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Vitamin D deficiency and multicultural Australia

Paul Glendenning, Rebecca S Mason and Terrence H Diamond
Med J Aust 2002; 176 (5): . || doi: 10.5694/j.1326-5377.2002.tb04389.x
Published online: 4 March 2002

To the Editor: In a recent editorial, Mason and Diamond state that ergocalciferol (vitamin D2) is bioequivalent to cholecalciferol (vitamin D3) and that 1000 IU/day of ergocalciferol is sufficient for the treatment of vitamin D deficiency.1 Both statements are contentious. Although ergocalciferol (vitamin D2) is the only single prohormonal form of vitamin D available on prescription in Australia, there are three reasons to be cautious about the use and dose equivalence of ergocalciferol (vitamin D2) compared with cholecalciferol (vitamin D3).


  • 1 Department of Core Clinical Pathology and Biochemistry, Royal Perth Hospital, Perth, WA.
  • 2 Department of Physiology, University of Sydney, NSW 2006.
  • 3 Department of Endocrinology, St George Hospital, Kogarah, NSW.



Competing interests:

None declared.

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  • 10. Trang HM, Cole DEC, Rubin LA, et al. Evidence that vitamin D3 increases serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D more efficiently than does vitamin D2. Am J Clin Nutr 1998; 68: 854-858.
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