Vitamin D in pregnancy ‘boosts child’s muscles’

Children are likely to have stronger muscles if their mothers had a higher level of vitamin D in their body during pregnancy, according to new research.

The study by the Medical Research Council Lifecourse Epidemiology Unit (MRC LEU) at the University of Southampton found that, by the age of four, children’s grip strength and muscle mass were seen to increase with higher levels of the vitamin in the pregnant mother.

A university spokesman said low vitamin D status has been linked to reduced muscle strength in adults and children, but little was known about how variation in a mother’s status during pregnancy affected her child. He said low vitamin D concentrations are common among young women in Britain and, although women are recommended to take an additional 10g a day of vitamin D in pregnancy, supplementation is often not taken up.