Vitamin D fortification in Europe preventing 27,000 Cancer deaths, could prevent 129,000 – May 2022

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Vitamin D food fortification in European countries: the underused potential to prevent cancer deaths

European Journal of Epidemiology vol 37, pages 3 09–320 (2022) https://doi.org/10.1007/s10654-022-00867-4
Tobias Niedermaier, Thomas Gredner, Sabine Kuznia, Ben Schöttker, Ute Mons, Jeroen Lakerveld, Wolfgang Ahrens & Hermann Brenner On behalf of the PEN-Consortium

• ++ Mandatory fortification with adequate amounts covering an adequate range
    (four or more commonly consumed foods) of products;
• + Wide-spread voluntary fortification but with insufficient amounts
  or adequate mandatory fortification of too few products;
• o Insufficient mandatory fortification plus some voluntary fortification,
• − No mandatory fortification but some voluntary fortification of foods;
• −− No mandatory fortification and almost no voluntary fortification of foods.

Background: Meta-analyses of randomized controlled trials have shown that vitamin D supplementation reduces cancer mortality by 13%. Vitamin D fortification of foods may increase vitamin D levels in a similar manner as vitamin D supplementation and could achieve similar reductions in cancer mortality. Whereas some European countries already implemented widespread fortification of foods with vitamin D, in other countries only few or no foods are fortified. In this study, we estimated the reduction in cancer mortality presumably already achieved by current fortification policies in 2017 and the potential for further reductions if all countries had effective fortification.

Methods: We reviewed scientific literature, publicly available information, and contacted health authorities to obtain information on current vitamin D food fortification policies in 34 European countries. Together with country-specific cancer death statistics from Eurostat, information on life expectancy, and country-specific fortification policies, we used data from studies on supplementation and serum 25(OH)D increases and cancer mortality to estimate numbers of probably already prevented cancer deaths and numbers of potentially further preventable deaths and years of life lost.

Results: Current vitamin D fortification is estimated to prevent approximately 11,000 in the European Union and 27,000 cancer deaths in all European countries considered per year. If all countries considered here would implement adequate vitamin D fortification of foods, an estimated additional 129,000 cancer deaths (113,000 in the European Union) could be prevented, corresponding to almost 1.2 million prevented years of life lost (1.0 million in the EU) or approximately 9% of cancer deaths (10% in the EU).

Interpretation: Systematic fortification of foods might considerably reduce the burden of cancer deaths in Europe.
 Download the PDF from VitaminDWiki

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VitaminDwiki – Fortification with Vitamin D contains

135 items in Fortification category

Fortification works, even if food is cooked, but govts rarely fortifiy with enough
Govts, food producers, and families can fortify:
   milk,   yogurt,   beer,   bread,  cereals,  cooking oil,  soups,  jams,   jellys,   honey,   snack bars, etc.
Some interesting fortification articles

• Biofortification with Vitamin D - several studies
• Vitamin D fortification in Europe preventing 27,000 Cancer deaths, could prevent 129,000 – May 2022
• Vitamin D fortification could eliminate 1 in 10 Cancer deaths in the EU – May 2022
• After years of adding vitamin D, Finland now has 38 ng levels - March 2022
• Fortification with Vitamin D works – 16 studies of Danish experience – July 2021
• Vitamin D fortification of beverages – Review March 2022
• Bread fortified with Vitamin D - many studies 13+ studies
• International Conference of Vitamin D Fortification of Food (India) – Sept 2018
• 2400 IU of vitamin D needed to get most Northern adults above 20 ng – June 2020
• Vitamin D home fortification- don't wait 100 years for your govt

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VitaminDwiki – Bread Fortification contains

VitaminDWiki Fortification pages with BREAD in title

This list is automatically updated

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VitaminDwiki – Change of Vitamin D Fortification in Denmark contains

• 60 percent more life births after infertility diagnosis if Vitamin D fortification (Denmark) - Nov 2019
• Vitamin D food fortification during pregnancy reduced gestational diabetes in daughters by 13 percent – Nov 2018
• Vitamin D added to margarine reduced inflammatory bowel disease by 13 percent 30 years later – Nov 2019
• Preeclampsia of offspring cut in half if mother who smoked had vitamin D fortified margarine – Dec 2017
• Danish study of childhood diseases vs vitamin D fortification – May 2013
• 9 studies by Denmak D-Tech group (fortifiy Margarine with Vitamin D) online as of Nov 2019

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Finland has had great success adding Vitamin D (19+ studies)

VitaminDWiki pages with FINLAND in the title
This list is automatically updated

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Animal meat and products have more Vitamin D when they get more Vitamin D or UVB

Chickens

• 3 proven ways to increase Vitamin D in eggs – Aug 2020
• Feed chicken lots of vitamin D, get 6000 IU per egg with no change in production – Nov 2013
• Chicken bones, eggs, and activated vitamin D in eggs increased with 2 hours of daily UVB – Dec 2019
• Vitamin D in eggs increased 4X after UV lighting near legs was added – April 2019
• UVB on legs of chickens resulted in 70 IU vitamin D per egg yoke – July 2013
• 200 IU per 100 gram of egg yoke when add vitamin D to poultry feed in Europe – Aug 2011

Beef and Cows

• Beef was more tender and contained more vitamin D when finishing diet included 4,000 IU of Vitamin D – Dec 2017
• Ultraviolet B needed for indoor cows to have enough vitamin D in milk – June 2015

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Most studies underestimate by 6X the useful Vitamin D in meat and eggs

Vitamin D from animal increases 6X when consider that already processed by animal livers