Previous studies1 have indicated that diet plays an important role in the causation and prevention of dental caries. Some investigators,2 in attempting to determine the dietary factors which might be responsible for the occurrence of dental caries, stressed the significance of the vitamins A, C and D. We were particularly interested in the effect exerted by vitamin D; and since former studies had already indicated that a role was played by this vitamin, we decided to study the preventive effect of a single massive dose.
The treatment of rickets and tetany by single massive doses of vitamin D, first advocated by Vollmer,3 has been extensively used in Europe by Harnapp,4 Schirmer,5 Braulke,6 Bischoff,7 Windorfer8 and many other investigators. It has been shown that rickets and tetany can be cured by oral or parenteral administration of a single dose of 600,000 international (U.