Vitamin D Intake During Pregnancy Linked to Child’s Enamel Defects

Children born to women who received high doses of vitamin D during pregnancy had a 50% lower risk of enamel defects in permanent dentition than those whose mothers received a standard dose, according to a report in JAMA Pediatrics. Findings from the study, “Association of High-Dose Vitamin D Supplementation During Pregnancy With the Risk of Enamel Defects in Offspring,” imply prenatal vitamin D supplementation may serve as a preventive intervention for enamel defects.

In their 24th week of pregnancy, 623 subjects were divided into two study groups. One group took two pills daily, one containing 400 IU and a second 2,400 IU dose of vitamin D. The other group received a 400 IU pill and a placebo. Six years later, dental researchers examined enamel defects in 496 of 588 children from the original cohort. It was determined children whose mothers received higher doses of vitamin D (2,400 IU) had a lower risk of enamel defects in permanent dentition than those whose mothers received only a 400 IU dose of vitamin D.

There was no association observed between vitamin D supplementation and caries during the double-blind randomized clinical trial.