USA Today (2/12, Painter, 1.71M) reports, "Researchers who tested vitamin D pills sold in stores found" that they contained huge variations in the "doses listed on labels, according to a research letter published Monday in JAMA Internal Medicine." Even "though none of the pills was likely to be dangerous, some contained too little of the vitamin to effectively treat someone with a deficiency, the researchers say."
Forbes (2/12, Haiken, 928K) points out that investigators "tested 55 bottles of vitamin D3 (the type most often recommended nowadays) from 12 different brands - both over the counter and prescription." In addition, the study found that the "variation wasn't just from brand to brand and bottle to bottle - different pills from the same bottle actually varied in potency. Rather embarrassingly, the pills from the compounders (meaning prescription D) were almost as variable as the OTC pills, varying from 23% to 146% of the expected dose."
The ABC News (2/12, Wasson) "Medical Unit" reports that the researchers found that "vitamin content varied from as low as 9 percent to as high as 146 percent of the amount of vitamin D listed on the bottle."
According to HealthDay (2/12, Mann), the study authors "are more concerned by pills delivering too little of the vitamin than pills providing too much. 'It can be hard to overdose on vitamin D,' said study author Dr. Erin LeBlanc, an endocrinologist and researcher with the Kaiser Permanente Center for Health Research in Portland, Ore. However, the findings 'may be a concern for those who have been told by their doctor to take vitamin D if their chosen supplement does not have the amount listed.'"
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