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Bone Softie No More: The Truth About Rickets and Osteomalacia

health

By Nora R.

- Aug 16, 2024

Rickets - a bone-softening condition that doesn’t sprout from a Hogwarts magic wand, but rather from a deficiency in your plate. Mostly hitting the scene during childhood, it strikes when growth is at full throttle, thanks to the grim triad of missing Vitamin D, calcium, or phosphate. Sorry, it’s not just a hocus pocus myth to spook you into eating your greens; your body does really start pulling these vital nutrients from your bones if you're deficient.

A twist in the plot? Your genetics could also be the culprit, with wonky kidneys that scoff at phosphate like an uninvited guest. A list of physical symptoms, longer than the latest Star Wars sequel, announce the arrival of rickets. Yes, people, each one appears in a different avatar, and some rare VIPs never make it to the guest list.

In a surprise crossover episode, skin conditions have also been spotted flirting with rickets. Why? Because your skin, the unsung hero, is busy cooking up Vitamin D in its little lab. So, throw a wrench in the works with certain skin conditions, and voila - you've rolled out the welcome mat for rickets.

Not quite skeleton scare but more in the realm of the creeping shivers, our bone saga continues to include a spooky sequel: osteomalacia. The adult doppelgänger of rickets, but with a few plot twists of its own. And again, the villain of the story is our usual suspect, the elusive Vitamin D.

Rickets loves to party and throws a bone-breaker, bringing in complications that impact everything from growth to walking - talk about a party pooper. Complications with osteomalacia, on the other hand, feel like an unwanted hangover with some straight-up painful after-effects.

But, never fear, detectives, unraveling the riddles of rickets isn't quite as difficult as a Game of Thrones conspiracy. A few telling signs could give you the upper hand and alert you if your child might have a VIP pass to the rickets bash. Remember, if the jigsaw pieces fit and rickets seems possible, it's time to call in the health-care avengers.

So, to borrow a leaf from a certain icy queen - "Don't let it go." Rickets isn't just a dark fairytale told to scare kids into drinking their milk, it's a real-life supervillain that's as serious as a heart attack on Valentine’s Day. But knowledge is your Thor’s hammer. Now that you're armed with an understanding of rickets and osteomalacia, you ain't afraid of no skeleton boogie.

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