Kids Getting Too Little of the Sunshine Vitamin

It takes only 10 to 15 minutes of sun exposure a day for the body to make a sufficient amount of vitamin D. But a new report in the journal Pediatrics indicates that vitamin D deficiency is common in U.S. children. More than 50 million children (or 60% of the U.S. pediatric population) get insufficient vitamin D and another 7.6 million (9%) suffer from more severe deficiency.

According to the report, children were 60% more likely to be vitamin D deficient if they watched television, played video games or used computers for more than four hours a day or if they drank milk less than once a week.

I know I shouldn't be surprised. After all, children are spending so much less time outside than they once did. And we've become absolutely paranoid about unprotected sun exposure. Still, the idea that children could possibly end up suffering from rickets, which leads to softening and weakening of the bones, in this day and age is mind-boggling.

Vitamin D, of course, helps the bones better absorb calcium. However, lack of vitamin D also may increase a child's risk of developing heart disease later in life. Said study author Dr. Michal Melamed, an assistant professor of medicine, epidemiology, and population health at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, in the Bronx, New York, "There is a lot of data that suggests adults with low vitamin-D levels are at risk for diabetes, high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease, and a lot of cancers, and if kids start out with low levels and never increase them, they may be putting themselves at risk for developing all of these diseases at a much earlier age."

The best vitamin-D boosting strategy involves a three-pronged approach, says Melamed. "You can get a little bit from food, but not as much as you need," she says. "Supplements are readily available, and kids like to take Flintstones or gummy-bear multivitamins, which typically contain vitamin D."

Also, parents should help their children get at least 10 to 15 minutes of sun exposure daily without sunscreen. "Set your watch and then apply sunscreen after 15 minutes," Melamed says.

What can I say? We have yet another reason to send the kids outside to play!

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