The Times’s resident GP, Dr Mark Porter, has described himself as “a vitamin D evangelist and an advocate of aggressive supplementation”.
In an article in The Times today (‘It’s time for health professionals to see the light on vitamin D’ – June 9) Porter writes: “Nearly every tissue in the body, from skin and bone to the brain and immune system, has receptors for interacting with vitamin D, and there is far more to its action than the oft cited role of preventing rickets.”
Responding to new research suggesting that babies born to mothers who experience lower exposure to sunlight during pregnancy may be at higher risk of developing diseases such as multiple sclerosis, Porter wrote: “It is too early to say whether the vitamin is definitely responsible for the apparent link between birth month and diseases such as multiple sclerosis, but recent trials that have already confirmed links between maternal vitamin D levels during pregnancy and the risk of a child developing diabetes later in life.”
Porter added that he advised all pregnant and breastfeeding mothers to take a daily vitamin D supplement.
