Winter 2009
Volume 11, Number 4
Vitamin D - The Fountain of Youth Found!!
Every year we hear of miraculous medical breakthroughs. Most sound too good to be true and they usually are.
But just perhaps, there is something that isn’t so much snake oil. And it’s sitting right under our noses. It’s vitamin D. We have known for years that babies and children need vitamin D to develop strong bones. However, in adult studies, there is a suggestion that vitamin D could prevent some cancers, lessen osteoporosis, ward off infection, prevent autoimmune disorders and decrease the incidence of diabetes. If this is proven to be true, vitamin D will be the new wonder elixir.
New Recommendations: Recently, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommended that all children should get at least 400 International Units (IU) of vitamin D daily. This can be done either naturally through diet or through vitamin supplementation. And it should begin within days of birth.This is about the amount that is contained in 32 ounces of formula or one dropper (one millimeter) of supplemental vitamin D. The new recommendation doubles the previously recommended amount. On a grand scale, the recommendations are to prevent the bone-softening disease rickets. But on a grander scale, its purpose is to take advantage of health benefits that vitamin D has to offer.
In a study from the Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine, investigators studied 365 children from 6 months to 24 months of age. At regular intervals the infants were tested for vitamin D levels in their bodies. What researchers found was that 12 percent of the infants were vitamin D deficient and another 40 percent had levels below the accepted optimal level.
Limited Vitamin Sources: This is thought to be because there are limited natural dietary sources of vitamin D and inadequate opportunities for sunshine exposure, which is needed to activate vitamin D into its useful form. After all, we’re always telling you to limit sun exposure to protect against skin cancer. Breast-fed children are a special case. Although breast milk contains vitamin D, it doesn’t contain enough. Most of an infant’s vitamin D comes from sunlight. And we don’t believe that it’s a good idea for an infant’s skin to be bathed in too much sunlight. This may cause skin problems later in life.
And even if you exposed your baby to some sunlight on a daily basis, it may not be enough. Sunlight exposure is difficult to measure. Skin pigmentation, body mass, latitude, season, cloud cover, air pollution and the amount of skin surface that’s actually exposed all affect the amount of vitamin D that is made.
Bottom line, people living in Minnesota, especially in the winter, do not get enough sun exposure - period.
And even when you are outside wearing sun block, the sun block also blocks vitamin D production.
Some of the suggestions from the AAP:
- Children who consume less than a quart of milk (about a liter) and milk products in a day should receive a vitamin D supplement
- All breast fed and partially breast fed infants should be supplemented.
- Adolescents who are not getting 400 IU of vitamin D should take a daily supplement.
It may turn out that vitamin D is not the miracle vitamin we think it might be. However, it goes a long way to ensure healthy bones and a healthy body.
