From the Poplar Press: What Your Patients are Reading:

Vitamin D is an essential nutrient needed by the body to absorb calcium and build strong bones. Rickets, once thought to be an antiquated disease, is a disorder generally caused by a lack of vitamin D, calcium, or phosphate which leads to the weakening of the bones. With a recent rickets diagnosis in an infant, the disease appears poised to make a comeback in infants, who are not all getting the levels of vitamin D they require to build up their bone mass. Doctors worry that exclusively breast-feeding babies may be one cause of their vitamin D deficiency. Mothers should supplement their breast milk with vitamin drops, as recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics. Children who begin their life with a vitamin D or calcium deficiency will be at a greater risk for developing osteopenia and osteoporosis later on in life. Some doctors report cases of osteoporosis in teenagers, as a result of not having enough vitamin D or calcium in their diets at a young age to properly build up their bones. Adult women are also at risk for vitamin D deficiency. Many calcium supplements contain a dose of vitamin D, which can help maintain bone health and prevent osteoporosis.

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