The benefits of breast milk are numerous. Ideal for protecting infants against many diseases in adulthood, the precious beverage also contains all the nutrients essential for their growth. All but one in sufficient quantity: the vitamin D !
To reach this conclusion, Dr. Jonathon Maguire of St. Michael’s Hospital in Toronto (Canada) measured the vitamin D level in the blood of 2,500 children aged one to five years.
Exclusive breastfeeding: 30% risk of vitamin D deficiency by age 3
The results, published in theAmerican Journal of Public Health, showed that after the baby’s first birthday, each month of breastfeeding increased the risk of vitamin D deficiency by 6%.
At two years, the risk of deficiency reached 16%, and approached 30% at three years.
Breast milk does not contain enough vitamin D
The World Health Organization (WHO) recommendsfeeding with milk exclusively during the first 6 months of the child’s life. From that moment, theintroduction of solid foods necessary for the energetic demands of the little one is recommended, while continuing to breastfeed until the age of two years and beyond.
However, with regard to the vitamin D, the researchers found no difference when solid foods were added to the baby’s diet in addition to the mother’s milk. Breast milk is an excellent source of nutrients needed for infant growth, but does not contain enough vitamin D.
400 IU of vitamin D recommended per day
The researchers also found that exclusive breastfeeding during the first year of life increased the risk of rickets (bone disease). Pediatricians therefore recommend that parents give from zero to one year the dose of 400 international units (IU) (400 IU equivalent to 10 millionths of a gram (µg)) of vitamin D daily to their baby.
These discoveries could have a good impact on all those who live in regions where the sun is lacking in winter. The sun’s ultraviolet rays allow the body to produce vitamin D (80-90%) at the correct bone health.
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