A GP has urged people to take a key pill every day, and it’s essential during the winter months to boost your immune system. You may want to start taking it now
Katie-Ann Gupwell Acting Content Editor
11:52, 29 Jan 2026
The GP urged everyone to take the pill (stock image)(Image: Malorny via Getty Images)
During this period of the year, numerous individuals give greater consideration to their wellbeing but, according to medical professionals, you might wish to begin taking a crucial pill. GP Doctor Shireen recently encouraged people to contemplate incorporating it into their daily regimen, as it can serve a fundamental purpose, particularly throughout the winter period.
Doctor Shireen maintained that everyone ought to be taking it presently, as it could create a meaningful impact on their health. She provided the professional guidance in a frank video, explaining precisely what people need to understand to strengthen their immune systems through straightforward means.
This isn’t the first occasion people have discussed its essential nature either. Previously, Irish people were told how to spot if they need to up their intake of the vitamin.
Doctor Shireen explained: “I’m a GP, and today I’m going to tell you about one supplement that everybody should be taking right now. When you’re deficient in this vitamin, it’s not often a really obvious thing.
“It’s just, it presents very subtly. So like tiredness, body aches, just feeling run down, getting more coughs and colds than normal [and] maybe a little bit of hair loss as well.
“It’s vitamin D deficiency. Now we, as doctors, are always taught to advise food first, which is fine if we’re living a very unbusy life, able to eat everything that we want to eat but, even with the best diet in the world, you’re never going to get enough vitamin D from your diet alone.
“We need to supplement it because the place we mainly get it from is the sun and sunlight and obviously right now, during the winter months, we do not see enough sunlight to be able to maintain the vitamin D levels that we need to maintain.
“Check your levels but, even if you don’t check your levels, everyone should be taking around 800 to 1,000 units of vitamin D a day from October to March, but also throughout the year if you work indoors.”
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According to the medic, this represents the cornerstone of strengthening your immune defences during this period. It’s an incredibly straightforward approach to adopt, available as either tablets or capsules.
Why is vitamin D so crucial?
What many don’t realise is that vitamin D serves as a vital nutrient which supports strong bones, teeth and muscles by facilitating calcium and phosphorus absorption. Beyond being manufactured by skin cells when exposed to sunlight, it’s also found in certain foods, such as oily fish and enriched products or through supplements.
Insufficient vitamin D levels can lead to skeletal issues including rickets in youngsters and osteomalacia in adults. Furthermore, it may also compromise immune system performance.
The Health Service Executive explains: “Everyone in Ireland needs to take a vitamin D supplement. The amount you need depends on your age, skin tone, your situation and the time of year.
“If you have dark skin – for example you have an African, African-Caribbean or south Asian background – you may also not make enough vitamin D from sunlight.
“The amount of vitamin D you need is often described in micrograms. Take the supplements with a meal to help your body absorb the vitamin D.”
More information can also be found at the website. If you’re concerned about taking a supplement, speak with your GP first.