Deakin home > Deakin University Library > Deakin Research Online > Vitamin D and adult bone health in Australia and New Zealand : a position statement

Vitamin D and adult bone health in Australia and New Zealand : a position statement

Diamond, Terrence H., Eisman, John A., Mason, Rebecca S., Nowson, Caryl A., Pasco, Julie A., Sambrook, Philip N. and Wark, John D. 2005, Vitamin D and adult bone health in Australia and New Zealand : a position statement, Medical journal of Australia, vol. 182, no. 6, pp. 281-285.

Attached Files (Some files may be inaccessible until you login with your Deakin Research Online credentials)
Name Description MIMEType Size Downloads

Title Vitamin D and adult bone health in Australia and New Zealand : a position statement
Author(s) Diamond, Terrence H.
Eisman, John A.
Mason, Rebecca S.
Nowson, Caryl A.
Pasco, Julie A.
Sambrook, Philip N.
Wark, John D.
Journal name Medical journal of Australia
Volume number 182
Issue number 6
Start page 281
End page 285
Total pages 5
Publisher Australasian Medical Publishing Company
Place of publication Sydney, N.S.W.
Publication date 2005-03-21
ISSN 0025-729X
1326-5377
Keyword(s) Vitamin D
adult bone health
Summary • A significant number of Australians are deficient in vitamin D - it is a fallacy that Australians receive adequate vitamin D from casual exposure to sunlight.

• People at high risk of vitamin D deficiency include elderly people (particularly those in residential care), people with skin conditions where avoidance of sunlight is advised, those with dark skin (particularly if veiled), and those with malabsorption.

• Exposure of hands, face and arms to one-third of a minimal erythemal dose (MED) of sunlight (the amount that produces a faint redness of skin) most days is recommended for adequate endogenous vitamin D synthesis. However, deliberate sun exposure between 10:00 and 14:00 in summer (11:00-15:00 daylight saving time) is not advised.

• If this sun exposure is not possible, then a vitamin D supplement of at least 400IU (10 μg) per day is recommended.

• In vitamin D deficiency, supplementation with 3000-5000 IU ergocalciferol per day (Ostelin [Boots]; 3-5 capsules per day) for 6-12 weeks is recommended.

• Larger-dose preparations of ergocalciferol or cholecalciferol are available in New Zealand, Asia and the United States and would be useful in Australia to treat moderate to severe vitamin D deficiency states in the elderly and those with poor absorption; one or two annual intramuscular doses of 300 000 IU of cholecalciferol have been shown to reverse vitamin D deficiency states.
Language eng
Field of Research 119999 Medical and Health Sciences not elsewhere classified
Socio Economic Objective 970111 Expanding Knowledge in the Medical and Health Sciences
HERDC Research category C1.1 Refereed article in a scholarly journal
Copyright notice ©2005, Australasian Medical Publishing Company
Persistent URL http://hdl.handle.net/10536/DRO/DU:30042771

Document type: Journal Article
Collections: School of Medicine
Higher Education Research Group
Connect to link resolver
 
Unless expressly stated otherwise, the copyright for items in Deakin Research Online is owned by the author, with all rights reserved.

Versions
Version Filter Type
Citation counts: Scopus Citation Count Cited 142 times in Scopus
Access Statistics: 17 Abstract Views, 0 File Downloads  -  Detailed Statistics
Created: Thu, 01 Mar 2012, 10:33:00 EST