Effect Of Vitamin D Deficiency On Your Muscles And Bones

According to MayoClinic.com, humans need two forms of vitamin D---vitamin D2 and vitamin D3. You can attain vitamin D2 from dietary sources and vitamin D3 from 10-minutes of sun exposure. Dietary sources rich in vitamin D2 include dairy products, fish and eggs. If you have vitamin D deficiency, you can develop a range of diseases, specifically muscles and bone-related conditions.

The Importance of Vitamin D

Vitamin D regulates calcium and phosphorus level in the blood. When you lack adequate vitamin D, your intestines can't efficiently absorb calcium and phosphorus---the minerals your body need to build strong bones. To compensate for the lack of calcium in your body, the hormones will stimulate your bones to release calcium into the bloodstream, where the mineral gets reabsorbed by your kidneys. As long as you're not providing your body with enough calcium and vitamin D, your bones will continue to release calcium into the bloodstream as needed, even to the point where the bones become thin and fragile. Without adequate vitamin D in the body, you can develop severe conditions in the bones and muscles.

Risks of Vitamin D Deficiency

According to MayoClinic.com, you can become susceptible to vitamin D deficiency when you age, have an overweight condition, have not received much sunlight exposure, have fat malabsorption syndromes or inflammatory bowel disease. Infants who received nutrition exclusively from mother's breast milk also have an increased risk of vitamin D deficiency.

Bone and Muscle Complications

Infants and toddlers with vitamin D deficiency have a high chance of developing rickets, says Medline Plus. Children with rickets may experience bone pain or tenderness; become vulnerable to bone fractures; suffer from growth delay, develop skeletal deformities, dental abnormalities and muscle pain and weakness.

Osteomalacia, a similar bone condition as rickets, generally applied to adults with vitamin D deficiency. The condition entails softening of the bones, which puts individuals at risk for bone fractures--even from a minor injury. Individuals may feel muscle weakness and bone pain throughout the body or in a specific area, says Medline Plus.

Osteoporosis, a bone condition in which bones lose calcium, generally occurs in menopausal women; however, any women and men can develop this bone condition. Individuals with osteoporosis may feel bone pain or tenderness can fracture bones easily without much effort, experience shrinking in height due to the bending of the bones, says Medline Plus.

Dr. Geoff Venning reported in a 2005 "British Medical Journal" article of a strong association between vitamin D deficiency and muscle weakness, a common problem attributing to falls in the elderly populations. Dr. Geoff Venning reviewed a study of elderly women who received 800 IU of vitamin D with calcium daily for a year, of which the researchers saw 47 percent decrease of falls and fractures compared to women who received only calcium. These results led Dr. Geoff Venning to conclude that vitamin D deficiency plays a significant role in muscle weakness.

Treatments

Treatments for osteomalacia and rickets include increasing dietary intake of supplements or foods rich in vitamin D; and increasing sun exposure, says MayoClinic.com.

According to Medline Plus, treatments for osteoporosis include medications and a change of diet. Bisphosphonates and calcitonin drugs can help slow down bone loss and alleviate bone pain. Physicians may prescribe parathyroid hormone for postmenopausal women with severe osteoporosis who have a high risk for bone fractures. To help decrease the risk of spinal fractures, health care providers may prescribe raloxifene as well.

Prognosis

MayoClinic.com states that an improvement or reversal of skeletal deformities may be possible if a child received treatment early for rickets; however, skeletal deformities and short stature could become permanent if treatment gets delayed.

In individuals with osteomalacia, it takes a few weeks after treatment to see improvements; full recovery with treatment generally takes about 6 months, according to Medline Plus.

In cases of osteoporosis, curved spine stays permanent; however, with medications you can prevent fractures, says Medline Plus (see references 5).