it good to drink vitamin D milk? Milk products, especially yogurt and milk, provide potassium. Vitamin D functions in the body to maintain proper levels of calcium and phosphorous, thereby helping to build and maintain bones. Milk that is fortified with vitamin D is a good source of this nutrient.
Is a glass of milk a day enough vitamin D? Children and adults up to age 70 need 600 IU of vitamin D each day . To help meet these needs, drink 2 cups of milk each day, or eat 75 grams of salmon, tuna or sardines every day. Use a vitamin D supplement when you cant get enough from your diet.
What is the healthiest type of milk? In every 8-ounce serving of milk, you can get 15 percent of the recommended daily value of vitamin D. The 2015 Dietary Guidelines recommend three daily servings of lowfat and fat free dairy products. If you drink three cups of milk each day, you can get 90 percent of your daily vitamin D requirements from milk.
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