Vitamin D supplementation had no statistically significant effects on total body bone mineral content ( BMC ) , hip bone mineral density ( BMD ) or forearm BMD .
These results do not support vitamin D supplementation to improve bone density in healthy children with normal vitamin D levels , but suggest that supplementation of deficient children may be clinical ly useful .
BACKGROUND Results of r and omised controlled trials ( RCTs ) of vitamin D supplementation to improve  bone density in children are inconsistent .
OBJECTIVES To determine the effectiveness of vitamin D supplementation for improving  bone mineral density in children , whether any effect varies by sex , age or pubertal stage , the type or dose of vitamin D given or baseline vitamin D status , and if effects persist after cessation of supplementation .
Effects of calcium, dairy product, and vitamin D supplementation on bone mass accrual and body composition in 10-12-y-old girls: a 2-y randomized trial.
BACKGROUND Little is known about the relative effectiveness of calcium supplementation from food or pills with or without vitamin D supplementation for bone mass accrual during the rapid growth period . OBJECTIVE The purpose was to examine the effects of both food-based and pill supplements of calcium and vitamin D on bone mass and body composition  in girls aged 10 - 12 y. DESIGN This placebo-controlled intervention trial r and omly assigned 195 healthy girls at Tanner stage I-II , aged 10 - 12 y , with dietary calcium intakes < 900 mg/d to 1 of 4 groups : calcium ( 1000 mg ) + vitamin D3 ( 200 IU ) , calcium ( 1000 mg ) , cheese ( 1000 mg calcium ) , and placebo . Primary outcomes were bone indexes of the hip , spine , and whole body by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry and of the radius and tibia by peripheral quantitative computed tomography . RESULTS With the use of intention-to-treat or efficacy analysis , calcium supplementation with cheese result ed in a higher percentage change in cortical thickness of the tibia than did placebo , calcium , or calcium + vitamin D treatment ( P = 0.01 , 0.038 , and 0.004 , respectively ) and in higher whole-body bone mineral density than did placebo treatment ( P = 0.044 ) when compliance was > 50 % . With the use of a hierarchical linear model with r and om effects to control for growth velocity , these differences disappeared . CONCLUSIONS Increasing calcium intake by consuming cheese appears to be more beneficial for cortical bone mass accrual than the consumption of tablets containing a similar amount of calcium . Diverse patterns of growth velocity may mask the efficacy of supplementation in a short-term trial of children transiting through puberty
Vitamin D supplementation had no statistically significant effects on total body bone mineral content ( BMC ) , hip bone mineral density ( BMD ) or forearm BMD .
These results do not support vitamin D supplementation to improve bone density in healthy children with normal vitamin D levels , but suggest that supplementation of deficient children may be clinical ly useful .
BACKGROUND Results of r and omised controlled trials ( RCTs ) of vitamin D supplementation to improve  bone density in children are inconsistent .
OBJECTIVES To determine the effectiveness of vitamin D supplementation for improving  bone mineral density in children , whether any effect varies by sex , age or pubertal stage , the type or dose of vitamin D given or baseline vitamin D status , and if effects persist after cessation of supplementation .