Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2018 Mar 28;31(3):247-260.
doi: 10.1515/jpem-2017-0391.

Vitamin D deficiency in childhood: old lessons and current challenges

Roberto Antonucci  1 , Cristian Locci  1 , Maria Grazia Clemente  1 , Elena Chicconi  1 , Luca Antonucci  2
Affiliations
Free article
Review

Vitamin D deficiency in childhood: old lessons and current challenges

Roberto Antonucci et al. J Pediatr Endocrinol Metab. .
Free article

Abstract

Hypovitaminosis D in childhood is a re-emerging public health problem in developed countries. New life style habits, current "epidemics" of obesity in children and adolescents worldwide, and other preventable risk factors may play a role in favoring the occurrence of vitamin D deficiency. In addition to skeletal consequences, hypovitaminosis D has been found to be involved in the development of serious health extra-skeletal problems in childhood, including atopy and autoimmunity. The increasing concerns about the global health impact of vitamin D deficiency make further research necessary to fill the gaps of knowledge in this field, and particularly to establish universally accepted "normal" serum 25(OH)D levels in the pediatric population, and to improve strategies for the screening, prevention and treatment of hypovitaminosis D. This review discusses the key points of hypovitaminosis D in childhood in the light of new knowledge, and highlights the limitations of current strategies to control this condition.

Keywords: children; extra-skeletal manifestations; hypovitaminosis D; newborns; rickets; screening; vitamin D.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. Wolf G. The discovery of vitamin D: the contribution of Adolf Windaus. J Nutrition 2004;134:1299–302.
    1. Zittermann A, Gummert JF. Nonclassical vitamin D action. Nutrients 2010;2:408–25.
    1. Ahmed SF, Franey C, McDevitt H, Somerville L, Butler S, et al. Recent trends and clinical features of childhood vitamin D deficiency presenting to a children’s hospital in Glasgow. Arch Dis Child 2011;96:694–6.
    1. Saraf R, Morton SM, Camargo CA Jr, Grant CC. Global summary of maternal and newborn vitamin D status – a systematic review. Matern Child Nutr 2016;12:647–68.
    1. Kiess W, Bae YJ, Penke M, Geserick M, Kratzsch J. Vitamin D in health and disease: the global threat of vitamin D deficient rickets. J Pediatr Endocrinol Metab 2016;29:391–3.

MeSH terms

LinkOut - more resources