5 Ways to Get More Vitamin D This Winter

Wellness: Nutrition
5 Ways to Get More Vitamin D This Winter

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January 3 2020

Description

This fat-soluble vitamin plays a major role in bone health and immune function, among many other things. And yet, most Americans don’t get enough.

One of the best ways to get vitamin D is to expose your skin to the sun for a small amount of time. But during the gray days of winter, reaching the recommended dietary allowance (RDA) is a challenge.

For males and females ages 14 to 70, the RDA is 600 international units (IU) per day. Here's a few good sources to help you get there. 

  1. Salmon & Other Fatty Fish

    3 ounces of cooked, farmed salmon provides about 450 IUs; wild salmon is estimated to have much more.

  2. Canned Tuna

    3 ounces of canned tuna contains about 40 IUs of vitamin D.

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  3. Fortified Foods

    Fortified foods have extra nutrients added to them: 

    1 cup of orange juice fortified with vitamin D provides about 100 IUs.

    1 cup of fortified milk has about 100 IUs.

    6 ounces of fortified yogurt has about 80 to 100 IUs.

    ¾ cup to 1 cup of fortified breakfast cereal has about 50 to 100 IUs.

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  4. Egg Yolks

    One egg yolk contains 40 IUs.

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  5. Mushrooms

    Some mushrooms are grown in ultraviolet light, which spurs more vitamin D production. Look for “UV-treated” or “High in Vitamin D” on the label. These mushrooms can contain around 400 IUs per 3-ounce serving.

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