Vitamin D Supplements

Is it necessary to take vitamin D supplements? Vitamin D, which is made mostly by animals, including ourselves, when we’re exposed to sunlight, may help us enjoy a longer life based on randomized, controlled studies. It’s also been shown to improve pain from menstrual periods and help prevent respiratory infections.

If you don’t get adequate sun exposure, I recommend 2,000 IU vitamin D supplements daily, ideally with the largest meal of the day.

Mushrooms, interestingly, also make vitamin D when exposed to sunlight radiation, but most mushrooms found in the produce section of our local markets don’t have any vitamin D because they’re grown in the dark. I also don’t recommend tanning beds because they can be both ineffective and dangerous. (The lamps emit mostly UVA, which increases melanoma skin cancer risk while producing less vitamin D.)

Note that the longevity effects appeared limited to vitamin D3, though, the type derived from plants and animals—not vitamin D2, the type derived from yeast and mushrooms.

For an overview, see Dr. Greger’s Vitamin D Recommendations infographic.

For substantiation of any statements of fact from the peer-reviewed medical literature, please see the associated videos below.

49 videos

All Videos for Vitamin D Supplements

Holding a vitamin D supplement capsule with sun shining behind

Do Vitamin D Supplements Help Prevent Diabetes, Cancer Mortality, and Overall Mortality?

Randomized interventional trials are necessary to establish cause-and-effect.

How to Get a Good Night’s Sleep Without Sleeping Pills

Taking less than just 18 Ambien-class sleeping pills in an entire year may triple the risk of dying prematurely.

Is Soy Milk the Most Nutritious Non-Dairy Milk?

Soy milk is compared to dairy milk and other plant-based milks.

Vitamin D Supplements Tested for COPD, Heart Disease, Depression, Obesity, and Cancer Survival

Before watching the video, can you guess which conditions vitamin D has actually been proven to work for in randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trials?

Potential Vitamin and Mineral Deficiency Risks on a Vegan Diet

What is the best way to get the nutrients of concern on a plant-based diet?

Photo of Dr. Greger and video title on a blue background

Are Supplements and Vitamins B12 and D Really Necessary on a Plant-Based Diet?

I answer common questions about supplements, vitamin B12, and vitamin D. Do we need them?

Vitamin D May Explain Higher Bone Fracture Risk in Vegans

A combination of low calcium intake and low vitamin D exposure may explain higher bone fracture rates in British vegans.

Do Vegans Have Lower Bone Density and More Fractures?

What are the bone fracture rates of omnivores vs. vegetarians vs. vegans?

The Purported Benefits of Vitamin K2: Should You Take Supplements?

Our body can make vitamin K2 from the K1 in green leafy vegetables.

Are Vegans at Risk for Iodine Deficiency?

Most plant-based milks are not fortified with iodine.

Are There Health Benefits of Spending Time in Nature?

Studies on green exercising, the value of greenspaces, or even just viewing trees outside the window on surgery recovery.

Vegetarians and Stroke Risk Factors—Omega 3s?

Does eating fish or taking fish oil supplements reduce stroke risk?

Vegetarians and Stroke Risk Factors—Vitamin D?

Could the apparent increased stroke risk in vegetarians be reverse causation? And what about vegetarians versus vegans?

Dietary Supplements for Autism

Vitamin C, vitamin D, and omega-3 fish oil supplements put to the test to improve the core symptoms of autism spectrum disorder.

Should Women with Fibroids Avoid Soy?

When it comes to uterine fibroids, is soy harmful, harmless, or helpful?

Talcum Powder and Fibroids

What role does diet and baby powder play in the development of fibroids and ovarian cancer?

Pros and Cons of Gluten-Free, Casein-Free Diets for Autism

What did the most comprehensive double-blind study of diet for autism find, and what are the potential downsides?

