Browsing by Author "Laitinen, Maija"

Objectives: Sufficient vitamin D intake is important for a child’s development. In addition to bone health, it has been suggested that vitamin D may play an important part in brain development and function. However, the nutritional recommendations for vitamin D are primarily based on bone health and it is still largely unknown whether the same dose is optimal for brain development. Previous studies have shown some indication that vitamin D could be associated with neurodevelopment but the results are inconsistent and especially the amount of intervention studies is still very limited. The aim of this study was to find out if higher dosage of vitamin D supplement (1200 IU) is beneficial for neurodevelopment compared to recommended dosage (400 IU) in early childhood. Methods: The data for this study is from a large, Finnish, randomized, double-blinded, controlled trial of daily vitamin D intervention in infants (VIDI). The final sample consisted of 718 healthy children who were randomized to receive either the recommended dose (400 IU) or higher dose (1200 IU) of vitamin D daily from two weeks to 24 months of age. Neurodevelopment was evaluated at the age of 1 and/or 2 using the Ages and Stages questionnaire (ASQ) filled by the parents. Groups were compared using one-way ANOVA and mixed models. Results and conclusions: There were no differences in total neurodevelopmental scores between the recommended dose (400 IU) and higher dose (1200 IU) supplementation groups at the age of 1 or 2. Neither did the groups differ on any of the ASQ neurodevelopmental domains; communication, gross motor, fine motor, problem solving and personal-social. In addition, the change in neurodevelopment was not different between the groups over time. The results suggest that higher dose (1200 IU) of vitamin D supplementation during the first two years of life does not lead to better neurodevelopmental outcomes compared to recommended dose (400 IU). The current study supports current Nordic Nutrition Recommendations. However, more research on the association between vitamin D and neurodevelopment is still needed.