Scots won’t shine light on vitamin D
The Scottish government has rejected a proposal to make vitamin D free on the National Health Service, citing a lack of evidence.
The campaign had gained attention after Glasgow schoolboy Ryan McLaughlin highlighted the multiple sclerosis (MS) problem of his 35-year-old mother and its potential link to vitamin D deficiency.
Despite such evidence the Scottish government said: “We take our advice from the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition and as far as they are concerned there isn’t enough evidence to justify giving everyone free Vitamin D.”
It was estimated the scheme could cost about € 17.5m annually.
Vitamin D occurs naturally in the body by exposure to the sun, but deficieny rates are high in countries such as Scotland where annual sunlight levels are low. Scotland has one of the highest rates of MS in the world.
