DEAR DR. GOTT: I am confused about vitamin D and how much I need. I'm an 83-year-old female and take a One A Day Women's vitamin, which has 800 IU of D, 450 mg of calcium and many more important vitamins. I also take an additional calcium tablet with 600 mg and a 1,000-mg fish-oil tablet. I eat fortified cereal and when the sun is shining, I spend one to two hours working out in it.

My doctor thinks I should take more vitamin D. I feel I am getting enough and have read articles that a person can get too much. Now I need to have my mind put at ease about the proper amount of D for a person my age to take.

DEAR READER: Unless you are deficient, I must agree with you and not your doctor. Vitamin D is required for the development of teeth and bones, as well as the absorption of calcium and phosphorous from the intestines. It is a fat-soluble vitamin that requires bile acids for absorption. Once absorbed, fat-soluble vitamins remain in storage until needed.

Food sources include fortified dairy and cereal products, butter, saltwater fish and egg yolks. There is variation in recommended doses depending on age. Healthy people between the ages of 19 and 50 require 200 IU daily; those between 51 and 70 require 400 IU daily; those 71 years of age and older should consume 600 IU daily.

Let's consider some additional food sources for dietary consumption of vitamin D. One tablespoon of cod-liver oil contains 1,360 IU, and 3-½ ounces of salmon contain 90 IU. Milk, including the nonfat variety, contains 98 IU per cup. Beyond foods, most people meet their needs through exposure to sunlight. You spend up to two hours outside each sunny day.

As people age, their skin cannot synthesize vitamin D as efficiently as it could in their younger years. Furthermore, the risk of osteoporosis is greater. Nonetheless, your supplement plus your sunlight exposure is adequate. Excesses have the potential to cause nausea, constipation, poor appetite and several other unpleasant symptoms. You are on top of things and should continue on course.

To provide related information, I am sending you a copy of my Health Report "Vitamins and Minerals." Other readers who would like a copy should send a self-addressed stamped No. 10 envelope and a $2 check or money order to Newsletter, P.O. Box 167, Wickliffe, OH 44092. Be sure to mention the title.

DEAR DR. GOTT: I was interested in your column about stuttering and would like to pass along an article I clipped from a newspaper a few years ago. In 1985, a great-grandfather found a simple method to help people who stutter, and it didn't cost anything. You simply open a book, read aloud, but leave your teeth clenched. Do this for five minutes the first day. Each day thereafter, add five more minutes until you reach 60 minutes. Then read aloud for 60 minutes each day for two months. You must read loud enough to be heard.

During the past 10 years, I've received more than 500 letters telling me the remedy worked for them.

DEAR READER: I must admit this is a new one on me, but it certainly can't do any harm. No one knows the exact cause for the condition; however, recent research has found that genetics, neuromuscular development, family dynamics and a child's environment all play a role. It is not the result of nervousness and has no bearing on intelligence. Thank you for sharing the information.

Dr. Peter Gott is a retired physician and the author of the book "Dr. Gott's No Flour, No Sugar Diet," available at most chain and independent bookstores, and the recently published "Dr. Gott's No Flour, No Sugar Cookbook."