Vitamin D deficiency in early childhood can lead to an increased risk for osteoporosis later in life. In addition to this, vitamin D is playing an important role in helping our immune system fight back diseases. Recently, lack of this vitamin has been linked to autoimmune diseases, cancer, and diabetes and the list can go on.

Consequently, pediatricians in the United States decided to increase the amount of vitamin D recommended to babies, kids and adolescents from 200 units daily (a dose established back in 2003) to 400 units daily saying it might help prevent diseases.

"We are doubling the recommended amount of vitamin D children need each day because evidence has shown this could have life-long health benefits. Supplementation is important because most children will not get enough vitamin D through diet alone," said Dr. Frank Greer, of the American Academy of Pediatrics, which released the new guideline recommendations at a meeting in Boston.

The recommendation is meant especially for breastfed babies who are at increased risk of vitamin D deficiency and therefore rickets, as mothers’ milk is the perfect food except it lacks vitamin D. Rickets is a bone softening disease that results in stunted growth and skeletal deformities if not corrected while the child is young. The disease is rare in the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said, but there were reports in 2000 and 2001 of rickets among breakfast infants. In order to prevent such cases, breastfed babies need to receive the recommended quantity of vitamin D even from the first day of their lives.

"Breast-feeding is the best source of nutrition for infants. However, because of vitamin D deficiencies in the maternal diet, which affect the vitamin D in a mother's milk, it is important that breast-fed infants receive supplements of vitamin D," Dr. Carol Wagner of the physician's group, who helped write the report, said in a statement.

There are no problems for children who are fed with formula because it is fortified with vitamin D. But children who don’t drink the recommended amount of milk daily (four glasses) are also at increased risk of vitamin D deficiency. Especially for these children, the American Academy of Pediatrics urged for the 400 units daily of the vitamin which can be taken either from supplements, food containing vitamin D such as fish, fortified cereals, and eggs or directly by exposing to the sun’s rays. Vitamin D is also known as the “sunshine vitamin” because as little as 10-minute exposure is thought to be enough to prevent deficiency. However, the last method of acquiring the necessary amount of vitamin D is questionable because exposure to the sun also increases risk for skin cancer when the sun’s rays are too powerful.

The new recommendations will be published in the November issue of the journal Pediatrics.