Rickets

Rickets is a disease that happens in young children. It happens in children who do not get enough vitamin D and calcium. It causes larger spaces inside bones, and makes them dry, like sponges. It can make the legs curve toward each other (so the knees touch) or away from each other. Rickets in adults is called osteomalacia. The word "rickets" comes from the Greek word rhakhis, which means "spine."

People need both vitamin D and calcium to make their bones strong. Vitamin D helps the bones absorb (take up) calcium. Low vitamin D makes it hard to absorb calcium.
The human body makes vitamin D3 in the skin, from cholesterol. Then the liver changes vitamin D3 into calcitriol, which sends calcium from the blood into the bones. The bones need calcium to stay strong. However, the skin will not 

Treatment for Rickets

Compared to the treatment of affected children, prevention of the disease in the first place is clearly a better approach for children, desirable step for communities, and possibly less expensive for society as a whole. Thus it is essential to identify the appropriate target population and their nutritional needs before preventive interventions against rickets can ensue.

Based on the known epidemiology of the resurgence of vitamin D-deficient rickets in the United States, the appropriate approach would presently be to increase supply of vitamin D to exclusively-breastfed infants with darkly-pigmented skin, but also to their mothers during pregnancy.

In African countries, infants and young children who suffer from calcium insufficiency represent suitable targets for preventative actions. In India, there is evidence that young children need more calcium, whereas pubertal girls are at the highest risk of vitamin D-deficiency rickets (feasibly due to cultural habits which limit exposure to sunlight).

One of the most important steps is to identify the appropriate dose of preventive product. For vitamin D, children should receive the equivalent of 200–400 IU per day to prevent rickets. An alternative approach in temperate climate is the exposure of the face and head to approximately 60 minutes of sunshine per week.