The best sources of vitamin D in your diet

Vitamin D is one of the key components affecting the health of the body. Vitamin D is increasingly referred to as an enzyme that influences the vast majority of biological processes in the body. This vitamin has become a standard supplement outside the summer months, but a growing number of experts also recommend vitamin D supplementation during the summer. But what about obtaining this vitamin from food?

1. The best sources of vitamin D in the diet
2. Food fortification – meeting vitamin D requirements
3. The best sources of vitamin D in the diet – summary

The best sources of vitamin D in the diet

Despite the enormous difficulties in meeting the demand for vitamin D through food products, it is possible to find several products rich in this vitamin. It is worth mentioning that vitamin D is found mainly in animal products. Plant products are often fortified, i.e. enriched with this vitamin in dedicated forms (also for vegans). Among the products with the highest content of vitamin D, we can distinguish:

(The values given refer to 100g of product)

• Cod liver oil (85-100 IU of vitamin D)
• Fish (the content varies depending on the species, from 0.1ug to 36ug [eel])
• Dairy products (up to 0.76ug in butter)
• Eggs (approx. 4.5-5 µg of vitamin D)
• Meat

As you can see, meeting the daily requirement of 10 µg (micrograms) of vitamin D is not easy. Such a diet would be based mainly on animal products with practically daily consumption of fish and seafood.

Vitamin D is also found in some plant-based products, mainly mushrooms. It is a less stable form of vitamin D2, known as ergocalciferol.

Food fortification – meeting vitamin D requirements

Over time, increasingly advanced technological solutions have emerged that enable us to meet our daily vitamin D requirements and more. One such solution is food fortification. It involves the technological processing of a food product by adding a specific biological ingredient to it. The most popular examples of food fortification are the enrichment of margarine with vitamin D and the iodisation of salt.

The fortification of margarine means that 100g of the product can contain up to 5ug of vitamin D. Such products can be a great addition to your daily diet.

The best sources of vitamin D in the diet – summary

Vitamin D poses a huge challenge when it comes to supplementing it solely through food consumption. Vitamin D is mainly found in animal products. Small amounts of its derivative (vitamin D2) are also found in plant products, mainly in mushrooms.

There are currently solutions aimed at enriching food with specific biological components, including vitamin D. This process is called fortification. Despite technological solutions and constant technological development, the most effective way to meet vitamin D requirements at the moment is through regular supplementation, which is also available in preparations dedicated to vegans and vegetarians.