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Researchers at the UCL Institute of Child Health say pregnant women should take vitamin D supplements to safeguard their babies’ health. Despite the fact that evidence is increasingly linking complications in pregnancy and poor health in newborns to vitamin D deficiency, the UK currently has no governmental guidelines on vitamin D supplementation for women in their childbearing years.

Vitamin D deficiency can be life threatening

Co-author of the study Dr Elina Hyppönen said in a news release, ‘In the most severe cases, maternal vitamin D deficiency can be life threatening to a newborn. We believe that the routine provision of a daily supplement throughout pregnancy would significantly decrease the number of mothers who are clearly vitamin D deficient, reducing related serious risks to their babies.’

Health officials not taking note

The researchers said that health professionals are overlooking vitamin D deficiency, and that pregnant women are not being told to take vitamin D – despite women in the UK being particularly prone to low levels of the vitamin. Current data shows that one in four UK mums is lacking in vitamin D in winter and spring.

But the NHS disagrees. ‘There is insufficient evidence to evaluate the effectiveness of vitamin D in pregnancy. In the absence of evidence of benefit, vitamin D supplementation should not be offered routinely to pregnant women,’ an NHS spokesperson said.

What to do

According to the UCL team, women should take vitamin D supplements providing at least 10 micrograms of the vitamin, daily. Pregnant women in the UK on a low income can get their supplements free of charge from the NHS. There are very few dietary sources of the vitamin, so spending time in the sun is vital. But make sure the time you spend in the sun is controlled, and still wear sunscreen when spending long periods of time outdoors.

Tags: NHS, pregnant, sunscreen, Vitamin D