Should You Choose Natural Vitamins for Children?

Infants, toddlers, preschoolers, older children, and even teenagers all require a broad range of nutrients to sustain good health. While most children are able to consume the vast majority of these nutrients in a normal healthy diet, many require supplementation. This is when natural vitamins for children can be particularly helpful.

To bridge the nutritional gap, you definitely want the best vitamins for children. Because over half of the children in the United States don’t get enough calcium, vitamin E, vitamin D, zinc, or iron, these are important nutrients to look for with any kids’ multi-vitamin.

The nutrients in formulas claiming to be natural vitamins for children should include food-based vitamins. Unlike synthetic vitamins that the body cannot recognize on a molecular level, food-based vitamins are better for your children because the nutrients can be better absorbed. In fact, they can be up to 70% better absorbed! Inexpensive supplements purchased at chain stores typically have synthetic vitamins. In the case of vitamins, you get what you pay for! So, it’s important to carefully shop for natural vitamins for children and to read the labels!

Many of the cheaper chain store brand vitamins are also loaded with high fructose corn syrup or even aspartame. You’ll be amazed when you start researching labels at your local grocery store. The majority of children’s vitamins will have either corn syrup or aspartame as their top ingredient. Not good! The best vitamins for children will use tooth-friendly xylitol as a natural sweetener.

Animal Parade from Nature’s Plus is a well-respected line of natural vitamins for children. Their formulas contain whole foods and green super-food extracts and concentrates to enable efficient vitamin and mineral absorption. Their supplements also include bio-flavonoids and botanical extracts along with naturally derived essential vitamins, minerals, enzymes, and amino acids.

Types of Supplements for Children
• Multivitamin
• Essential fatty acids (EFAs)
• Calcium, magnesium, vitamin D supplement
• Probiotics
• Antioxidants

The type of supplements you may need for your child will vary depending on their particular situation.  You will want to consider your family’s diet. Is it healthy and balanced? A diet lacking in fish, fresh vegetables, fruit, and whole grains might warrant the necessity of all of these supplements.

Obviously their overall health needs to be taken into account. Certain health conditions require certain levels of supplementation. Children who are very active in sports might also need extra nutrients. In many cases, it’s a good idea to have a variety of supplements on hand and to use them as needed.

Remember, not even the best vitamins for children can make up for a poor diet. However, when a supplement is required, it’s always a good idea to choose natural vitamins for children that deliver safe and effective nutritional supplementation.

How to Choose the Best Vitamins for Kids

If you’re a parent trying to determine the best vitamins for kids, it can be confusing. Of course, you can simply grab the colorful bottle of chewables off of the grocery store shelf, but do you know if you’re really choosing the best children’s vitamins?

Nutritionists and doctors alike agree that kids must first eat well-balanced meals. Even the best vitamins for kids are no supplement to foods with high nutritional value.  With that being said, many children are picky eaters, and others have specific nutritional challenges that require a vitamin supplement. Thus, there are some specifics to consider when choosing  vitamins for your children.

What to Avoid

Artificial Sweeteners
Unfortunately, many of the most recognizable brands of children’s vitamins are loaded with aspartame or high fructose corn syrup as sweeteners. Instead of giving your children a dose of sugar along with their vitamins, the best vitamins for kids will contain less than one gram of sweetener per vitamin.

Ferrous Sulfate
Many children consider vitamins to be like candy, and there can be a risk of overdose. Because many children’s vitamins contain ferrous sulfate, which can be very dangerous in large quantities, it’s wise to stay away from vitamins containing this form of iron. Carbonyl iron is considered to be a safer alternative.

Other ingredients to avoid include:
• Hydrogenated vegetable oil
• Artificial dyes (Blue No. 2, Red No. 40, and Yellow No. 6)
• Preservatives such as butylated hydroxytoluene

What to Look for in Kids Vitamins
The best vitamins for kids will consist of a formula that is well-rounded, hypo-allergenic, gluten-free, and vegetarian. Yes, they should also taste great, too!

Animal Parade® GOLD Multi Children's Chewables are amongst the best children’s vitamins because of their unique formula:
• Vitamin D3 and K2 to support a healthy immune system, bone growth, and blood production.
• A complete range of essential vitamins and minerals
• Intestinal and dental probiotics
• Lutein for eye and skin production
• Live enzymes and bioflavonoids

How Many Vitamins Do Your Kids Need?
This is a common question, and it definitely depends on your child’s diet. However, almost all do not require large amounts of vitamins and minerals. Rather a healthy balanced formula makes for the best children’s vitamins.

