Dietary intake of vitamin D during the second half of infancy in Swedish infants

Background: The physiological requirement for vitamin D in infants and young children is not known. The current Nordic recommendation is a daily intake of 10 µg or 400 IU. In Sweden a daily supplement with vitamins A and D (AD-drops) is recommended from 6 weeks to 6 years of age, but compliance has been questioned, particularly after the first 2 years of life. Objective: To estimate the total dietary intake of vitamin D and the contribution from AD-drops to the total daily intake during the second half of infancy. Design: A postal survey on food intake with emphasis on vitamin D, including the recommended AD supplements at 5, 7 and 10 months of age, was answered by parents of 174 infants. Results: The average total intake of vitamin D was estimated at 11-15 µg day-1. AD-drops accounted for 76,64 and 53% of the total daily intake of vitamin D at 5, 7 and 10 months of age, respectively. Infant formula, milk cereal drink and commercial infant porridge were the most important food sources of vitamin D in these age groups. Conclusions: During the second half of infancy, when food is becoming successively more diversified, the average daily vitamin D intake was above the recommended daily intake of 10 µg for that age group. Vitamin D supplement accounted for more than half of the daily intake in all age groups studied. Without the recommended supplement the average vitamin D intake would have been below the level considered to lead to a risk of developing rickets in the youngest age group of the healthy, term infants. Keywords: allergy; infancy; retrospective; questionnaire; vitamin D