Deficiency of Vitamin D Causes Fat Accumulation in Kids

A study by the University of Michigan has revealed a possible connection between Vitamin D deficiency and weight gain, for kids lacking in Vitamin D began to accumulate fat around the waist.

Accumulation of abdominal fat, or central fat, may lead to a so-called apple body shape, which is commonly linked to increased risks of type 2 diabetes, heart disease and other chronic conditions later in life, says epidemiologist Eduardo Villamor, senior author of the study.

Calcium and Vitamin Supplements
Calcium and vitamin supplements are taken to provide the body with the ''required'' nutrients. Calcium is a mineral found in many foods. Vitamins are very important nutrients for the body.

The investigators recruited a group of 479 school children ages 5-12 from Bogota, Colombia, in 2006 and followed them for about 30 months.

They measured vitamin D in blood taken at the beginning of the study, and then examined the link between vitamin D levels and changes in three indicators of body fat over time: body mass index, waist circumference and subscapular-to-triceps skin fold ratio.

"We found that the kids with the lowest vitamin D levels at the beginning tended to gain weight faster than the kids with higher levels," said Villamor.

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He added that children with the lowest vitamin D levels had more drastic increases in central body fat measures.

Vitamin D deficiency was also linked to slower growth in height among girls but not boys, he said.

Death Risk Increased by Lack of Vitamin D in Patients With Leukemia
A significant difference exists in cancer progression and death in chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) patients who had sufficient vitamin D levels in their blood compared to those who didn't

The paper is available this month in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

Source-ANI

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