Lack of vitamin D: symptoms in adults and children. Lack of vitamin D in infants: causes and symptoms

Deficiency of vitamin D (calciferol) - a fairly serious condition of the body, associated with insufficient intake and disruption of absorption in the body of calcium and phosphorus, coming from food. Without these elements, the bone system is not able to form properly, and the nervous and immune systems can not function fully. As a result, serious irreversible pathologies develop. To prevent possible ailments, you need, as they say, to know the enemy in person. And for this you need to know, because of what there is a shortage of vitamin D, the symptoms of its deficiency and ways to deal with it.

About Vitamin

Vitamin D is not just one vitamin. It is a group of chemical compounds performing the same function.

There are two active forms of vitamin D :

1. Vitamin D2 (ergocalciferol) comes exclusively with food.

2. Vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol) is produced in the skin under the influence of sunlight and enters the body with food.

The lack of vitamin D, the symptoms of which are different, can arise because of insufficient intake of one of them. Despite the partial interchangeability of D2 and D3, they both can not fully fulfill each other's tasks.

Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin, which has the property of accumulating in adipose tissue. In addition, fats are necessary for full absorption of it in the intestines. Unlike other vitamins, it acts not only as a vitamin, but also as a hormone.

What is it needed for

The role of vitamin D for the human body can not be overemphasized.
First of all, he is responsible for the absorption of calcium from food. With his deficiency, the bones and teeth suffer. Therefore, against the background of hypovitaminosis D, children often develop rickets, in which the bone tissue does not receive enough minerals. Because of this, the bones soften, deformations of the skeleton occur. Bones of an adult acquire a porous structure, resulting in a disease such as osteoporosis.

In addition to regulating calcium in the body, calciferol helps maintain the necessary level of phosphorus in the blood, prevents muscle weakness, strengthens the immune system, and helps regulate the work of the nervous and cardiovascular systems.

Vitamin D promotes the absorption of calcium, magnesium and phosphorus from the intestines, thus affecting the metabolism. He is also a defender of many ailments, such as hypertension, atherosclerosis, type 2 diabetes.

Vitamin D is also needed for the proper functioning of all organs and systems, in particular for the functioning of the intestine, thyroid and genital organs.

In addition, calciferol interferes with the uncontrolled reproduction of tumor cells, thereby achieving a good effect in the therapy and prevention of cancer.

Causes of deficiency of calciferol

The lack of vitamin D symptoms provokes different. The causes of this insufficiency are not the same. First, let's find out what factors influence the occurrence of a deficiency of this vitamin:

• Vegetarianism. The source of calciferol are products of animal origin, such as eggs, fish of fatty varieties, beef liver, cheese, milk. Vegetarians who deny themselves such food are prone to a lack of vitamin.

• Lack of sun. In the human body, vitamin D is produced by exposure to ultraviolet light. Chances to get its deficiency are residents of northern regions, homebodies and people who work in the night shift or are nocturnal.

• Dark skin. Since melanin interferes with the production of calciferol in response to exposure to sunlight, black people are more prone to hypovitaminosis.

• Inability of the kidneys to process vitamin D into an active form. With age, human kidneys begin to less productively convert calciferol into an active form, resulting in a deficiency of the vitamin.

• Poor absorption. Disorders in the work of the intestines and stomach, resulting in fat-soluble vitamins are not absorbed, lead to beriberi.

Symptoms of Vitamin D deficiency

Unfortunately, it is almost impossible to determine the deficiency of the vitamin at the initial stage, since most of the symptoms during this period are of a nonspecific nature and they can often be mistaken for other diseases. Lack of calciferol, as a rule, is detected already in the midst of the disease.

Deficiency of vitamin D in adults

Vitamin deficiency is most often experienced by people who are rarely in the open air, have a limited diet and drink alcohol. The modern person does not get enough calciferol because of a way of life. Vitamin D2, which enters the body together with food, as a rule, is not enough for the normal functioning of the body, and for the formation of vitamin D3 it is necessary to take sun baths for at least 1 hour each day.

