The homesick cook

Vitamin D can help to protect you against colds and fight depression. It will provide you with that cheery boost to counter all that time cooped up in Baltic temperatures and revision cycles. It’s also the vitamin that we generate from exposure to sunlight.

Remember SunnyD – that lurid orange drink that your mum let you have because, despite its sugar saturation, it claimed to be packed full of vitamins?  You’d have thought from the name that it would be right up there in that list.

Not so. Otherwise I’d be telling every sun-deprived, run-down student to relive their childhood and down a pint of the stuff!

Luckily you can eat your recommended daily dose of 200 International Units of vitamin D instead! Half a cup of button mushrooms and you’ve met your daily intake. Oily fish like mackerel and catfish can help you get some sunshine back into your life and one serving of salmon will provide you with your recommended dose.

However, the more student-friendly option of tuna will do the job just as well. With about 150 IUs per 4 ounces, a tuna sandwich puts you well on your way for the day and if you’re one of those crazy coots that really like tinned sardines there’s around 20 IUs per sardine.

It only gets better. As if you needed an excuse to put lashings of butter on pretty much anything, fortified fat spreads are a good source of Vitamin D and a single egg can provide up to 40 IU.

In this country, milk tends to be fortified and often orange juice is as well. One half cup will provide 45 IU of Vitamin D. A glass of that, combined with 30g bowl of cheerios and you’ll be close to a happy 200 IUs.

Yoghurts are often are fortified and 6 ounces will have 80IUs. Add a handful of granola and a sprinkle of brown sugar or jam should perk you up no end.