D2 or D3: which form of vitamin D is best, and why we chose Quali-D®

Ingredient spotlight · Vitamin D3 in Health Royals’ Peak Performance, multivitamin for women with omega 3 · 8 min read

Vitamin D comes in two forms, D2 and D3. In direct comparisons D3 raised blood levels of vitamin D more effectively, and it is the form your own skin makes. That is why Health Royals chose vitamin D3, as Quali-D® from dsm-firmenich, at 25 µg a day, with vitamin K2 as MenaQ7® in Peak Performance Formula.

On the supplement shelf, vitamin D looks like an easy purchase. Look closer and the labels differ: D2 or D3, micrograms or international units, and only a few name the raw material behind it.

This article covers which form the body makes better use of, what the trials comparing D2 and D3 measured, what Quali-D® is, and how we reasoned at Health Royals when we put 25 µg of vitamin D3 into Peak Performance, our daily multivitamin for women with omega 3 from algae. The Swedish winter has its own article.

Vitamin D3 at Health Royals

Peak Performance, our daily multivitamin for women, contains 25 µg of vitamin D3, 1,000 IU, as Quali-D® from dsm-firmenich, with 90 µg of vitamin K2 as MenaQ7®, a dose chosen for every day of the year. Vitamin D contributes to the normal function of the immune system. Vitamin D contributes to normal muscle function. Vitamin D contributes to the maintenance of normal bones.

See Peak Performance, multivitamin for women with omega 3

What is vitamin D3, and what does it do?

Vitamin D3 is cholecalciferol, the form of vitamin D the human body makes itself when UVB light reaches the skin. The same molecule is found in oily fish and egg yolk, and in most vitamin D supplements.

Neither D3 nor D2 is active as swallowed. Both are converted in the liver to 25-hydroxyvitamin D, written 25(OH)D, and a small part of that later becomes the active hormone. Because 25(OH)D reflects both food and sun, it is the standard marker of vitamin D status, and the measure the comparison trials used. Vitamin D is fat soluble and stored in the body, which is why the upper intake level matters.

The EU has authorised a few precise statements about vitamin D, and they are the ones we use. Vitamin D contributes to the normal function of the immune system. Vitamin D contributes to normal muscle function. Vitamin D contributes to the maintenance of normal bones.

D2 or D3: which form of vitamin D is best?

For raising and maintaining vitamin D levels in the blood, D3. That is what the direct comparisons show.

Vitamin D2, ergocalciferol, forms when UV light reaches ergosterol in yeast and fungi, and is found in UV-treated mushrooms and some supplements. Vitamin D3 is the form made in skin. For a long time the two were treated as interchangeable.

In 2012 Laura Tripkovic and colleagues at the University of Surrey pooled the randomised trials comparing the two forms, in a meta-analysis in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Overall, D3 raised serum 25(OH)D significantly more than D2.

The same group followed up in 2017, in the same journal, with a trial of daily supplementation at 15 µg over the winter in healthy South Asian and white European women in the UK. There too, D3 raised wintertime 25(OH)D status more than D2. A daily dose through a northern winter is close to how vitamin D is used in Sweden.

The trials measured blood levels of 25(OH)D, the standard marker of vitamin D status, and what they show is clear enough to make a choice. D3 raised and held 25(OH)D more reliably than D2, including at an everyday dose, and it is the form the body makes itself. That is why D3 is the form we use.

What is Quali-D®, and who makes it?

Quali-D® is a vitamin D3 raw material from dsm-firmenich, an established global manufacturer of vitamins, made to a defined specification under controlled manufacturing.

Quali-D® is the same D3 molecule the body makes itself, and its value is a named raw material with a known identity, a known manufacturer, documented quality and traceability all the way to our jar.

That matters more than it might seem. 25 µg is 0.025 milligrams, spread through a much larger amount of other ingredients, and it has to be right in every daily dose and stay stable until the jar is finished. A defined raw material from an experienced manufacturer is how we make sure the number on the label is the number you take. Health Royals works with specialist manufacturers, researchers and supplier networks when raw materials are chosen, as we explain in branded and non-branded ingredients.

Why does Peak Performance contain 25 µg of vitamin D3?

Because it is a dose meant to be taken every day, all year. A principle runs through everything Health Royals makes: no vitamin or mineral should be dosed higher than there is a reason for. With vitamin D that carries weight, because it is stored in the body and very high doses taken regularly over a long time can do harm.

The reference points are clear. NNR 2023 recommends 10 µg a day for adults aged 19 to 74, and 20 µg, equivalent to 800 IU, from 75 and for anyone who gets little or no sun; the supplement advice from Livsmedelsverket builds on the same figures. The adequate intake for adults set by EFSA is 15 µg, because EFSA assumes minimal production in the skin, which describes the Swedish winter from October to March exactly. The tolerable upper intake level is 100 µg a day.

25 µg, or 1,000 IU, sits between those figures on purpose. It is above the Nordic recommendation, because for half the year the skin here makes no vitamin D at all. It is above EFSA's 15 µg and a little above the 20 µg NNR 2023 gives for people who get little sun, somewhat higher than many standard supplements and far from the high doses. And it is a quarter of the upper level, leaving a wide margin for vitamin D from food. On the label it reads as 500 per cent of the EU reference intake of 5 µg.

25 µg is a considered middle position, a level chosen for regular use every day of the year, and that is why we stopped there. For us, the dose matters as much as the raw material.

