Vitamin D: A Reawakening
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Excerpt
Clear descriptions of the clinical picture of rickets were published in the 17th century although mention of various aspects of the syndrome goes back even further. That a chemical factor could reverse the rachitic process was well settled by the mid-1920s. It is now clear that a number of sterols can be rendered antirachitic under the influence of ultraviolet irradiation. The significant sterols, in this regard, are ergosterol (derived from plant sources) and 7-dehydrocholesterol (from animals). When appropriately irradiated, these compounds form ergocalciferol (vitamin D2) and cholecalciferol (vitamin D3), respectively. Historically, "vitamin D1" was really found to be a mixture of substances and not a separate entity.
Vitamin D in Man Of course, irradiating many types of plant or animal sterols will produce therapeutic amounts of D2 or D3 that can prevent or cure rickets when ingested. But it has been known for generations that irradiating
Footnotes
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Reprint requests to University of Alabama Medical Center, University Station, Birmingham, Ala 35294.
