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> From: Patrica Young <[log in to unmask]>
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: vitamin D
> Date: Saturday, April 11, 1998 9:32 PM
>
> Dear Dr Joubert, from the 1997 copy of The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding.
> p.233. "Questions have been raised about a baby's need for vitamin D
> supplements since the amount of vitamin D in human milk is small.
Exposure
> of a small patch of skin to sunlight for just a few minutes per day
> provides plenty of vitamin D for most babies.  In severe climates where
> mother and baby both go without sunlight for months or wear protective
> clothing that does not allow exposure of the skin to sunlight, a vitamin
D
> supplement may be indicated."
> p. 342. " Calcium in human milk is well-absorbed, and rickets is not
found
> in breastfed infants of well-nourished mothers who receive some exposure
to
> sunlight.
>     Some doctors have expressed concern about the low levels of vitamin D
> found in mother's milk.  A 1989 study in the Journal of Pediatrics
reported
> that 'unsupplemented human milk-fed infants had no evidence of vitamin D
> deficiency during the first six months.'   Of course, you will want to
take
> your baby outdoors, weather permitting, so that he benefits from the
> natural sunlight, which activates the formation of vitamin D.  A few
> minutes a day of sun on your baby's cheeks is all that is needed.  Being
> sure that you yourself get adequate amounts of vitamin D will ensure that
> there is enough in your milk.  This may be especially important for dark
> skinned individuals, those who wear traditional clothing that leaves
little
> skin exposed, and those who live in colder climates where there is less
> exposure to sunlight."
>
> Recent reports of inner-city breastfed babies and children with rickets
on
> the east coast described mothers dressing in chador and not getting
enough
> exposure to sun for themselves or babies.
>
> Sincerely, Pat in SNJ, USA