Question

Rickets is caused by the deficiency of
(a)Vitamin A
(b)Vitamin C
(c)Vitamin D
(d)Vitamin B

Answer 1

Hint: Ricket is a disorder where the bones will become soft and they are susceptible to fractures. One of the causes of rickets in humans is the lack of exposure to sunlight. Additionally, sunscreen usage significantly reduces the exposure of skin to sunlight and is accountable for rickets.

Complete step-by-step answer:
Vitamin D (specifically vitamin D3), phosphorus, and calcium deficiency cause the bones to become soft which in turn will lead to deformities.
Vitamin D is majorly acquired from sunlight through our skin. Vitamin D is an essential nutrient that is needed to absorb calcium from the food we eat. Vitamin D and calcium deficiency cause rickets. Fish oil, cereals, egg yolk, fruit juices are some of the food sources that contain a high amount of Vitamin D.
Various types of rickets are mentioned below.
Nutritional rickets: Lack of uptake of nutrient-rich foods will lead to vitamin D, calcium, and phosphorous deficiency thereby causing rickets.
Hypophosphatemic rickets: Phosphate deficiency leads to rickets. In this condition, the number of phosphates that gets excreted via urine from the kidney cannot be controlled by our body.
Renal rickets: Deficiency of calcium and phosphate causes renal rickets. The person suffering from kidney disorders also are affected by renal rickets. The amount of calcium as well as phosphate excretion via urine in our body cannot be controlled.
So, the correct answer is ‘Vitamin D’.

Note: Rickets mostly affect infants who are between 3 and 36 months where the development of bone is very fast. These infants should be supplemented with vitamin D along with mother’s milk (breast milk lacks Vitamin D). In some cases, rickets results from a genetic disorder (X-linked genetic disorder). Darker skin prevents the sun from penetrating our skin and this is the cause of rickets in some cases.