Eczema Treatment w Evening Primrose Oil, Borage Oil vs. Hempseed Oil

Eczema Treatment with Evening Primrose Oil, Borage Oil vs. Hempseed Oil

Are there dietary supplements that can help with atopic dermatitis?

The Best Supplement for Fibromyalgia

Vitamin D supplements are put to the test for fibromyalgia.

Should Vitamin D Supplements Be Taken to Prevent Falls in the Elderly?

A daily dose of 4,000 IU of vitamin D is recommended for elders at high risk for falling to improve muscle strength and balance, though there is something that works even better.

Vitamin D for Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Vitamin D supplements were put to the test for Crohn’s disease.

Vitamin D for Asthma

Vitamin D supplements are put to the test in childhood asthma.

Does Casein in Milk Trigger Type 1 Diabetes?

Why might exposure to bovine proteins increase the risk of childhood-onset autoimmune type 1 diabetes?

Parkinson’s Disease and the Uric Acid Sweet Spot

The link between Parkinson’s and dairy may not be explained just by the pesticides and lactose.

Do Vitamin D Supplements Reduce the Risk of Dying from Cancer?

Sun exposure is associated with lower rates of 15 different cancers and improved cancer survival. What happened when vitamin D supplements were put to the test?

The Risks and Benefits of Sensible Sun Exposure

We don’t have to choose between the lesser of two evils: skin cancer versus internal cancers from vitamin D deficiency.

The Best Way to Get Vitamin D: Sun, Supplements, or Salons?

If one is going to make an evolutionary argument for what a “natural” vitamin D level may be, how about getting vitamin D in the way nature intended—that is, from the sun instead of supplements?

The Optimal Dose of Vitamin D Based on Natural Levels

Why do some recommend thousands of units of supplemental vitamin D when the Institute of Medicine set the recommended daily intake at just 600 to 800 units?

How Much Vitamin D Should You Take?

The safe dose of vitamin D supplementation to get most of the population to the optimal level is 2,000 IU a day, but the elderly and overweight may need more.

Will You Live Longer if You Take Vitamin D Supplements?

What do 56 randomized clinical trials involving nearly 100,000 people between the ages of 18 and 107 show vitamin D can do to our lifespan?

Do Vitamin D Supplements Help with Diabetes, Weight Loss, and Blood Pressure?

Those with higher vitamin D levels tend to have lower rates of obesity, diabetes, and hypertension, but is it cause and effect? Interventional trials finally put vitamin D to the test.

The Protein-Combining Myth

The myth that plant proteins are incomplete, necessitating protein combining, was debunked by the scientific nutrition community decades ago.

How to Regenerate Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) Naturally

Chlorophyll in our bloodstream after eating greens may react with wavelengths of sunlight that penetrate through our skin to reactivate the antioxidant Coenzyme Q10 (ubiquinol).

Are Calcium Supplements Effective?

What is the optimal daily dietary calcium intake and might benefits for your bones outweigh the risks to your heart from taking calcium supplements?

Are Calcium Supplements Safe?

The unnaturally large, rapid, and sustained calcium levels in the blood caused by calcium supplements may explain why calcium from supplements, but not from food, appears to increase the risk of heart attacks.

What Are the Healthiest Foods?

Based on the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, which foods best supply shortfall nutrients while avoiding disease-promoting components?

Dietary Treatment for Painful Menstrual Periods

Women suffering with dysmenorrhea who switch to a plant-based diet experience significant relief in menstrual pain intensity and duration.

Is Vitamin D3 Better Than D2?

Vitamin D3—sourced from sunlight exposure, animal, and plant sources—may be preferable to vitamin D2 sourced from fungi.

Take Vitamin D Supplements with Meals

Taking vitamin D supplements with food may be a cost-effective strategy to achieve optimum levels.

Resolving the Vitamin D-Bate

Why the current vitamin D recommendations may be too low, other expert recommendations may be too high, and 2000 international units a day may be just right.

Popular Videos for Vitamin D Supplements