Gestational vitamin D deficiency and autism spectrum disorder

BACKGROUND: There is growing interest in linking vitamin D deficiency with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs). The association between vitamin D deficiency during gestation, a critical period in neurodevelopment, and ASD is not well understood. AIMS: To determine the association between gestational vitamin D status and ASD. METHOD: =68 cases). RESULTS: =0.03) compared with the sufficient group. The findings persisted in analyses including children of European ethnicity only. CONCLUSIONS: Mid-gestational vitamin D deficiency was associated with an increased risk of ASD. Because gestational vitamin D deficiency is readily preventable with safe, inexpensive and readily available supplementation, this risk factor warrants closer scrutiny. DECLARATION OF INTEREST: None. COPYRIGHT AND USAGE: © The Royal College of Psychiatrists 2017. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Non-Commercial, No Derivatives (CC BY-NC-ND) license.