More news providers, health officials and doctors are recommending the public increase their daily intake of vitamin D this year.

Today, a column in the Calgary Herald gave its readers advice about ways to improve one’s general health in 2009. Dr Maureen Kennedy, who wrote the column, said people should pay close attention to vitamin D.

"Vitamin D is one vitamin to consider. The Canadian Cancer Society recommends Canadians take 1,000 IU of Vitamin D during the fall and winter months," she wrote in the Herald.

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has echoed Kennedy’s suggestion and said the vitamin is especially important for infants and the elderly. For children, the AAP released new guidelines increasing the daily intake from 200 IU to 400 IU.

Because of the increase, it may require children to take nutritional supplements to reach the daily recommendation, especially in places that see less sunshine during the winter months.

The push for vitamin D may stem from a report last year that showed more people were not getting enough of it, which can increase the risk of heart disease, obesity and diabetes.