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Optimizing bone health in children and adolescents
Pediatrics
|October 1, 2014
Summary
Pediatricians can optimize children's bone health by encouraging adequate calcium and vitamin D intake, focusing on diet over supplements. This guidance helps build strong bones throughout childhood and adolescence.
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Bone Health
- Nutrition
Background:
- Bone health is crucial during childhood and adolescence for lifelong skeletal integrity.
- Pediatricians play a key role in guiding bone health optimization in young individuals.
- Understanding normal bone acquisition and influencing factors is essential.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review normal bone acquisition in pediatric populations.
- To discuss factors impacting bone health in children and adolescents.
- To provide updated clinical guidance on calcium, vitamin D, and physical activity.
Main Methods:
- Review of current literature on pediatric bone health.
- Updated recommendations for daily calcium and vitamin D intake.
- Guidance on weight-bearing activities and supplementation strategies.
- Discussion of diagnostic tools like dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA) and interpretation methods (z-scores).
Main Results:
- Increased dietary calcium intake is encouraged for healthy children and adolescents.
- Higher recommended dietary allowances for vitamin D are endorsed.
- Vitamin D deficiency testing is supported for those with bone fragility conditions.
- Routine universal screening for vitamin D deficiency is not recommended due to insufficient cost-benefit evidence for fracture risk reduction.
Conclusions:
- Pediatricians should focus on promoting adequate dietary intake of calcium and vitamin D.
- Supplementation is not routinely recommended for healthy children.
- DXA interpretation in pediatrics requires specific considerations, such as using z-scores.
- Office-based strategies can help pediatricians optimize bone health in their patients.
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