Vitamin D plays an important role in the metabolism and absorption of calcium and phosphorus to form the skeleton. The consequences of vitamin D deficiency in young children will reduce the absorption of calcium and phosphorus in the intestines, the body must mobilize calcium from the bones into the blood, causing disorders in the calcification process in the bones, causing osteoporosis and rickets in children.

1. What will happen to children with vitamin D deficiency?

Signs of bone changes can appear after a few months of vitamin D deficiency. Children born to mothers with soft bones can develop rickets within 2 months after birth.

1.1. Early signs

Including early signs of the nervous system such as:

• Children often cry, have difficulty sleeping, do not sleep well, often startle due to nervous stimulation;
• Sweating a lot at night, even when it is cold (night sweats); Children lose hair in the nape of the neck (sign of licking);
• Children often have slow physical development, reduced muscle tone (flaccid muscles), pale skin, enlarged spleen;
• Wheezing due to laryngeal cartilage softening – the muscles contract, causing children to vomit, hiccup, or leak stool and urine.

1.2. Late signs

The manifestations of bone disorders vary depending on the location of the bone, the age of the child and the severity of the disease:

• Delayed teething and teeth growing unevenly, slow to roll over, crawl, walk…;
• Wide fontanelle, soft fontanelle edges, slow fontanelle closure;
• In the bones, there are skull deformities, soft skull bones, sunken (signs of craniomaxilloma). Empty fontanelle, wide joint grooves, easily deformed head, flat head behind or on one side due to lying position;
• Skull tumors, often in the forehead, parietal region;
• Large, hypertrophied carpal bones forming “wrist rings”;
• Rib chains and chest deformities, bow legs, scoliosis;
• Can have seizures due to hypocalcemia.

Rickets is a primary disease in young children that will see deformed legs and slow physical development. Bone deformities in childhood can leave sequelae in adulthood, the spine can be hunchbacked, scoliotic, narrow pelvis.

2. What diseases does vitamin D deficiency cause in children?

When a child’s body lacks vitamin D, it can lead to an increased risk of cardiovascular disease.

2.1. Osteoporosis

Getting enough calcium and vitamin D is crucial for maintaining bone density. Vitamin D  deficiency can lead to calcium depletion, weakening bones and increasing the risk of fractures.

2.2. Asthma

Vitamin D deficiency can affect lung function and worsen asthma, especially in children. Vitamin D may improve asthma by blocking inflammatory proteins in the lungs, as well as increasing the production of an anti-inflammatory protein.

2.3. Cardiovascular disease

A vitamin D deficiency in children can increase the risk of cardiovascular disease such as high blood pressure, as well as increase the risk of death from this disease.

2.4. Allergies

Children who do not get enough vitamin D are more likely to have food allergies.

2.5. Influenza

Some studies have shown a link between vitamin D deficiency and respiratory infections. People with low vitamin D levels are more susceptible to illnesses such as colds and flu than those with high vitamin D levels in their bodies.

2.6. Oral health

Vitamin D is needed to absorb calcium and phosphorus – nutrients essential for bone growth. Vitamin D controls the amount of calcium in the blood, intestines and bones. Therefore, a lack of vitamin D can lead to weaker tooth enamel. Some recent reports have shown a link between oral health and vitamin D. People with low vitamin D levels have a higher rate of tooth loss than those with high vitamin D levels.

3. What to do when vitamin D deficiency occurs?

To determine whether a child is deficient in vitamin D, the doctor will order a simple blood test. The doctor can then advise the child if vitamin D supplementation is necessary. Note that there is no uniformity in the level of vitamin D for each child because the vitamin D content also depends on the health condition, age, etc. of each child.

4. Preventing vitamin D deficiency in children

For babies under 6 months old: You should let them sunbathe and breastfeed.

• For babies under 6 months old: Let the baby breastfeed because breast milk is rich in vitamin D. According to research, 80% of vitamin D is synthesized in the skin under the effect of ultraviolet rays directly exposed to the skin; the remaining 20% ​​of vitamin D comes from breast milk and foods rich in vitamin D (meat, fish oil, sardines, eggs, butter, mushrooms, beans, etc.);
• For babies from 6 weeks to 18 months old: Should use continuously every day 800 – 1,000 IU (if the baby is healthy); 1,500 IU (if the baby is not exposed to sunlight) and 2,000 IU (if the baby has dark skin). Babies from 18 months to 5 years old should only use the above dose during the foggy season with little sunlight;
• For babies with rickets: Take 1,200 – 5,000 IU/day for 4 weeks, then continue to use the preventive dose;
• Encourage mothers to provide their children with a varied diet, using foods rich in vitamin D, calcium, phosphorus, etc.;
• Add vitamin D to the child’s daily menu with foods such as milk, cheese, cooking oil, biscuits, cereals, nutritional powder, etc.;
• Promote and support breastfeeding in the community;
• Prevent and treat diseases related to vitamin D (prolonged infections such as diarrhea, respiratory infections, measles, acute pancreatitis, nephritis, etc.);
• Prevent and treat vitamin D deficiency (at medical facilities);

In addition, to ensure that children are adequately supplemented with vitamin D, the role of nutrition education is very important. It is necessary to carry out mass education and communication, propaganda in the community, and provide practical guidance so that families know how to prevent vitamin D deficiency through proper diet and sunbathing.

When noticing signs of vitamin D deficiency in children, parents can take their children to reputable hospitals specializing in pediatrics such as Vinmec Times City International General Hospital for consultation and treatment.

In addition to dietary supplements, parents can give their children nutritional supplements containing vitamin D and essential micronutrients such as zinc, lysine, chromium, selenium, etc. to help meet their children’s nutritional needs. At the same time, these essential vitamins also support digestion, enhance the ability to absorb nutrients, help improve anorexia, and help children eat well.