By the doc

Book yourself in for a regular course of Vitamin D this year

You can see why January is the most popular month to book a holiday.

The dark days of winter have been dragging on for what seems like several years and a spell in the sunshine sounds just the tonic.

While a week in the Algarve will do you good, it probably doesn’t make up for all the sunshine we miss over the winter months here in our corner of Northern Europe.

Vitamin D is produced when we’re exposed to sunlight, but we simply don’t get enough of that in the winter.

This might surprise you but if we measure Vitamin D levels in the winter, most people will have lower than ideal levels.

You can get Vitamin D through your diet but, unless you’re eating a diet of eggs and oily fish, you generally won’t be getting enough.

The current advice given by doctors is that everyone should consider a Vitamin D supplement between October and March.

There have been suggestions that it’s something the NHS should prescribe, but that would mean virtually the entire population is on a prescription drug for six months of the year – hardly a sensible use of scarce resources.

Vitamin D is important for musculo-skeletal health but a lack of it has also been linked – although not conclusively – with certain cancers, multiple sclerosis and cardiovascular disease.

People generally feel a bit rubbish and run down at this time of year and a lack of Vitamin D might not help.

The supplements are quite cheap, so I’d advise you to consider taking them for those six months.

The elderly (particularly if housebound), pregnant and breastfeeding women and those with darker skins generally need a supplement all year.

When it comes to dosage, most people should be fine taking 10 micrograms once a day.

Certain conditions might require higher doses. Those with Crohn’s, coeliac and some types of liver and kidney disease, for instance.

These people, as well as others with particular problems should speak to their doctor or pharmacist first.

If you have kidney failure or liver disease then have a chat with a medical professional before taking any supplements.

Those on a medicine for high blood pressure, called thiazide diuretics, need to be careful. Again, speak to a professional if you’re not sure.