Should you give your baby vitamin D

 

Should you give your baby vitamin D, and until what age?

Synthesized by the sun, vitamin D is necessary for the proper development of your baby. But her skin, which is too fragile, cannot be exposed to the sun. It is therefore necessary to consider supplementation. We take stock, while one of the drugs most prescribed for this purpose, has just been suspended.

Should you give your baby vitamin D, and until what age?

Summary

The body makes vitamin D from the sun

Do newborns necessarily need vitamin D intake?

How to administer the drug?

Are there foods high in vitamin D that I can give my baby?

What about milk enriched with vitamin D?

What are the risks of vitamin D deficiency in my child?

Vitamin D plays two important roles, especially for babies:

it ensures the mineralization of bones and teeth during growth;

it allows the assimilation of calcium and phosphorus by the intestines and the body. This promotes the healthy development of your baby. 

The body makes vitamin D from the sun

Usually vitamins are contained in a specific diet, this is the case with vitamin C in citrus fruits. But vitamin D can be made by our bodies. Its synthesis takes place thanks to an essential element: the sun.

Exposure to a few ultraviolet rays for a quarter of an hour each day is sufficient to provide you with 100% of the necessary daily intake of vitamin D.

Do newborns necessarily need vitamin D intake?

You have probably already had vitamin D supplementation during your pregnancy , which is necessary for your baby's bones. This must therefore extend for some time. In general, this treatment lasts until the child is 18-24 months old.

Why this supplementation? Because toddlers, before 1 or 2 years old, should not be exposed to the sun because of their too fragile skin. As a result, they may lack vitamin D.

The prescribed doses vary according to the child's diet (breastfeeding, cow's milk, milk enriched with vitamin D, etc.).

Note: from your child's 18 months and up to the age of five, supplementation continues, but only during the winter months. Ditto for adolescents from 10 to 18 years old

Relieve tendonitis of the knee

Medicines containing vitamin D should be given to the infant every day. One of the most prescribed, Uvesterol D, is administered using a pipette. Under reinforced surveillance for ten years, he has just been suspended by the National Medicines Safety Agency, after the death of a baby and numerous reports of discomfort and false routes for ten years.

This precautionary measure does not call into question the interest of vitamin D supplementation, specify the authorities and pediatricians: it is the mode of administration with a pipette that is pointed out.

Parents can turn to other vitamin D-based medicines, in the form of drops such as Zymad, Adrigyl, or Sterogyl.

Be sure to follow the administration precautions and consult your doctor before any change of medication.

Are there foods high in vitamin D that I can give my baby?

The synthesis of vitamin D takes place mainly via the sun and ultraviolet rays. There are few foods in which we find this type of contribution.

Vitamin D is found mainly in fatty fish such as salmon, trout, tuna, mackerel, anchovies in oil.

We also think of egg yolk, only if it is raw.

And it can be consumed in small quantities in certain meats: veal, chicken.

In any case, this type of diet is not really for young children.

What about milk enriched with vitamin D?

The milks consumed by your baby, first and second age, are fortified with vitamin D, but not enough to avoid supplementation. A breastfed baby also deserves more.

About 50 units of this vitamin are found in breast milk, whereas the baby needs about 1000 units per day.

What are the risks of vitamin D deficiency in my child?

Vitamin D deficiency can be extremely serious in that it can lead to rickets . Its absence is equivalent to insufficient absorption of calcium by the bones. More concretely, the bones of the skull can become soft, those of the wrists and ankles widen, etc.

There is also the presence of a "genu varum" which results in a fairly large gap between the knees when the feet touch.

Don't worry, rickets no longer exists in France since supplementation is automatically administered to all the little ones.

Be especially careful if you live in an area with little sun and your child has dark skin, as the pigmentation filters out ultraviolet rays.