Should I give my baby vitamin D supplements? How much sun is sufficient to make vitamin D?

Question

I know all the factors, (exclusively breastfed, living in northern climates, not enough sun exposure, etc.) but should I?

I live in Indianapolis (is that considered "northern"?) I do let him get full sun for at least a few minutes every day (how much is too much/not enough and does it matter what time during the day?) we are not dark skinned, I'm taking a prenatal and I'm not deficient in vitamin D to my knowledge.

So do I really need to give him extra D? My pediatrician said it was optional.

Answer 1

In Canada, the paediatric society recommends that babies get between 1000 to 2000 IU of vitamin daily in the wintertime.

If the baby is out in the sun, they will produce lots and lots of vitamin D during the summer, but this might be significantly reduced in teh winter. It may be "optional" while you are breast feeding, however giving her at least 200 IU (the recommended minimum for adults to maintain bones) will not hurt her (dosing her with 40,000 daily for 5 months might however.

CBC's Quirks and Quarks had a segment on Vitamin D, part of which dealt with the amount that is recommended for children in northern climates which you might find informative.

Answer 2

I live in Illinois and my Dr. has never even made mention of it.  My son is 5 months and is fed breast milk exclusively.

Answer 3

It is optional, but really it's only a vitamin it's an eye dropper.  You can't overload him or anything and if he does become vitamin d deficiant you could have jaundice or something else happen that could cause him to be hospitalized.  

That being said, it was strongly recommended that I give it to my oldest who was born in October and we were living in Banff, Alberta at the time.  I actually got a multi vitamin for her with the vitamin d in it.  I forgot more often then I remembered to give it to her and she was perfectly fine.

Good luck!

Answer 4

Baby drop vitamins can't hurt if you want to give him/her that.

Answer 5

it's absolutely impossible to get 'the recommended amount" of vit. D from the sun.  your son doesn't really need it right now if he's getting the proper nutrition.  

you, on the other hand, could definately benefit from vit. D.  look for a reputable (not the wal-mart brands) vitamin company w/ vit D3 combined with K2 or calcium.

good luck!!!

Answer 6

I have for both of my kids. I don't know what the right number of minutes in the sun for the correct vit D, but I'm not taking any chances.

The body needs vitamin d to absorb calcium.

Answer 7

http://www.kellymom.com/nutrition/vitami...

How much sunlight is needed to generate adequate vitamin D?

The best way to get vitamin D, the way that our bodies were designed to get the vast majority of our vitamin D, is from modest sun exposure. Going outside regularly is generally all that is required for you or your baby to generate adequate amounts of vitamin D. (Keep in mind that there is a concern of sunburn and increased risk of skin cancer with too much sun exposure, however.)

Per "Infant feeding: the physiological basis" [WHO, 1991] by James Akre,

    "...it is now understood that the optimal route for vitamin D ingestion in humans is not the gastrointestinal tract, which may permit toxic amounts to be absorbed. Rather, the skin is the human organ designed, in the presence of sunlight, both to manufacture vitamin D in potentially vast quantities and to prevent the absorption of more than the body can safely use and store."

Per Cynthia Good Mojab, MS, IBCLC, RLC in Frequently Asked Questions About Vitamin D, Sunlight, and Breastfeeding:

    The amount of sunlight exposure needed to prevent vitamin D deficiency depends on such factors as skin pigmentation, latitude, degree of skin exposure, season, time of day, amount of pollution, degree of use of sunscreen, altitude, weather, the vitamin D status of the lactating mother, and the current status of vitamin D stores in the infant's body. Recommendations do and should, therefore, vary around the world, taking into account local conditions and practices.

World Health Organization information [Butte 2002, p. 27 PDF] states, "Two hours is the required minimum weekly amount of sunlight for infants if only the face is exposed, or 30 minutes if the upper and lower extremities are exposed." This guideline is from a study [Specker 1985] of exclusively breastfed Caucasian infants under six months old at latitude 39°N (Cincinnati, Ohio, USA). Darker skinned infants may require a longer time outside (three to six times the sunlight exposure) to generate the same amount of vitamin D [Good Mojab 2002].

It is not necessary to get sun exposure every single day, as the body stores vitamin D for future use. Per [Good Mojab 2003], "Studies have shown that children can store enough vitamin D to avoid deficiency for several months when they are exposed to only a few hours of summer sunlight."

Sunlight exposure needed to achieve adequate vitamin D status*

Infant Group Clothing Minutes/Week Average Minutes/Day Reference

Caucasian infants,

0-6 months old,

latitude 39°9'N,

Cincinnati, Ohio, USA fully clothed without a hat 120 min/wk

(2 hours) 17.1 min/day Specker 1985

diaper only 30 min/wk

(1/2 hour) 4.3 min/day

Chinese infants,

1-8 months old,

latitude 39°55'N,

Beijing, China fully clothed without a hat 168 min/wk

(2 hrs, 48 min) 24 min/day Ho 1985

* In these studies, this was defined as the amount of sunlight exposure necessary to maintain blood serum concentrations of 25-hydroxyvitamin D at a level above the lower limit of the normal range (11 ng/ml).

(From Canada, eh?  We're north)

http://www.infactcanada.ca/breastmilk_an...

    The amount of sun exposure needed to maintain adequate 25 hydroxyvitamin D levels in the normal range in the breastfed infant is as follows:

    Summer time _ infant wearing only a diaper _ 30 minutes per week

    Winter time _ clothed infant not wearing a hat _ 2 hours per week

Answer 8

I never did.  I think it's only 20 mins of sun per week.  So, as long as you're active, and don't stay indoors all the time, he should be fine.  

Answer 9

I was told 10 minutes in the sun is fine.  this is my 3rd and I was not told to give vit d suppliments for any of them.

Lovemyfam. is incorrect, the sun is the best source of vit d .  10 minutes is enough,

Answer 10

You don't really need to. Indianapolis gets plenty of sunshine, if you just take him outside for 10 minutes a day and set on the porch, he'll be fine. Keep him out of direct sun so he doesn't burn, use some baby sunscreen, but if he goes outside normally in the car, to go places, to just set outside, maybe for stroller walks, he's fine.