Daily US Times: This winter, more than 2.5 million vulnerable people in England will be offered free Vitamin D supplements.
The vitamin, which helps to keep teeth, muscle and bones healthy, will be delivered to people who are in care homes and clinically extremely vulnerable.
Skin makes Vitamin D when exposed to sunlight – but those with dark skin and the elderly need topping up.
The Covid-19 pandemic means many more people than normal have spent time indoors.
The groups most at risk are people with serious health conditions and residents in care homes, which mean they have spent extended periods shielding from the coronavirus – a total of 2.7 million people.
Health officials say that even in a normal winter, everyone should take 10 micrograms of Vitamin D a day between the month of October and March – and it’s particularly important this year because of coronavirus.
Welsh and Scottish governments and Northern Ireland’s Public Health Agency issued similar advice during lockdown.
But there is no evidence that vitamin D treats or protects against Covid-19, although health officials have been asked to go back over the existing research.
In England, all care homes will receive enough supplements for their residents, the government says.
People on the clinically extremely vulnerable list will get a letter inviting them to opt in for a supply of Vitamin D tablets to be delivered to their homes.
Deliveries will start in January next year and they’ll provide four months’ worth of free supplements.
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