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Recent research suggests that vitamin D deficiency is more common than we once thought. To examine vitamin D status in young children, Boston investigators determined vitamin D levels (25-hydroxyvitamin D) in 247 infants (age, birth to 1 year) and 133 toddlers (age, 1–2 years) during routine visits at an urban primary care clinic.
The prevalence of vitamin D deficiency (<20 ng/mL) was 12%, and 40% of children had suboptimal vitamin D levels (<30 ng/mL). Prevalences were similar in infants and toddlers. Among children with vitamin D deficiency, wrist and knee radiography revealed that 8% had rachitic changes, and 33% had evidence of demineralization. The only factors independently associated with vitamin D deficiency were breast-feeding witho…