Vitamin D for Kids Cuts Diabetes Risk
June 19th, 2008 by Kathy Sena
Giving kids vitamin D supplements may help ward off the development of type 1 diabetes in later life, according to a new analysis of multiple studies. The results were published in the Archives of Disease in Childhood.
Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disorder, in which insulin-producing cells in the pancreas are destroyed by the body’s own immune system. The disease is most common among people of European descent, with around 2 million Europeans and North Americans affected. Its incidence is rising at roughly 3 percent a year, and it is estimated that new cases will have risen 40 percent between 2000 and 2010.
The results of the studies showed that children given supplemental vitamin D were around 30 percent less likely to develop type 1 diabetes compared with those not given the supplement.
Levels of vitamin D, and sunlight, from which the body manufactures the vitamin, have been implicated in the risks of developing various autoimmune disorders. And there is a striking difference in the incidence of type 1 diabetes according to latitude and levels of sunlight exposure, with a child in Finland being 400 times more likely to develop the disease than a child in Venezuela, say the authors.
Your child’s doctor can advise you about the appropriate daily amount of any vitamin supplements, based on your child’s age and any health factors she may have.