Knowledge of the importance of vitamin D continues to grow. It has gotten to the point where a vitamin D test is now considered an invaluable part of standard medical care. However, the perception of need for this screening may have outpaced the actual testing abilities of many labs.

In order to remedy the situation, a team of researchers from the National Institute of Standards and Technology recently released a guideline for evaluating and interpreting vitamin D test results. The group said their documents could lead to more accurate readings, enabling doctors to provide more sound recommendations to their patients.

"This reference material provides a mechanism to ensure measurement accuracy and comparability and represents a first step toward standardization of 25(OH)D measurements," the team wrote in the journal Analytical Chemistry.

The recommendations could have major implications, as vitamin D levels are known to be related to a number of important areas of health. Maintaining adequate supplies of the nutrient in the body is a critical way to stay healthy, and vitamin D testing helps individuals ensure they are doing this.