Why does the season matter for vitamin D?

Because in Sweden the skin makes no vitamin D from roughly October to March, however bright the day, which leaves food and supplements. If you suspect your level is low, a blood test for 25(OH)D gives the answer. We cover the latitude, the symptoms and the recommendations in vitamin D deficiency: symptoms, the Swedish winter and how much you need.

Why is vitamin D3 combined with vitamin K2 as MenaQ7®?

Because the two act on the same tissue from different sides. Vitamin D contributes to the maintenance of normal bones. Vitamin K contributes to the maintenance of normal bones.

The K2 in Peak Performance, 90 µg, is MenaQ7® from Gnosis by Lesaffre, in the form menaquinone 7, or MK-7, which stays in circulation longer than the vitamin K1 in leafy greens. More in our article on vitamin K2.

Why choose vitamin D3 in Peak Performance rather than a simple vitamin D tablet?

Vitamin D can be bought inexpensively as a simple tablet, and for many people that does the job. Our question was a different one: which nutrients belong together in one daily dose for a woman in Sweden.

The answer started with the intake data. In Riksmaten, Livsmedelsverket's national dietary survey, Swedish intakes more often fall below the reference values for vitamin D, folate and iron, with selenium as a fourth, as we set out in what Riksmaten shows. Omega 3 is the other gap, because ordinary multivitamins leave it out. So the D3 in Peak Performance sits alongside:

• Vitamin K2, 90 µg, as MenaQ7®.
• OMEGATEX® algal oil, 500 mg, providing 375 mg of omega 3, of which 300 mg DHA and 50 mg EPA.
• Folate, 200 µg, as Quatrefolic® 5-MTHF, and selenium, 27.5 µg.
• Vitamin B12, 10 µg, as MecobalActive® methylcobalamin, with thiamin 1.1 mg, niacin 16 mg, chromium 20 µg and zinc 5 mg as L-OptiZinc®.
• Hytolive® olive fruit extract, 150 mg, providing 15 mg of hydroxytyrosol, with 450 mg of extra virgin olive oil, and Extramel® melon extract, 10 mg.

That is what we mean by fewer jars, more thought: one jar instead of five, each ingredient there for a reason, the doses published. Vitamin D is meant to be taken every day all winter, so routine matters too: the jar is amber glass with a scented core, made to stay out on the shelf, and a subscription sends the jar once and refill pouches after that.

We have done the selection so that you do not have to. Peak Performance gives you vitamin D3 as Quali-D® at 25 µg a day, with K2 as MenaQ7® and omega 3 from algae, at doses we can explain. You can stop looking.

See Peak Performance, multivitamin for women with omega 3

Go deeper

• Guide: wellbeing from within
• Vitamin D deficiency: symptoms, the Swedish winter and how much you need
• After calcium is absorbed: the role of vitamin K2
• Branded and non-branded ingredients
• Nutrient deficiency in Sweden: what Riksmaten shows
• Omega 3: what it is and why it matters

Frequently asked questions

Is vitamin D3 better than vitamin D2?
For raising and maintaining blood levels of 25(OH)D, yes. A 2012 meta-analysis by Tripkovic and colleagues found that D3 raised 25(OH)D more than D2, and their 2017 winter trial with daily supplementation pointed the same way.

What is Quali-D®?
A vitamin D3 raw material from dsm-firmenich, valued for its defined identity, controlled manufacturing and traceability.

Why does Peak Performance contain 25 µg of vitamin D3?
It is a dose for every day, all year: above the NNR 2023 recommendation of 10 µg, a little above the 20 µg NNR 2023 gives for people with little sun, and a quarter of the 100 µg upper level. We chose a level for regular use, so we stopped there.

Can I take Peak Performance with another vitamin D supplement?
Add up the vitamin D from everything you take. 25 µg is a quarter of the 100 µg upper level, which leaves room for food, and Peak Performance can simply be your one supplemental source.

References

European Commission. EU Register of nutrition and health claims made on foods: authorised health claims for vitamin D.

European Food Safety Authority. Dietary reference values for vitamin D. EFSA Journal. 2016;14(10):4547. efsa.europa.eu

European Food Safety Authority. Scientific opinion on the tolerable upper intake level for vitamin D. EFSA Journal. 2023;21(8):8145.

Nordic Council of Ministers. Nordic Nutrition Recommendations 2023, vitamin D chapter. pub.norden.org

Livsmedelsverket. Råd om D-vitamintillskott till riskgrupper. Risk and benefit management report 21, 2018. livsmedelsverket.se

Tripkovic, L.; Lambert, H.; Hart, K.; et al. Comparison of vitamin D2 and vitamin D3 supplementation in raising serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D status: a systematic review and meta-analysis. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 2012;95(6):1357 to 1364.

Tripkovic, L.; Wilson, L.R.; Hart, K.; et al. Daily supplementation with 15 µg vitamin D2 compared with vitamin D3 to increase wintertime 25-hydroxyvitamin D status in healthy South Asian and white European women. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 2017;106(2):481 to 490.

dsm-firmenich. Quali-D® vitamin D3 ingredient and quality information.

Disclaimer: This article is intended for general information and educational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. It summarises nutrient functions, published research and manufacturer-provided information. Individual needs and experiences may vary. Consult a qualified healthcare professional with questions about vitamin D status, supplementation, medication or personal health.