Are your kids getting enough vitamin D?
The American Academy of Pediatrics wants to make sure they are. The AAP has doubled their previously recommended minimum of daily vitamin D intake for babies through teens to 400 IUs.
“We know that 400 international units a day is safe and it will prevent rickets,” Frank R. Greer, MD, chairman of the AAP’s committee on nutrition, tells WebMD.
The new guidelines are especially important for breastfed babies, since breast milk isn’t rich in vitamin D, notes Greer, who recommends supplements to ensure adequate vitamin D intake.
Some vitamin D experts say the AAP’s new vitamin D guidelines don’t go far enough.
“I was hoping they’d be more aggressive,” says Bruce Hollis, PhD, professor of pediatrics, biochemistry, and molecular biology and director of pediatric nutritional services at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston, S.C.
Information from: http://children.webmd.com/news/20081013/...
