NORTH-EAST researchers are aiming to reduce vitamin D deficiency in people over 70 during the winter months caused by lack of sunlight.

The Arthritis Research UK-funded team at Newcastle University is looking at the impact of three different doses of vitamin D supplements on bone health.

It hopes vitamin D supplements will prevent the 30 per cent reduction in concentration of the vitamin in the blood in the winter and spring months when the population is exposed to little sunlight.

The scientists want to examine whether a constant intake of vitamin D throughout the year will lead to people having stronger bones with an improved bone density.

However, key to the research is a better understanding of the interaction of vitamin D with hormones and fat in the body with the aim of better understanding whether vitamin D works to provide protection for bones and ultimately reducing the risk of fractures.

Vitamin D is important for the maintenance of healthy bones, and deficiency causes rickets in children and osteomalacia in adults.

Lower levels of vitamin D in the blood are also a risk factor for osteoporosis, impaired muscle function and an increased risk of falls and fractures.

Although there are national and international guidelines on levels of vitamin D supplementation to maintain healthy bones, currently there is no universal consensus on how much should be consumed in our diet.

The team will recruit 375 people over the age of 70 from GP practices in the Newcastle area, and randomise them into three groups taking different amounts of the supplement.

Their bone density will be measured at the beginning and end of the two-year 683,000 study.