In her most recent entry New Vitamin D and Calcium RDAs: What They Mean for Vegans, The Vegan RD Virginia Messina writes:

Vegans get their vitamin D the same way that omnivores do—from fortified foods and sunshine. The evidence suggests that vitamin D2 is as effective as D3 in raising blood levels of 25OHD, so there is no particular issue here regarding vegan nutrition.

This echos what she said about vitamin D in an earlier entry, Recommended Supplements for Vegans:

If you live where it’s sunny and warm all year and you spend time outdoors without sunscreen, you can make enough. The rest of us need a supplement or fortified foods (just like omnivores do) supplying 1,000 I.U.s of vitamin D.” 

If your primary source for nutrition information is The Vegan RD (and whose isn’t?), your only possible conclusion from this is that vitamin D does not occur naturally in any foods. The only sources of vitamin D are supplements and the sun, and both of those are vegan, which means omnivores and vegans are in the exact same boat on this one. You are missing out on absolutely no unsupplemented sources of vitamin D by being vegan, vegans, because you know that D omnis are getting in dairy? Totally fortified.

That, however, would be a faulty conclusion. Some foods do contain vitamin D and most of them (except for certain mushrooms) are animal products.

As I type this I’m eating a salad that contains raw eggs, raw cow heart, raw cow blood, sardines, anchovies, butternut squash and salad greens. This salad is known as “The Ex-Vegan Special,” and I know exactly what you’re thinking — “That salad doesn’t contain vitamin D.” But it does. I am getting Vitamin D by eating this salad and none of it is fortified. And I’m not cheating by eating this outside while I sunbathe either. (It’s night.) How is this possible?

VeganHealth.org knows why:

The only significant, natural sources of vitamin D in foods are fatty fish (e.g. cod liver oil, mackerel, salmon, sardines), eggs (if chickens have been fed vitamin D), and mushrooms (if treated with UVB rays)

Reed Mangels knew why when she co-wrote a book with Virginia and Mark Messina, evidently sneaking this passage past the two of them:

[Vitamin D] is found primarily in fish oils and the flesh of fatty fish and in eggs from hens that have been fed vitamin D. Cholecalciferol (D3) is the form of vitamin D found in animal foods.

Chris Masterjohn knows why:

Vitamin D was originally associated with cod liver oil and exposure to ultraviolet light. It is found in the highest amounts in fish livers, the flesh of fatty fish, and the blood of land animals; and in smaller amounts in butter and lard from animals raised with plenty of exposure to sunshine.

And strangely, even Virgina Messina circa a year ago knew why:

Research suggests that low intakes of vitamin D, vitamin B12, and omega-3 fatty acids might lead to depression. For everyone—omnivores included—the only sources of vitamin D are supplements, fortified foods and sun exposure. (Actually, there are a few animal sources of vitamin D, but it is very unlikely that omnivores can eat enough of them to meet needs; that’s why cow’s milk is fortified.)

If Messina knows that vitamin D exists in some animal products, why does she gloss over this now? Because these sources are “few”? Vitamin D isn’t in every animal product, but this chart (via Chris Masterjohn) shows there are some significant sources:

Congrats to vegan silver ear fungus for topping the list, by the way, albeit with D2.

It’s true that my salad isn’t something many omnivores typically eat in these parts. Most Americans would reach for the ranch before squeezing a bloody heart over their salad bowl. But plenty of “normal” omnivores eat salmon, mackerel, halibut, tuna and sardines. These are not weird foods. One-hundred grams of herring provides 1,100 IUs of vitamin D, says the chart. I used to put Trader Joe’s canned smoked herring on my salads all the time. If only I’d known I barely needed to go outside those days — imagine how many more vegan message board posts I could’ve read. But guess who would never have told me this? The Vegan RD, that’s who.

This doesn’t mean omnivores don’t have to worry about vitamin D. Many omnivores aren’t doing cod liver oil shots every day, or even eating fish at all, and could benefit from supplementation, especially if they’re computer-addicted shut-ins who live in the Pacific Northwest. But even the occasional herring or salmon would give shade-dwelling omnivores who don’t supplement an advantage over a vegan who got the same amount of sun and also didn’t supplement.

Vitamin D is not an even playing field for all diets and it could be helpful to Messina’s readership if she were more clear about this. Especially since Messina is an opponent of the health argument for veganism, presenting herself as science-based source of nutritional advice for vegans who want facts and not vegan wishful thinking. When she says “Vegans get their vitamin D the same way that omnivores do—from fortified foods and sunshine,” she betrays a subtle tendency to present veganism in a more favorable light than the facts may warrant.

Furthermore, Messina needs to remember her audience. Vegans aren’t just vegans — many of them are also future ex-vegans. And upon breaking away from the less is more philosophy of veganism, it’s quite common for ex-vegans to experiment with a variety of “weird foods” like The Ex-Vegan Special and anglerfish liver pâté. For them, especially, it’s a real disservice for their trusted nutrition source to say that animal foods don’t provide vitamin D. Today’s vegan may very well need to know tomorrow that a cup of cow’s blood contains 4,000 IUs of vitamin D3. Don’t hold out on us, vegan dietitians.