Vitamin D and fractures

Vitamin D was identified in the 1920s as the active principal in cod liver oil's capacity to cure nutritional rickets. Since then, vitamin D has been regarded as a bone tonic by some; although, the prevention and cure of rickets and osteomalacia remain the only undisputed medical use of vitamin D. Also undisputed is that 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D, a metabolite of vitamin D, is a potent regulator of intestinal calcium absorption, and that this is the principal mechanism for its role in the aetiology and treatment of osteomalacia. The effect of monthly vitamin D supplementation on fractures: a tertiary outcome from the population-based, double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled D-Health trialThese findings do not support concerns that bolus doses of vitamin D administered monthly increase fracture risk. Long-term supplementation might reduce the incidence of total fractures, but additional research is needed to clarify this effect. Full-Text PDF