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Hello all,

My baby has been walking for about 2 months now (he is 15 months old) and we have noticed he is quite bow-legged. I did a little research on this and it says this can happen if a baby has been malnourished (he was first few months of life), is dark-skinned and doesn't absorb vitamin D (he is black) and also if you are breastfeeding without a vitamin d supplement. I have never heard of this? Can anyone tell me if it is necessary?

I am really scared now that I haven't given him what he needs, and it may have led to this. Any advice?

Has he been diagnosed with rickets or is he just bow legged?

There is a good collection of articles on vitamin D and breastfeeding on the llli.org site at: http://llli.org/NB/NBvitamins.html

You may just need to get him in the sun more! A dark skinned baby will need more sun exposure to get the same amount of vitamin D as a lighter skinned baby.

Not all breastfed babies need a vitamin D supplement. As long as you can get him enough sunlight he will be fine. If you are in a very high latitude and/or can't get him in the sun enough then it may be an issue. I'll think you'll find lots of helpful info on that page.

Hi Maggiemom,

Thanks for the reply. He is bowlegged, not diagnosed, I took him to the pediatrician who just wants to keep an eye on him. As I read the articles though I see he does have quite a few of the risk factors: malnourished for first few months of life, no idea if birthmom was deficient or not, dark-skin, we live in ottawa so not much sun from Nov-April, not much direct sunlight on our street and I may be deficient (I know I suffer from SAD some winters) but have never been officially diagnosed.

I am wondering if I should be tested first, and then look at his factors.

Is there treatment for rickets, or is it too late to do anything?

This sounds like it could very well be a mild case of rickets which begins to show up as the child begina to walk and bear weight on the legs, causing the legs to bow if the bones are not sturdy. A vitamin D supplement is usually recommended as is sunshine and won't hurt, so better safe than sorry. Kindly discuss this with your doctor ASAP.

Remember, you are the expert on your baby. If you think there is something wrong, there probably is. Trust yourself. Seek out a second opinion if necessary.

Best, Lenore