Foods Rich in Vitamin D

While there aren’t many foods that naturally contain vitamin D, there are plenty of fortified foods to make up for it.

The best sources of naturally occurring vitamin D are tuna, mackerel, and salmon, as well as fish liver oils. Small amounts of the vitamin can be found in beef liver, cheese, and egg yolks. In the produce section, the only vitamin D you’ll find is in mushrooms.

When it comes to vitamin D fortified foods, you have many more options! Fortified foods provide the majority of vitamin D in the typical American diet. Nearly all of the US milk supply is fortified with vitamin D, a program implemented in the 1930’s to fight rickets, a then prevalent bone disease. Aside from milk, many breakfast cereals and some brands of orange juice, yogurt and margarine contain added vitamin D.

Check out this handy chart to see how different foods stack up in their vitamin D content:

Natural Sources IU Vitamin D/Serving
Herring 1383 per 3 ounces
Herring, pickled 578 per 3 ounces
Salmon, pink, canned 530 per 3 ounces
Halibut 510 per 3 ounces
Cod liver oil* 450 per teaspoon
Catfish 425 per 3 ounces
Mackerel, Atlantic 306 per 3 ounces
Oyster 272 per 3 ounces
Shitake mushrooms, dried 249 per 4
Sardines, pacific, canned in tomato sauce 213 per 1/2 cup or 182 per sardine
Sardines, atlantic, canned in oil 203 per 1/2 cup or 33 per sardine
Tuna, light meat, canned in oil 200 per 3 ounces
Shrimp 129 per 3 ounces
Egg, cooked 26 per whole egg 25 per yolk
Fortified Sources IU Vitamin D/Serving
Tofu, fortified 120 per 1/5 block
Cow’s milk, all types 100 per 8 ounces
Milk, canned evaporated 102 per 4 ounces
Rice milk, fortified 100 per 8 ounces
Soy milk, fortified 100 per 8 ounces
Orange juice, fortified 100 per 8 ounces
Pudding, made with fortified milk 50 per 1/2 cup
Cereal, fortified 40 per serving
Yogurt, fortified (Danimals) 40 per 1/2 cup
Supplemental Sources IU Vitamin D/Dose
Most multivitamins** Usually 400 IU
Calcium with Vitamin D Amount varies
Vitamin D only Amount varies
* High in retinol
** May be high in retinol
USDA National Nutrient Data Base: http://www.nal.usda.gov
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