A report from a 14-member panel of independent scientists from the Institute of Medicine recommends tripling the amount of vitamin D most Americans should take along with increases in calcium levels for children to build and maintain strong bones. For vitamin D, the panel tripled the daily recommended allowance from 200 international units to 600 units for people aged 1 to 70. Over age 70, the panel recommended 800 units.

     Guidelines for calcium suggested 700 milligrams daily for children 1 to 3 years old and 1,000 mg for ages 4 to 8. For most adults, the daily intake remains at 1,000 mg. The panel kept 1,200 mg for women over 50 but reduced the amount for men that age to 1,000 mg. There was no mention of magnesium which is usually recommended as an accompaniment to calcium. The panel said that the new recommended levels of vitamin D and calcium were the optimum ones for building strong bones without risking harmful side effects.

     Although some research suggests that consumption of even higher amounts of vitamin D could protect against heart disease and various cancers, the panel said that after scrutinizing nearly 1,000 studies, it could not find sufficient evidence that more vitamin D would be beneficial or safe.

     The panel also concluded that most laboratories are setting the bar too high when they measure whether patients have adequate vitamin D in their bloodstream, a test that prompts physicians to prescribe higher doses. However, panel member Dr. JoAnn Manson, a Harvard Medical School professor and Chief of Preventative Medicine at Brigham and Women's Hospital, said, "We are not making blanket statements that if your doctor recommends high dose supplements that you should stop taking them."

     Following the publication of this report, there were dissenting voices. Dr. Bess Dawson-Hughes, director of the Bone Metabolism Laboratory at Tufts University, said that her studies and those of other researchers have shown that older patients need higher levels of vitamin D in their bloodstream than the panel recommended.

     Dr. Walter Willett, chair of the Nutrition Department at Harvard's School of Public Health, said that the panel's recommendations for vitamin D were too low and its recommendations for calcium too high.

     The National Osteoporosis Foundation recommends 1,000 units per day of vitamin D for adults over 50.

     In the meantime, the federal departments of Health and Human Services and Agriculture are finalizing new daily guidelines on a broad array of nutrients.

     What's the answer to all of this? Choose your authority and go with it!

--Source: Adapted from "Calcium, Vitamin D Changes Suggested," The New York Times News Service, November 30, 2010