This Vitamin Deficiency Is Linked To Autism

What causes autism has been a question that many people disagree over. A new theory has emerged from a study published in the journal Molecular Psychiatry. The study has discovered that pregnant women who had low vitamin D levels when they were 20 weeks pregnant were more likely to have a child who displayed autistic traits by the age of 6.

It looks like it’s time to crank up on the vitamin D ladies. According to the American Pregnancy Association, between 40 and 60 percent of the entire U.S. population is vitamin D deficient.

Though many people get vitamin D from the sun, it can also be absorbed from food such as eggs and salmon, and in supplements. The vitamin plays a role in the development of the brain and nervous system.

In the study, researchers analyzed approximately 4,200 blood samples from pregnant women and their children in the Netherlands.