Question
When a child shows symptoms of vitamin D deficiency, the doctor suggests a hair or urine calcium test to determine if the child has rickets. Does this testing method make sense for diagnosing rickets?
Answer
Hello, I’m glad to provide you with an answer: Some small clinics or pharmacies encourage parents to purchase medications by claiming that hair or urine calcium testing can diagnose rickets and that this method is non-invasive and painless. However, this method is absolutely unreliable and has been completely denied by the medical community. A single urine calcium test result is not reliable; only a 24-hour urine calcium test holds any value.