[Vitamin D supplementation in pregnancy: a necessity. Committee for Nutrition].

In septentrional countries without vitamin D supplementation of milk and dairy products, many pregnant women are vitamin D deficient. Consequently vitamin D deficiency is present in many newborn infants, which may lead to neonatal hypocalcemia and vitamin D deficient rickets. A prevention of vitamin D deficiency is therefore a necessity in pregnant women through a vitamin D supplementation. This can be done either by a daily supplementation of 400 IU during all pregnancy, or a daily supplementation of 1,000 IU during the third trimester, or by giving a unique dose of 100,000 to 200,000 IU during the seventh month of pregnancy.