Bottom Line: The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) concludes current scientific evidence is insufficient regarding the use of vitamin D and calcium, alone or in combination, to prevent fractures in men and premenopausal women. The USPSTF recommends against daily supplementation with 400 IU or less of vitamin D and 1,000 mg or less of calcium to prevent fractures in postmenopausal women. Current scientific evidence is insufficient regarding the use of vitamin D and calcium at doses greater than 400 IU of vitamin D and greater than 1,000 mg of calcium in postmenopausal women.
Background: The USPSTF routinely makes recommendations about the effectiveness of preventive care services. This latest recommendation statement is an update of the 2013 recommendation on vitamin D supplementation, with or without calcium, to prevent fractures.
Related material
The following related elements from The JAMA Network are also available on the For The Media website:
-- A podcast interview with Alex H. Krist, M.D., M.P.H., a member of the USPSTF and co-author of the recommendation statements regarding calcium and vitamin D to prevent fractures and interventions to prevent falls in community-dwelling adults.
-- Interventions to Prevent Falls in Older Adults - Updated Evidence Report and Systematic Review for the US Preventive Services Task Force
-- JAMA editorial: Preventing Fractures and Falls
-- JAMA Internal Medicine editorial: New Prevention Guidelines for Falls and Fractures
-- JAMA Patient Page: Vitamin D and Calcium Supplements for Preventing Fractures
For more details and to read the full report, please visit the For The Media website.
(doi:10.1001/jama.2018.3097)
Editor's Note: Please see the article for additional information, including other authors, author contributions and affiliations, financial disclosures, funding and support, etc.
Note: More information about the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, its process, and its recommendations can be found on the newsroom page of its website.
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