title: Vitamin D, calcium homeostasis, and skeleton accretion in children.
abstract: Overt vitamin D deficiency early in life has classically been associated with the etiology of rickets. Recent interest has focused on vitamin D insufficiency and calcium homeostasis and bone health. A review of the literature suggests that the relationship between vitamin D status and calcium utilization has some important differences with life stage and race. In contrast to adults, serum 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D, but not serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D, predicts calcium absorption in growing children. PTH suppression with increasing serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D varies with race in adolescents. A limitation of our understanding of vitamin D status on calcium homeostasis in children relates to the cross-sectional nature of the evidence and interventions that typically use too little vitamin D supplementation to affect status. Vitamin D status has predicted changes in BMD during growth, and higher doses have been associated with increased bone area and BMC of the hip in pubertal girls with low baseline vitamin D status. Bone accretion is related to calcium status, sexual maturity, race, and genetics. Current cross-sectional studies in children suggest that vitamin D status is less important for bone accrual than for bone health in adults. Intervention studies are needed to identify responsive groups.
authors.affiliation: Department of Foods and Nutrition, Purdue University, Lafayette, Indiana, USA.
authors.forename: Connie M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Weaver
mesh_terms: D002118:Calcium / Q000378:metabolism*; D002648:Child; D006706:Homeostasis; D006801:Humans; D009751:Nutritional Requirements; D010012:Osteogenesis / Q000502:physiology*; D014807:Vitamin D / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D014807:Vitamin D; D002118:Calcium