A Few Tips about Kids Vitamins
Finally, there are some important tips to remember when it comes to kids vitamins.
• First, make sure to keep vitamins out of the reach of children, so that they don’t treat them like candy.
• Consider giving a vitamin at the end of a meal. Some children’s vitamins are fat-soluble and are best absorbed with food.
• Ask you pediatrician about any potential drug reactions with vitamins or minerals.
• The best children’s vitamins are available in a variety of forms. So, experiment with supplement types to find one that your child likes the best.

Well-rounded nutrition is essential to your child’s growth and development. Choosing the best vitamins for kids can help support a balanced diet and provide essential nutrients that are lacking. By taking time to choose the best children’s vitamins, you’ll help promote your child’s good health now and into the future.

Adding Kids Vitamins to a Balanced Diet

If you’re like many parents, you’ve probably wondered if you should add kids vitamins to your child’s daily routine. The addition of a supplement can be a smart decision, particularly if you have a picky eater or a child who has been diagnosed with failure to thrive. Making sure that children get enough vitamins and minerals is important to their long-term well-being, and a kids supplement can definitely help.

Of course, foods are the best sources of nutrients. And, regular meals and healthy snacks can certainly provide the bulk of what any healthy, growing school age child should require. However, many children don’t eat well and fall short of the recommended daily vitamin and mineral intake. This problem is particularly true for picky eaters, slow growers, and for children from families that are struggling financially and unable to provide nutritious meals.

Kids Vitamins Can Help
In a 2009 study conducted at UC Davis, nearly 25 percent of adolescents were found to be deficient in vitamin D. Deficiency of this important mineral can lead to a host of conditions including rickets, osteomalacia, and osteoporosis. Because there has been a recent rise in rickets in children in the United States, the American Academy of Pediatrics has issued new vitamin D requirements for infants, children, and adolescents. The recommendation has been raised from 200 IU to 400 IU per day. While sun does help the body make its own vitamin D, most children still require supplementation to reach the daily recommended amount.

Iron deficiency is another common problem in children. In fact, a whopping 60 percent of children age five years or younger were deemed to be deficient in the same UC Davis study. For girls, this percentage remains high throughout childhood. Because iron is so important for the production of blood cells, a deficiency can be serious. Iron deficiency, also called anemia, can cause a variety of symptoms including weakness, fatigue, and cognition difficulties. For toddlers, iron deficiency can even lead to permanent impaired mental and psycho-motor development.

Interestingly, there has also been an increase in malnourished children who are also overweight or even obese. This is caused by the consumption of high-caloric food that is low in nutritional value. Thus, it isn’t safe to think that a child is receiving enough nutrients by simply looking at them. A close evaluation of their diet is necessary to determine the need for kids supplements.

Quick tips for Introducing Kids Vitamins
Rounding out a child’s diet with kids supplements is a way to supplement the vitamins and minerals that are not being consumed in food. To do this, it’s always a good idea to choose one that a child actually enjoys and to make it an everyday habit.

However, don’t rely solely on kids vitamins. Children definitely need a healthy, balanced diet that includes digestible proteins, carbohydrates, fats, and fiber to provide all of the nutrients required to support their growth and development. And, this needs to go hand-in-hand with regular exercise and ample rest to ensure their health during their growing years.

At Natures Plus, we offer a full range of kids supplements – from sugar-free, liquid vitamins for infants and toddlers to a variety of chewable multi-vitamins, nutritional shakes, and other supplements for older children.

Do Liquid Kid’s Vitamins Provide Better Absorption?

Vitamin absorption is something that many parents wonder about when they give their children supplements in the form of gummies and chewable tablets. This makes sense when you consider that absorption is essential for the usefulness of the vitamins being consumed. Without absorption, there is no benefit. For some children, the best absorption rates can be found in liquid kid’s vitamins.

For most children, the rate of absorption for gummies and tablets is comparable to liquid kid’s vitamins. However, for those who have difficulty swallowing or who have particular digestive disorders, liquid vitamins for kids are often a better choice.

Facilitating Effective Absorption
Regardless of the delivery system of the supplement you choose for your child, there are ways to improve absorption rates. These include:

• Taking vitamins with food – Digestion stimulated when eating can help in nutrient absorption.
• A small amount of apple cider vinegar - Taken before a meal, it can further stimulate production of digestive juices.
• Use acidophilus supplements when taking antibiotics – To build up good bacteria in the digestive tract destroyed by antibiotics.
• Avoid iced drinks when taking supplements

Finally, the best tip is to choose the type of supplement that your child prefers. Whether they prefer gummies, chewable tablets, or liquid vitamins for kids, the type that your child is comfortable taking is the one that will be the easiest to administer, and ultimately the one that is most likely to be absorbed.

Before choosing liquid kid’s vitamins or any supplement for your child, it’s always a smart idea to consult with your pediatrician. Together, you can determine whether or not supplementation is needed and the best delivery system to meet your child’s specific nutritional needs.