Top 10 vitamin d rich foods For vegans and Non-vegan
Vitamin D is a natural organic fat-soluble vitamin present in a few foods and available as a dietary supplement. Vitamin d is produced inside the body when ultraviolet rays of the sun touch the body.
Vitamin D which is obtained from sunlight, foods, and supplement is in active form. Inside the liver, it is converted into an active form through hydroxylation.
Generally, people don’t consume vitamin D but it is found in many foods. People get vitamin d from sunlight. 50% population of the world is getting vitamin D from sunlight while 40% of Americans are deprived of vitamin D. This deficiency of vitamin D in Americans is due to their indoor lifestyle and western-type foods which are deficient from vitamin D.
According to the office of Dietary supplements (ODS), vitamin D helps in the development of bones, muscles, the immune system, and nerves.
Vitamin D promotes calcium absorption from the gastrointestinal tract and maintains normal serum level of calcium and phosphate. Normal serum level of calcium and phosphate enable proper mineralization of bones and prevent hypocalcemic tetany.
Vitamin D is beneficial for bone growth and without sufficient D bones become weak, brittle, and fragile.
Vitamin D deficiency causes rickets in children and osteomalacia in adults.
If a person is not getting an adequate amount of Vitamin D from the sunlight then he should take the help of vitamin D dietary supplements.
The following are the top 10 vitamin d rich food
vitamin d rich foods that are available in Your home
Cod liver oil
Cod liver oil is a rich source of vitamin D. If you are vegetarian and don’t use fish then you can compensate for vitamin D deficiency from cod liver oil.
One teaspoon of cod liver oil contains 480 IU or 56% DV. So it is an excellent vitamin d rich food. It is using for many years to prevent and treat vitamin d deficiency in children. Cod liver oil is also a good source of vitamin A.
Code liver has a high level of omega-3 fatty acids which is essential for the heart.
- Mushrooms
Mushrooms are the only source of vitamin D. Like humans when mushrooms are exposed to sunlight it starts the preparation of vitamin D.
Animals produce vitamin D 3 while Mushrooms produce vitamin D 2.
Mushrooms produce a huge amount of Vitamin D upon exposure to sunlight.
These may include,
- UV-exposed raw white mushrooms: 50 grams of it has 523 IU or 87% DV
- UV-exposed raw Portobello mushrooms: 50 grams of it has 568 IU or 95% DV
Wild mushrooms are an excellent source of vitamin D2.
- Raw maitake mushrooms: 50 grams of raw maitake mushrooms has 562 IU or 94 DV.
- Dried shiitake mushrooms: 50 grams of dried shiitake mushrooms contain 77 IU or 12% DV.
Mushrooms are vitamin d high foods.
- Egg yolks
An egg is a good choice for people who don’t like to eat seafood. Seafood is not the only source of Vitamin D. Egg is another good source of vitamin D.
One normal egg yolk contains
- 37 IU of vitamin D or 5% DV
Vitamins, minerals, and fats are found in the yolk of the egg white proteins are found in the white.
The level of vitamin D in eggs depends on the exposure of the chicken to sunlight and the vitamin D content of a chicken feed.
The level of vitamin D is 3-4 times higher in the eggs of those chickens who roam outside in the sunlight than those who have no exposure to sunlight while using the same food.
- Canned tuna
100 grams of canned tuna pack contains
- 268 IU of vitamin D or 34% of the DV
Usually, canned tuna pack is cheaper than fresh fish, and people like them because of their easy availability, storage, and taste.
Canned tuna contains the toxic substance methylmercury which produces health issues.
- Herring
100 grams of fresh Atlantic herring has
- 261 IU or 27% of the DV
Herring is the best source of vitamin D and can be served canned, smoked, pickled, or raw.
Canned herring contains (100 grams)
- 177 IU or 22% DV
- Salmon
According to USDA (United States Department of Agriculture), 100 grams of salmon has
- 526 IU or 66% of the DV
Salmon is a very famous fatty fish and is rich in vitamin D.
The level of vitamin D is depended on the type of salmon whether it is wild or farmed.
100 grams of wild salmon contains
- 998 IU or 124% of the DV
While 100 grams of wild-farmed salmon contains
- 250 IU or 32% of the DV
Salmon should be used to compensate for the deficiency of vitamin D.
- Fortified foods
Sometimes food does not contain natural substances then manufacturers add that substance to food and these foods are called fortified foods.
For vegetarians who don’t like to eat fish then vitamin D fortified food is available in the market.
Common vitamin D fortified foods include
- Cow milk: it is the most consume milk around the world and it contains calcium, riboflavin, and phosphorous. In several parts of the world cow milk is fortified with vitamin D. Fortified milk usually contains 115-130 IU per 237 ml or 15-22% of the DV.
- Orange juice: Orange juice is fortified with vitamin D and calcium. The reason for fortifying the orange juice is that 75% of people are lactose intolerant while 2-3% are allergic to milk.
275 ml (one cup) of orange fortified juice has 100 IU of vitamin D or 12% of the DV.
- Cereal: some cereals are also fortified with vitamin D and contain less amount of vitamin D.
75 grams of these cereals have 54-136 IU of vitamin D or 17% of the DV
How much vitamin D per day should I take?
The normal range of vitamin D per day recommended by RDA (Recommended Dietary Allowances) is given below. It should be kept in mind that vitamin d overdose would be avoided; otherwise, it will create certain medical complications.
| Age | Female | Male |
| 1-12 months | 400 IU | 400 IU |
| 1-13 years | 600 IU | 600 IU |
| 14-18 years | 600 IU | 600 IU |
| 19-50 years | 600 IU | 600 IU |
| 51-70 years | 600 IU | 600 IU |
Summary
Vitamin D is a natural organic fat-soluble vitamin that is present in few foods and available as a dietary supplement
Vitamin D rich foods are cod liver oil, mushroom, canned tuna, egg yolk, herring fish, salmon, fresh organic juice, fortified food, etc.
