Official ten-year statistics reports on the prevalence and structure of respiratory diseases in children and teenagers of Khabarovsk Kray were analyzed. Respiratory diseases still rank first in the general sick rate and, in 2015, they accounted for 60.3% in children under 14 years old and 33.4% in teenagers. General respiratory morbidity in children in 2015 made 1300.1‰ and 726.9‰ in children and teenagers, respectively. Analytical results give evidence of stabilization of morbidity rate in children (R=0.32) and a tendency towards increasing incidence in teenagers (R=0.71). Ten-year pneumonia prevalence in children shows no tendency towards decrease (R=0.3), whereas pneumonia incidence rate in teenagers does increase (R=0.65). During the last ten years, asthma prevalence in children of the region increased twofold and turned half as much in teenagers. In 2015, asthma morbidity made 23.95‰ in children and 17.15‰ in teenagers, which exceed all-Russia’s figures (10.4‰ in children and 20.08‰ in teenagers in 2014) and Russian Far East’s figures (9.22‰ in children and 15.38‰ in teenagers in 2014). Asthma children residing in the areas of catastrophic flood of 2013 on the Amur River were found (8.3% of cases) to have sensitization to mold fungi, primarily of Aspergillus niger species (71%). The results of the analysis show that there is a stabilization of morbidity in children (R=0.32) and a tendency to grow in teenagers (R=0.71).

Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin that is necessary for calcium absorption and bone health. Current research on vitamin D levels links decreased vitamin D synthesis with children spending less time in the sun and increasing sunscreen use. At least 14% of children in the United States have an insufficient or deficient level of vitamin D. The risks of vitamin D deficiency include rickets and osteomalacia. Suboptimal levels of vitamin D in adolescents lead to an increase risk of fractures. Vitamin D guidelines vary, and recommendations are controversial. In general, the current literature supports vitamin D supplementation for children and adolescents to improve overall bone health.