Last week, in my Brain in the News newsletter, I wrote about the increasing prevalence of vitamin D deficiency among older Americans. Now, two disturbing new studies in the journal Pediatrics show that millions of kids and teens aren’t getting enough vitamin D either.

In fact, 7 out of 10 kids are lacking in the nutrient. Researchers found that 7.6 million kids had a vitamin D deficiency, and 50.8 million had insufficient amounts.

A lack of vitamin D raises the risk for diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, bone and dental problems, and some cancers. According to the studies, children and teens with low levels of vitamin D were more likely to have high blood pressure, high blood sugar levels, metabolic syndrome, and lower levels of good cholesterol.

Vitamin D, which is sometimes referred to as the sunshine vitamin, is derived from sun exposure as well as dietary sources, including fish, eggs, and fortified milk.

The deficiencies are becoming more common for a few reasons: kids are eating poor diets that are devoid of essential nutrients, spending more time indoors, and wearing sunscreen more often when outside.

Researchers are urgently calling for action to combat the problem. Here is what they suggest for children:

“¢       Eating a diet rich in nutrients.
“¢       Taking a daily vitamin D supplement of 400 IU.
“¢       Getting 15-20 minutes a day of sun exposure without sunscreen. After 20 minutes, apply sunscreen.

I also recommend that we have our vitamin D levels screened with a simple blood test, called 25 hydroxy-vitamin D level.

This is basically the same advice I gave in my Brain in the News newsletter last week. If you are not already receiving Brain in the News but would like to be added to the email list, you can sign up by clicking http://www.amenclinics.com/newsletter/.