Prepare for your Clinical Nutrition Exam with interactive quizzes, multiple-choice questions, and useful hints. Elevate your understanding of nutrition concepts and excel in your examination!

Multiple Choice

Lack of vitamin D can cause which condition in children?

Vitamin D is essential for absorbing calcium and phosphate and for proper mineralization of growing bones. When vitamin D is deficient, calcium (and phosphate) can't be deposited into the bone matrix effectively, leading to defective bone mineralization in children. The result is rickets, a condition with soft, weak bones and skeletal deformities such as bowed legs and widened growth plates. This is different from scurvy (vitamin C deficiency affecting collagen and gums), beriberi (thiamin deficiency affecting nerves and heart), and anemia from iron or other nutrient deficiencies—none of which primarily involve bone mineralization.

Vitamin D is essential for absorbing calcium and phosphate and for proper mineralization of growing bones. When vitamin D is deficient, calcium (and phosphate) can't be deposited into the bone matrix effectively, leading to defective bone mineralization in children. The result is rickets, a condition with soft, weak bones and skeletal deformities such as bowed legs and widened growth plates. This is different from scurvy (vitamin C deficiency affecting collagen and gums), beriberi (thiamin deficiency affecting nerves and heart), and anemia from iron or other nutrient deficiencies—none of which primarily involve bone mineralization.