Vitamin D and Calcium Supplementation at Danish Nursing Homes - Effects on Vitamin D Status and Physical Functioning

Nursing home residents are in high risk of vitamin D deficiency, which negatively affects bone health. Vitamin D and calcium supplements have shown to increase bone density and reduce fracture risk and may affect daily physical functioning. Therefore, The Danish Health Authority recommends all nursing home residents a daily supplement of 20 µg vitamin D and 800-1000 mg calcium. However, adherence to the recommendation is low. The present project hypothesizes that this low adherence results in a high number of residents with a deficient or insufficient vitamin D status, and that daily physical functioning can be improved or maintained by an improved adherence to the recommendation.