What are the signs of a lack of vitamin D? Symptoms in adults are often associated with poor health, headaches, fatigue and reduced efficiency. Often, these people have articular pain. And the sensation of an ache in bones can appear even without the visible reasons.

What causes the lack of vitamin D? Symptoms may manifest as persistent dental problems. In this case, often there is caries, tooth enamel loses its strength and whiteness.

Signs of vitamin deficiency are sudden mood changes, irritability, aggression, nervousness and tearfulness. In addition, vision often deteriorates, sleep is disturbed, appetite decreases, weight loss occurs.

As you can see, if there is a shortage of vitamin D, the symptoms in adults are nonspecific. Therefore, one can suspect this state only by a combination of characteristics. But it is possible to establish the diagnosis only by conducting a biochemical laboratory study.

Vitamin D deficiency in children

Especially dangerous is the lack of vitamin D in infants, the symptoms of which begin to appear after two months of life. Infants, even if they receive a high-quality and balanced diet are not immune from the development of rickets.

In the past centuries, almost all babies in the first year of life lacked a vitamin. For this reason, their bones and joints were formed incorrectly. Today, there is less shortage of vitamin D. in the body. Symptoms are most often observed in premature infants who are breastfed and live in industrial regions of children. In addition, often a social shortage of vitamin D. In infants, symptoms can manifest themselves in diseases of internal organs. Therefore, the health of the crumbs should be carefully observed.

How to determine if there is a lack of vitamin D in a child?

Symptoms of this condition in the early stages are as follows:

• Increased sweating. Palms and feet of the baby are constantly wet, he sweats during feeding or other physical stress. In the dormant state, the child has a severe hyperhidrosis of the scalp, in the nape of the neck the hair begins to fall out, and the baby is balding.

• Slowly closing fontanel. As is known, in healthy children, the fontanelle closes after a year and a half after birth and decreases significantly to 6 months of age. If after half a year the size of the fontanelle is more than 10-12 mm and its edges remain soft and supple, it is worth turning to a pediatrician to exclude the vitamin D deficiency.

• Capriciousness and tearfulness, restless sleep, which are a sign of increased nervous excitability.

• Delayed teething.

If the initial stage has not been treated and there is still a shortage of vitamin D in the child, the symptoms become more pronounced. At this stage, bone tissue deforms. The occipital part of the child flattenes, the size of the parietal and frontal tubercles increases. The thorax rushes forward, and the legs acquire an O- or X-shape. Rachism in a neglected stage is accompanied by mental and physical inhibition in development.

What is dangerous is the lack of vitamin D

Deficiency of calciferol not only worsens the general condition, but also causes serious transformation in bone tissues. Prolonged shortage of this vitamin can cause caries, tooth loss, and lead to osteomalacia, in which the bone tissue becomes soft.

Especially dangerous is hypovitaminosis D for the elderly, when against a background of lack of calciferol and calcium, the bones become brittle, which indicates the development of osteoporosis. For this reason, such people often have fractures. The risk of osteoporosis is also affected by the female sex during menopause. This is due to the fact that during the menopause the level of estrogen hormones responsible for the normal bone composition falls. As a result, calcium and collagen are lost. Therefore, if there are symptoms of vitamin D deficiency in women, especially during menopause, this may indicate the development of osteoporosis.

The lack of vitamin D in children who developed in infancy can lead to the development of mild to moderate rickets. In this case, the bones and joints of the child will be weak, and outwardly it will manifest itself in the form of O-or X-shaped legs and "chicken" breasts. The severe stage of the disease, as a rule, is accompanied by inhibition of mental and physical development.

Treatment of a deficiency of calciferol

In order to treat vitamin D deficiency, at the initial stage of development, the dietary intake is adjusted and preventive doses of preparations containing this vitamin are prescribed.

If preventive measures were not taken on time and diseases associated with hypovitaminosis D, began to progress, resort to a comprehensive therapy. It consists in taking calcium preparations, irradiating with ultraviolet and treating diseases of internal organs. Since the intake of vitamin D in high doses provokes intoxication in the body, the composition of therapeutic therapy is administered vitamins A, C and group B.