Vitamin D deficiency historical perspective
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Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1] Associate Editor(s)-in-Chief: Sadaf Sharfaei M.D.[2]
Overview
Vitamin D deficiency was a common disease that affects both children and adults living in industrialized cities. Rickets was scientifically described by British physicians in the 17th century. In the 20th century, German scientists discovered vitamin D and its influence on bone health. The importance of sunlight and diet to prevent rickets were emphasized in the 20th century. The fortification of milk with vitamin D beginning in the 1930s has made rickets a rare disease in the United States. [1]
Historical Perspective
Discovery
- in 1645, Vitamin D deficiency was first described scientifically by Daniel Whistler, a British physician. His thesis was submitted in the University of Leiden, entitled “Inaugural medical disputation on the disease of English children which is popularly termed the rickets”.[2]
- In 1650, Francis Glisson, a Cambridge physician, published a book in Latin, named “De Rachitide”. He described his careful observation of rachitic children in great detail.[3]
- In 1822, Sniadecki identified the association of rickets with a lack of sunlight exposure. He noted that children living in the inner city of Warshaw had a high incidence of rickets than children of the adjacent rural area.[4]
- In 1918, Mellanby discovered the antirachitic effect of cod liver oil.[5]
- In 1922, Elmer McCollum et al. distinguished vitamin D from vitamin A. He suggested that vitamin D promotes calcium deposition.[6]
- By the 1930s, Adolf Otto Reinhold Windaus at the University of Göttingen in Germany identified the chemical structure of the vitamin D and its precursor, 7-dehydrocholesterol.[7] He received Nobel Prize in chemistry in 1928 for his work "on the sterols and their relationship to other natural products".[8]
Landmark Events in the Development of Treatment Strategies
- In 1822, Sniadecki was the first one to recognize the importance of sun exposure for the prevention and treatment of rickets.[4]
- In 1919, Huldschinski observed that exposing children to radiation from a lamp had a healing effect on rickets.[10]
- In 1921, Hess and Unger exposed seven rachitic children to sunlight in New York City for several months and reported effective improvement of their disease.[11]
- In the 1930s, the US government recommended to parents to expose their children to sunlight every day to prevent rickets.[12]
- In the 1930s, for eradication of rickets in the United States and Europe, the fortification of milk with vitamin D was started.[12] However, an outbreak of hypercalcemia in the 1950s, in Great Britain, resulted in discontinuation of this program in Europe until now.[13]
References
- ↑ "Vitamin D — Health Professional Fact Sheet".
- ↑ Whistler D. Morbo puerili Anglorum, quem patrio idiomate indigenae vocant. Lugduni Batavorum: The Rickets. 1645;1–13.
- ↑ Glisson, F. De Rachitide sive morbo puerili, qui vulgo.The Rickets diciteur, London.1650;1-416
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Sniadecki J. on the cure of rickets. (1840) Cited by W Mozolowski. Nature 1939;143:121–4.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Mellanby T. The part played by an “accessory factor” in the production of experimental rickets. J. Physiol. 1918;52:11–14.
- ↑ McCollum, E. V.; Simmonds, Nina; Becker, J. Ernestine; Shipley, P. G. (1922). "STUDIES ON EXPERIMENTAL RICKETS: XXI. AN EXPERIMENTAL DEMONSTRATION OF THE EXISTENCE OF A VITAMIN WHICH PROMOTES CALCIUM DEPOSITION". Journal of Biological Chemistry. 53 (2): 293–312.
- ↑ Windaus A, Insert O, Luttringhaus A, Weidlinch G. Uber das krystallistierte Vitamin D2. [About the crystallized Vitamin D2.] Justis Liebigs Ann Chem. 1932;492:226–231.
- ↑ "Adolf Windaus - Nobel Lecture: Constitution of Sterols and Their Connection with Other Substances Occurring in Nature".
- ↑ Chesney RW (2012). "Theobald palm and his remarkable observation: how the sunshine vitamin came to be recognized". Nutrients. 4 (1): 42–51. doi:10.3390/nu4010042. PMC 3277100. PMID 22347617.
- ↑ Huldschinsky K. Heilung von Rachitis durch künstliche Höhensonne. Dtsch. Med. Wochenschr. 1919;45:712–713.
- ↑ "THE CURE OF INFANTILE RICKETS BY SUNLIGHT". Journal of the American Medical Association. 77 (1): 39. 1921. doi:10.1001/jama.1921.02630270037013. ISSN 0002-9955.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 Holick, M. F. (2006). "Resurrection of vitamin D deficiency and rickets". Journal of Clinical Investigation. 116 (8): 2062–2072. doi:10.1172/JCI29449. ISSN 0021-9738.
- ↑ Bauer, Jere M. (1946). "VITAMIN D INTOXICATION WITH METASTATIC CALCIFICATION". Journal of the American Medical Association. 130 (17): 1208. doi:10.1001/jama.1946.02870170014004. ISSN 0002-9955.