Parents often ask me the question: Does my baby have a calcium deficiency? Some of them are normal infants and toddlers, some are late teething, some are suffering from occipital baldness, night sweats or poor sleep and night crying. It is completely understandable for parents to ask these questions in connection with calcium deficiency. The presence or absence of calcium deficiency is indeed an important issue for babies. Vitamin D deficiency is the cause of calcium deficiency Normal babies grow and develop rapidly during infancy, such as being about 50 cm long at birth, 25 cm long on average at one year of age, and 10 cm and 9 cm long in the second and third years, respectively. Babies grow so fast that their bones need a lot of calcium and phosphorus in order to make them hard. When infants get calcium deficiency, they first show up with soft skull, large fontanelle, and a ping-pong feeling when pressing the skull. Later, the shape of the chest bones is abnormal, such as the sternum protrudes like a chicken chest, and the lower edge of the two ribs is turned out. If the bones of the lower limbs are soft, standing and bearing weight will cause “O” shaped legs or “X” shaped legs. In addition to skeletal changes, early manifestations include excessive night sweating, occipital baldness, restless sleep and easy startling. The above manifestations are called vitamin D deficiency rickets. As the name implies, this disease is caused by insufficient intake of vitamin D. Vitamin D promotes the absorption of calcium and phosphorus from the small intestine, so that calcium is deposited from the blood into the fast-growing bones and makes them hard. Therefore, calcium deficiency in infants and children is caused by insufficient vitamin D. Calcium deficiency is the “fruit”, while vitamin D deficiency is the “cause” of calcium deficiency. Where does vitamin D come from for infants 1, proper sun exposure This is the most effective, convenient and economical method. It is important to get your baby outdoors regularly. In spring and autumn, you can let your baby in the sun, in summer is in the shade, so that the baby’s skin is often exposed to ultraviolet light. UV exposure promotes the photochemical conversion of 7-dehydrocholesterol stored in the skin to vitamin D. Sunlight exposure allows the skin to store vitamin D3 infant backup and does not overload vitamin D. 2, oral vitamin D food in addition to sea fish liver contains a certain amount of vitamin D, dairy (including human milk and milk), egg yolk and meat are very little content, cereal vegetables and fruits are almost none, infants and young children from natural food daily intake of vitamin D can not meet their developmental needs. Normal children, regardless of age, require 400 units of vitamin D supplementation per person per day, while premature infants, those with congenital storage deficiencies or overgrown infants require increased amounts. Therefore, the amount of oral vitamin D should be increased appropriately. There are many preparations of vitamin D. Parents can choose their own and give their children a daily dose. Generally from half a month to one month after birth to take until 3 years old. Special reminder: 1. If your baby takes vitamin D fortified formula, calculate the amount of vitamin D according to the amount of milk, and supplement the shortage to avoid poisoning due to vitamin D overdose. 2. Babies can be poisoned by taking too much vitamin D. 400 units is a daily maintenance amount, not a therapeutic amount. 3.If your baby is found to have rickets, it must be given the appropriate treatment under the guidance of a doctor. Should infants and children take calcium supplements The daily calcium requirement for infants up to 1 year old is 300 mg~600 mg. Milk is a natural calcium supplement, and the ratio of calcium to phosphorus in human milk is most suitable for calcium absorption. Human emulsified formula has a calcium to phosphorus ratio close to that of human milk. Generally, a milk feeding of 600 ml or more is sufficient calcium, and if an infant is growing too fast, calcium and can be supplemented appropriately. Calcium levels in human blood are stable because they are regulated by parathyroid hormone and calcitonin, so it is of no practical significance to check the calcium level of blood trace elements in normal children. Special Note: Late teething, night sweats and sleep disturbances are non-specific and not specific to calcium deficiency.