Yes. Oil-based vitamin D drops can go into almost anything you eat or drink: a protein shake, a smoothie, yogurt, oatmeal, scrambled eggs, a salad, soup. Vitamin D3 is heat-stable enough to survive cooking, fat in the food helps it absorb, and the only real rules are to add the drops after the heat is off and to finish the portion so you get the whole dose.
The short version:
- Vitamin D3 in oil kept 70% to 99% of its content through boiling, steaming, microwaving, frying and baking. Food at eating temperature is no problem.
- Fat in the food helps absorption. Yogurt, eggs, nut butter, avocado and whole-milk shakes are all good carriers.
- Add drops after cooking, not into a hot pan, and stir.
- Finish the portion. Half a smoothie left in the blender is half a dose left in the blender.
- Oil floats on thin drinks. Stir or shake, or take it straight and chase it.
DOES BLENDING OR HEAT DESTROY VITAMIN D?
No. In a 2018 study in Food Chemistry, researchers added vitamin D3 to oil and cooked it: boiling, steaming, microwaving, pan-frying and oven baking. Between 70% and 99% of the vitamin survived. A blender, a warm bowl of oatmeal or a cup of coffee is far gentler than a frying pan. The one habit worth keeping is adding the drops after the heat is off, so you are not holding the vitamin at frying temperature for no reason.
WHAT FOODS WORK BEST WITH VITAMIN D DROPS?
Vitamin D is fat-soluble, and peak absorption was 32% higher when it was taken with a meal containing fat than a fat-free one. Oil-based drops already bring fat with them, so anything works, but food with some fat in it adds to the effect.
| Food or drink | Works? | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Protein shake | Yes | Blend it in or shake well; the oil disperses. Whole milk or nut butter in the shake adds fat. |
| Smoothie | Yes | Avocado, nut butter or full-fat yogurt in the mix helps. Drink all of it. |
| Yogurt, cottage cheese, oatmeal | Yes | Stir in. Full-fat versions carry more fat. |
| Scrambled eggs, avocado toast, salad | Yes | Drizzle on after cooking. Olive-oil-based drops taste like olive oil here, which is the point. |
| Coffee or tea | Yes | Oil floats on black coffee; stir and finish. Milk or cream adds fat. See vitamin D with coffee. |
| Water or juice | Works, but awkward | Oil sits on top and clings to the glass. Take it straight instead. |
| Soup or cooked dishes | Yes | Add to your own bowl after serving, not the pot, so the dose is yours. |
HOW TO MAKE SURE YOU GET THE FULL DOSE
This is the only thing that goes wrong. If the drops go into a family-sized pot, a shared smoothie pitcher or a bowl you do not finish, you did not take the dose on the label.
- Dose your own portion. Into your bowl, your cup, your shaker, after serving.
- Stir or shake. Oil pools on top of thin liquids; a quick stir disperses it.
- Finish it. The vitamin is wherever the oil went. Rinse the shaker with a splash of milk and drink that too if you are fussy about it.
- Add after heat. Pour the coffee, cook the eggs, then add the drops.
The vitamin is in the oil. Wherever the oil ends up, so does your dose.
CAN YOU PUT VITAMIN D DROPS IN A PROTEIN SHAKE?
Yes, and it is one of the better places for it. A post-workout shake is a daily habit for a lot of people, which solves the remembering problem, and shakes made with milk, nut butter or oats carry fat. Add the dropper to the shaker with everything else, shake, drink. If you make shakes with water and isolate powder, the drops still work; the oil in the dose is the fat.
DOES IT CHANGE THE TASTE?
Depends on the drops. MCT-based drops taste of nothing. Olive-oil-based drops taste like a small amount of olive oil, which disappears in a shake, smoothie, yogurt or coffee and is a feature on eggs or a salad. Flavored drops taste of whatever they are flavored with, and that flavoring and its sweetener are in every serving. We covered this in what does liquid vitamin D taste like.
THE DROPS BUILT FOR THIS
D3X Liquid Vitamin D3 + K2 is 2,000 IU of D3 and 100 mcg of K2 as MK-7 in organic extra virgin olive oil, with nothing else in the bottle. One 1 mL dropper goes into a shake, a smoothie, eggs or coffee without flavorings or sweeteners coming along for the ride, and because the fat is already in the dose, it works whatever you put it in. If you can never remember a pill, pick the one food or drink you never skip and put the dropper next to it.
Sources
Ložnjak P, Jakobsen J. "Stability of vitamin D3 and vitamin D2 in oil, fish and mushrooms after household cooking." Food Chemistry, 2018.
Dawson-Hughes B, et al. "Dietary fat increases vitamin D-3 absorption." Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, 2015.
National Institutes of Health, Office of Dietary Supplements. "Vitamin D: Fact Sheet for Health Professionals."
About D3X. D3X makes one thing: a liquid vitamin D3 + K2 (2,000 IU D3 / 100 mcg K2 as MK-7) in an olive-oil base, third-party tested and made in the USA. No seed oils, fillers, or sweeteners. See the liquid vitamin D3 + K2 drops.
*These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
Frequently Asked
Can you put vitamin D drops in a smoothie?
Yes. Blend them in with everything else. Fat in the smoothie, such as avocado, nut butter or full-fat yogurt, helps absorption, and oil-based drops bring their own fat anyway. Drink the whole smoothie to get the whole dose.
Can you put vitamin D drops in a protein shake?
Yes. Add the dropper to the shaker, shake, and drink. Shakes made with milk, nut butter or oats add fat; with water and isolate the oil in the drops is the fat.
Does heat destroy vitamin D in food?
Not easily. In a 2018 Food Chemistry study, vitamin D3 in oil kept 70% to 99% of its content through boiling, frying and baking. Add drops after cooking anyway, so the vitamin is not held at high heat for no reason.
What food should you take vitamin D with?
Anything with some fat: eggs, yogurt, nut butter, avocado, whole milk. Peak absorption was 32% higher with a fat-containing meal than a fat-free one. Oil-based drops already supply fat, so any food works.
Can you mix vitamin D drops in water?
You can, but oil floats and clings to the glass, so some of the dose stays behind. Take the drops straight and drink water after, or put them in something with body, like a shake or yogurt.
