• Members of the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force say vitamin D supplements do not reduce the risk of falls or bone fractures in healthy older adults.
• They note the vitamin can be helpful for older adults with certain medical conditions like osteoporosis.
• There are some foods that provide a minimal amount of vitamin D, but the most effective way to obtain the nutrient is through sun exposure.

Vitamin D has many health benefits, but it doesn’t reduce the risk of falling and it doesn’t prevent bone fractures in older adults.

That’s the conclusion of a preliminary recommendation that members of the United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) released this week.

In their draft recommendation, USPSTF members said taking vitamin D supplements with or without calcium does not prevent falls or fractures in women who have gone through menopause or men 60 years and older.

Their recommendation applies to people who live at home. It does not apply to people in assisted living or nursing homes. Nor does it apply to people who take vitamin D or calcium supplements for medical reasons or people who have been diagnosed with osteoporosis.

“Preventing older adults from falling and breaking a bone is important to their ongoing health and independence,” said John Ruiz, Ph.D., a Task Force member and a professor of clinical psychology at the University of Arizona, in a press release.

“Unfortunately, when we reviewed the latest evidence, we found that taking vitamin D with or without calcium does not prevent falls or fractures in older adults, so we recommend against these supplements for people who are not taking them for other medical reasons.”

The Task Force is accepting public comments on the draft report until January 21. The new recommendation is an update from a 2018 report that recommended daily vitamin D supplement for women.

Rethinking vitamin D for fracture risk

Experts not affiliated with the report say there is important information to glean from the Task Force’s new draft recommendation.

“We know that vitamin D deficiency and low calcium diet increases the risk of bone fragility and fractures,” said Edward Hsiao, MD, a professor at the University of California San Francisco as well as the director of the UCSF Metabolic Bone Clinic and the UCSF Endocrine T32 Program.

“We also know that vitamin D supplementation and calcium supplementation, in the setting of bone fragility or vitamin D deficiency, are important for maintaining and improving bone health,” Hsiao told Healthline. “This is even more important if the patient is on treatment for osteoporosis, since these are key substrates for building back bone – and so those medications won’t work well in the absence of these supplements.”

“These guidelines are in line with the recently published guidelines from the Endocrine Society of which I was a part,” added Daniel Bikle, MD, a professor of medicine and dermatology at UCSF.

“Basically, they are for healthy individuals. We are not talking about those with suspected vitamin D deficiency such as those with nutritional deficiencies, osteoporosis, [or] malabsorption,” he told Healthline.

What are the benefits and side effects of vitamin D?

The Task Force members pointed out there are a number of reasons for obtaining a sufficient amount of vitamin D.

Vitamin DTrusted Source is a fat-soluble vitamin that promotes calcium absorption, a process that can help keep bones and muscles strong. It also can play a role in supporting the immune system.