US children showing vitamin D deficiencies

A new report has found possible risks of an emergence of vitamin D deficiency and rickets in US children.

Researchers from the Boston Children's Hospital studied 380 children who visited a local care centre between 2005 and 2007. The participants were all aged between eight and 24 months.

The results of the study showed that 12 per cent of children showed a severe vitamin D deficiency and 40 per cent had levels below the acceptable level of 30 nanograms per millilitre.

Of all the children showing a vitamin D deficiency, seven per cent showed evidence of bone changes that could suggest the presence of rickets.

The authors of the study wrote: "These infants and toddlers had a sub-clinical deficiency that could make detection of this issue particularly problematic in routine clinical practice, as a child's vitamin D status is not typically evaluated as part of routine care."

Rickets causes a softening of bones that can either result from a lack of vitamin D or calcium or from a lack of exposure to sunlight.