TORONTO -- July 4, 2008 -- Low maternal vitamin D levels during pregnancy may affect primary tooth calcification, leading to enamel defects, which are a risk factor for early childhood tooth decay. During the 86th General Session of the International Association for Dental Research (IADR) in Toronto, Ontario, investigators from the University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba, presented the results of a study they conducted to determine the vitamin D status of pregnant women, the incidence of enamel defects and early childhood tooth decay among their infants, and the relationship with prenatal vitamin D levels.
Two hundred and six pregnant women in their second trimester participated in the study. Only 21 women were found to have adequate vitamin D levels. Vitamin D concentrations were related to the frequency of milk consumption and prenatal vitamin use. The investigators examined 135 infants aged an average of 16 months and found that 21.6% of them had enamel defects, while 33.6% had early-childhood tooth decay. Mothers of children with enamel defects had lower, but not significantly different, mean vitamin D concentrations during pregnancy than those of children without defects.
However, mothers of children with early childhood tooth decay had significantly lower vitamin D levels than those whose children were cavity free. Infants with enamel defects were significantly more likely to have early childhood tooth decay.
This is the first study to show that maternal vitamin D levels may have an influence on primary teeth and the development of early childhood tooth decay.
SOURCE: International and American Association for Dental Research
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