Sources of Vitamin D

9 Good Sources of Disease-Fighter Vitamin D

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Sunlight: A whopping 80 percent or more of the vitamin D we need could come from the sun — if we let it. Sunscreen blocks about 97 percent of our body's vitamin D production, according to Dr. Mark Hyman, founder and medical director of the UltraWellness Center in Lenox, Mass. But we needn't endanger ourselves to take advantage of the sun's benefits: Fair-skinned people need less than 30 minutes of casual exposure on bright days to meet their daily requirement, while darker-skinned individuals need about two hours, Hyman said.





Cod liver oil: This fish oil has a reputation for bad taste, but flavored varieties available today may make it more palatable. According to the Linus Pauling Institute at Oregon State University, which conducts nutrition research, a tablespoon has 340 percent of the daily value of Vitamin D and is also rich in omega-3 fatty acids, a fat essential to good health. Other types of fish oil are also high in omega-3s, but only cod liver oil contains vitamin D.

 



Salmon: A popular, sometimes pricey seafood, salmon is also high in omega-3s and is available frozen, fresh or canned. Wild salmon, however, contains the highest level of vitamin D found in any food naturally — four times the amount present in farmed varieties, according to the Alliance for Natural Health USA, an education and advocacy group.

 

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Tuna: Another oily fish, tuna is a popular lunch ingredient as well as a solid source of Vitamin D, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Nutrient Database. High in protein and omega-3s, a 3-ounce (85-gram) serving of tuna contains about 200 IUs of vitamin D.

 

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Milk: Cow's milk, whether skim or whole, naturally contains vitamin D,  and it's also often fortified with the nutrient, according to the Linus Pauling Institute. One cup contains about 100 IUs.

 

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Fortified cereals: Combined with vitamin D-rich milk, fortified cereals are "the predominant vehicle for vitamin D in the United States," according to a 2004 study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Most ready-to-eat cereals in the U.S. are fortified, according to the study, typically containing 40 IUs to 140 IUs per serving. For example, Kix brand cereal contains 32 IUs per serving; Raisin Bran, 168 IUs, and Quaker Instant Oatmeal for Women, 154 IUs, according to the Center for Young Women's Health at Children's Hospital in Boston.

 



Eggs: With about 21 IUs of vitamin D in each yolk and pure protein in the whites, eggs are a formidable nutrition source, according to the Linus Pauling Institute.

 



Mushrooms: According to research published in April in the Journal of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology, white button mushrooms exposed to ultraviolet B light for a few hours increase their vitamin D content by 400 percent. Combined with being low in fat and calories, this makes mushrooms hard to beat as a healthy food when eaten alone, on pizza and burgers, or in salads and omelettes. Leaving store-bought mushrooms in the sun will increase their D content (with more generated the longer they soak it in), but it will also cause the mushrooms to dry out and turn brown after about a day.

 

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Shrimp: Another good source of omega-3s, shrimp are high in protein and low in fat and calories, balancing their slightly elevated cholesterol content. A 3-ounce (85-gram) serving of shrimp contains about 129 IUs of vitamin D, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Nutrient Database.