Insufficient vitamin D can stunt growth and foster weight gain during puberty, according to scientists from the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC) and the University of Southern California. Even in sun-drenched California, they found low levels of Vitamin D to cause higher body mass and shorter stature in girls at the peak of their growing spurt.
Vitamin D levels are rarely measured in younger people.
The research team measured vitamin D in girls aged 16 to 22 using a simple blood test, and also assessed body fat and height to determine how vitamin D deficiency could affect young women’s health.
"The high prevalence of vitamin D insufficiency in young people living in a sun-rich area was surprising," says lead author Richard Kremer. "We found young women with vitamin D insufficiency were significantly heavier, with a higher body mass index and increased abdominal fat, than young women with normal levels."
Young women with normal vitamin D levels were on average taller than peers deficient in vitamin D.
"Although Vitamin D is now frequently measured in older adults, due to a higher level of awareness in this population, it is rarely measured in young people â " especially healthy adolescents," says Dr. Kremer.
Source: McGill University Health Centre, Dec 10, 2008
