Dear colleagues:

I have been studying the issue of vitamin D and breastfeeding for over a year, including a literature review of 350+ articles and book chapters as well as interviews with a variety of experts in the fields of breastfeeding, vitamin D, and skin cancer. I have time for just a few comments right now:

1. Vitamin D stores that develop in utero were shown in one study to last 2 months *in the complete absence* of UVB radiation exposure. Those stores will last longer and/or be added to postnatally with sun exposure.

2. There has been *no* research conducted yet that answers the question: "How would sun exposure that is just sufficient for the endogenous synthesis of vitamin D affect the risk of skin cancer?"

3. Epidemiological data on rickets is not collected in the US by any agency. Therefore, the prevalence of rickets in the US is unknown.

This is a complex, controversial and global issue. Many unanswered questions exist. For more information, see my article (and its references) in the next issue of Breastfeeding Abstracts. The article attempts a review of this issue at the global (not solely US) level.

Cynthia

Cynthia Good Mojab, MS, IBCLC
Ammawell
Email: [log in to unmask] 
Web site: http://home.attbi.com/~ammawell 

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