Rickets
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Rickets is the softening and weakening of bones in children, usually because of an extreme and prolonged vitamin D deficiency.
Vitamin D promotes the absorption of calcium and phosphorus from the gastrointestinal tract. A deficiency of vitamin D makes it difficult to maintain proper calcium and phosphorus levels in bones, which can cause rickets.
Adding vitamin D or calcium to the diet generally corrects the bone problems associated with rickets. When rickets are due to another underlying medical problem, your child may need additional medications or other treatment. Some skeletal deformities caused by rickets may require corrective surgery.
Signs and symptoms of rickets can include:
Because rickets softens the growth plates at the ends of a child’s bones, it can cause skeletal deformities such as:
Talk to your doctor if your child develops bone pain, muscle weakness or obvious skeletal deformities.
Your body needs vitamin D to absorb calcium and phosphorus from food. Rickets can occur if your child’s body doesn’t get enough vitamin D or if his or her body has problems using vitamin D properly. Occasionally, not getting enough calcium or lack of calcium and vitamin D can cause rickets.
Children who don’t get enough vitamin D from these two sources can develop a deficiency:
Some children are born with or develop medical conditions that affect the way their bodies absorb vitamin D. Some examples include:
Factors that can increase a child’s risk of rickets include:
Left untreated, rickets can lead to:
Exposure to sunlight provides the best source of vitamin D. During most seasons, 10 to 15 minutes of exposure to the sun near midday is enough. However, if you’re dark-skinned, if it’s winter or if you live in northern latitudes, you might not be able to get enough vitamin D from sun exposure.
In addition, because of skin cancer concerns, infants and young children, especially, are warned to avoid direct sun or to always wear sunscreen and protective clothing.
To prevent rickets, make sure your child eats foods that contain vitamin D naturally — fatty fish, fish oil and egg yolks — or that have been fortified with vitamin D, such as:
Check labels to determine the vitamin D content of fortified foods.
If you’re pregnant, ask your doctor about taking vitamin D supplements.
Because human milk contains only a small amount of vitamin D, all breast-fed infants should receive 400 international units (IU) of oral vitamin D daily. The American Academy of Pediatricians recommends that breast-fed infants or those who drink less than 33.8 ounces (1 liter) of infant formula a day to take an oral vitamin D supplement.
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Rickets
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