It is difficult to find a young mother who has not heard about vitamin D3. In our country, pediatricians prescribe it for use everywhere: starting with birth child and at least up to a year. Why is it so important for the child's body, what are its benefits and peculiarities? How to detect a lack of vitamin D3 in a child and how to properly give it to infants and older children?
Why vitamin D3 is useful for children and adults
Vitamin DZ (or colecalciferol) is called the sun vitamin. It can enter the human body with food, but most of this vitamin is synthesized in the skin under exposure to ultraviolet radiation of a certain spectrum (just the same that is present in solar rays). For a long time, doctors prescribed it for prevention rickets in young children, because the main function of D3 is to ensure the correct absorption of phosphorus and calcium in the intestine. Today it has been proven that this vitamin performs many other, unique and irreplaceable functions within us:
- D3 regulates calcium metabolism in muscle tissue. This is directly related to the natural ability of muscles to contract and relax. With a lack of D3, the muscles weaken, coordination of movements, gait and balance deteriorate.
- D3 increases brain activity and enhances cognitive (cognitive) abilities. That is, it directly affects memory, attention, speech, orientation in space.
- D3 is actively involved in the maturation of lymphocytes and inhibits the development of disease-causing cells. Simply put, this vitamin is essential for the normal functioning of the immune system. It was noticed that children with a normal level of D3 suffer from seasonal ARVI much less than their peers.
- D3 regulates the production of insulin in the pancreas. Therefore, its deficiency increases the risk of developing diabetes mellitus.
How much vitamin D3 needs to be given to a child
Red fish contains the most vitamin D3 / istockphoto.com
The products contain very little of this vitamin. The main sources of D3 are fish oil, cod liver, red fish, chicken yolk, butter, and some types of hard cheeses. This is not at all like a list of products for a small child, and even older children from this list, little will "go" without a fight. Therefore, children are "saturated" with vitamin D3 mainly from sunbathing. And here there are some important nuances.
The advantage of this vitamin is that it can accumulate in the human body, and then it is consumed as needed. However, it will not be possible to "get hot" for a year ahead: a long sun exposure will do more harm than good for the child. It is important to know that D3 metabolism requires physical activity. That is, it is better to play football on a sunny playground than to lie on the beach. With babies in this regard, it is difficult: most often they take sunbathing while lying in a stroller. So the effectiveness of such fortification tends to be minimized.
Vitamin D3 is best absorbed during outdoor sports / istockphoto.com
That is why doctors prescribe vitamin D3 to children from birth, relying on the basic needs of the body. According to research, the minimum daily intake of D3 for children from birth to 18 years is 400 IU (or 10 mcg). It is this dosage that is prescribed for children up to three years old. Do not worry, there will be no hypervitaminosis. Firstly, this is the lower level of the child's daily requirement, and secondly, not all the vitamin is absorbed in the baby's intestines.
For children from three years old to adolescence, the dosage of D3 is increased to 600 IU (or 15 μg). In principle, the same prophylactic dose is appropriate for every adult. The only thing is that for pregnant and lactating mothers, as well as people over 70 years old, doctors recommend increasing the daily intake of the drug to 800 IU (or 20 μg). Taking a higher dosage without consulting a doctor is highly discouraged: preparations with an amount of vitamin D3 more than 1000 IU are intended not for prevention, but for the treatment of a deficiency of this vitamin.
Vitamin D3 is absorbed more slowly in children with dark skin / istockphoto.com
How to determine the lack of vitamin D3 in a baby
With systemic vitamin D deficiency, babies can develop rickets, and older children and adults can develop diseases such as osteomalacia (softening of the bone, which occurs due to insufficient bone mineralization) and osteopenia (a decrease in bone density, due to which bones acquire a "porous" structure and become fragile). Such serious diseases occur with prolonged hypovitaminosis D3. Therefore, it is very important to determine the lack of this vitamin in the early stages of a baby's development. Doctors identify several signs that signal a lack of D3 in a child under one year old:
- excessive sweating of the baby's head, especially during feeding and sleeping;
- the child's sweat has a sour taste, because due to the lack of D3 in the body, the acid-base balance is disturbed;
- the child has persistent prickly heat, from which neither bathing nor the correct temperature can save;
- the baby started constipation against the background of unchanged nutrition: this is due to hypotension of the intestinal muscles;
- the sleep regime is disturbed - the child sleeps little and restlessly, often wakes up and cries;
- anxiety manifests itself during the day: the baby has become nervous and fearful, often turns his head for no reason;
- there are obvious bald patches on the back of the head
It will also be interesting for you to read:
Baby and vitamin D: 7 facts that will make you wary
Rickets in a child due to vitamin D deficiency: who gets it, prevention
The main signs of rickets in a child: do not miss a dangerous illness
