Could Vitamin D Be Linked with Lower Stress Fracture Risk in Girls?
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FogStock/Thinkstock(BOSTON) — We hear a lot about the benefits of vitamin D — the so-called “sunshine vitamin.” Now research has found that vitamin D appears to increase bone strength in teenage girls.
A new study published in the Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine followed more than 6,700 girls aged 9 to 15 from 1996 to 2001.
After reporting on their dietary intake, including dairy, calcium, vitamin D and vitamin supplements, researchers at the Children’s Hospital Boston found that stress fractures developed in 3.9 percent of the girls studied, with 90 percent of them among those who participated in high-impact activities such as organized sports.
The girls who had recorded the highest intake of vitamin D from food and supplements had a 50-percent lower risk of stress fractures than those getting the lowest amount.
The study authors say their findings support the recent move by the Institute of Medicine to increase the recommended daily allowance of vitamin D for adolescents.
Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio