At first glance, vitamin D levels and a history of wheezing in an infant may appear to have no connection. Recent studies, however, have found a possible relationship between the two. If if you had low vitamin D levels during pregnancy or if your baby has low vitamin D levels, he has an increased risk of developing respiratory disorders, including asthma and wheezing. Talk to your baby's doctor if he shows signs of respiratory difficulty. Discuss the use and dosages of vitamins before giving them.
Wheezing Disorders
Wheezing occurs frequently in infants; in around 50 percent of cases, an infant has at least one episode of wheezing during her first year, according to pediatric pulmonologist Katharine Kevill of the Duke University Health System. Most babies who wheeze don't develop asthma, but three episodes of wheezing within a 12-month period can increase the risk in children with a family history of asthma, or children with allergies or eczema.
Diagnosis of Low Vitamin D
A fat-soluble nutrient, vitamin D occurs naturally in just a few foods, although manufacturers of some foods, such as milk, fortify their products with vitamin D. Your body can also synthesize vitamin D in the skin from sunlight exposure. With increased use of sunscreen and less time spent in the sun, vitamin D deficiency has become a larger problem in the United States, especially in colder areas with less sun exposure. Serum levels of calcidiol, 25(OH)D, a vitamin D reaction in the liver, provide the best indicator of vitamin D status; less than 30 nanomoles per liter indicates vitamin D deficiency. Vitamin D deficiency may affect certain genes in the immune system, increasing susceptibility to viruses and bacteria that affect the respiratory system, according to a December 2009 report published in "Clinics in Laboratory Medicine" by researchers from Children's Hospital Boston.
Studies
Several studies have shown a connection between vitamin D deficiency and wheezing, including a joint Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School study published in the March 2007 issue of the "American Journal of Clinical Nutrition." The study analyzed data from 1,194 mothers and children over a three-year period. Children born to mothers with vitamin D deficiency had a higher risk of wheezing, while increased vitamin D, whether supplied by diet or supplements, decreased wheezing. In a Massachusetts General Hospital study reported in the January 2011 issue of "Pediatrics," infants with low cord blood levels of 25(OH)D) at birth had higher rates of wheezing over a five-year study period.
Treatment and Prevention
Vitamin D supplementation can raise vitamin D levels to normal ranges. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends supplementation of 400 International Unites per day for breast-fed infants. Commercial formula contains supplemental vitamin D. Sunlight exposure for five to 30 minutes between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. at least twice a week without sunscreen can also supply an adequate source of vitamin D synthesis. Talk to your child's doctor about supplementation or sun exposure to increase vitamin D levels.
References
- Office of Dietary Supplements: Vitamin D
- Duke Health: Wheezing Infants
- Pediatrics: Cord-Blood 25-Hydroxyvitamin D Levels and Risk of Respiratory Infection, Wheezing, and Asthma
- American Journal of Clinical Nutrition: Maternal Intake of Vitamin D During Pregnancy and Risk of Recurrent Wheeze in Children at Three Years of Age
- Clinics in Laboratory Medicine: Respiratory Viruses in Bronchiolitis and Their Link to Recurrent Wheezing and Asthma
