Researchers from the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston have published a detailed review.

Their interest relates to the needs of vitamin D in the breastfeeding mother and her infant and child, but they also present a detailed and well-referenced review.

Some historical perspective
Mid-1600s

• Rickets is identified as a major health problem for young children as people begin to leave rural farming communities for urban areas.
• The exodus brought about lifestyle and environmental changes that limited sunlight exposure.
• Rickets is characterized by deformities of the skeleton, coupled with generalized muscle weakness.

Early 19th century

• Rickets was epidemic in northern Europe and in industrialized northern regions of the United States.

1822

• Dr. Andrew Sniadecki reported that lack of sun exposure could be the cause of rickets.

Mid-1800s

• Fish liver oils discovered to heal rickets.

1920s

• Vitamin D identified, and the link was made to rickets.

Today

• Vitamin D effects organ systems throughout the body down to the cellular level.
• What was once thought to be a simple hormone affecting only bone and calcium metabolism, is recognized to be much more.
• It’s a complex hormone that regulates calcium and the integrity of the immune system.
• Vitamin D deficiency is linked to inflammatory and certain diseases such as multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, tuberculosis, diabetes, and various cancers, to name a few.

The bottom line?
The authors conclude, “As new evidence points to serious consequences of chronic vitamin D deprivation,… we must establish normative guidelines for safe and effective vitamin D supplementation during lactation in both the lactating woman and her infant that address modern-day lifestyles. It is clear that at least in part, vitamin D does make the world go ‘round.” The latest vitamin D dosing recommendations from the American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) are summarized here.

12/21/08 21:31 JR