Does Your Child Need to Take a Supplement?

Vitamins and minerals are crucial for children’s healthy growth and development. This may have you wondering if supplements from brands like Pure Encapsulations in Supplement First are necessary to maintain such optimum health.

Children who follow a well-balanced diet wouldn’t usually require a supplement. However, there are children who are at risk for vitamin or mineral deficiencies and would require a supplement. Read on as we answer your question, “does my child need supplements?”

When Do Kids Need Supplements

Given the reality of parenting today, we understand that well-rounded, homemade meals aren’t always possible. That’s why pediatricians might recommend daily multivitamins or supplements for the following children:

• Those who don’t consume regular and well-balanced meals made from fresh and whole foods.
• Picky eaters who don’t eat enough.
• Children who have chronic medical conditions like asthma or digestive problems, especially if they take any medications.
• Those who eat a lot of convenience food, processed junk, or fast food.
• Those on a vegan or vegetarian diet, as well as those on dairy-free diets, among other restricted diets.
• Children drink a lot of carbonated sodas as this may leach nutrients from their bodies.

If your child falls under any category above, it may be best to talk with their doctor regarding their diet and the supplements they may need. You can easily purchase children’s multivitamins and supplements from reputable stores like supplementfirst.com without a prescription.

Important Vitamins and Minerals for Kids

Here are some of the vitamins and minerals that stand out as crucial for growing children:

• Vitamin A promotes normal growth and development. Moreover, it helps with tissue and bone repair and maintains healthy eyes, skin, and immune systems.
• B Vitaminsconsists of B2, B3, B6, and B12. All these are helpful with metabolism, energy production, and maintaining healthy nervous and circulatory systems. Moreover, it promotes healthy muscles, skin, and connective tissue, as well as promotes bone and tooth formation as it helps our bodies absorb calcium.
• Calcium helps build and maintain strong bones.
• Iron builds muscle and is important to maintaining healthy blood cells.
• We do not recommend megavitamins for children, which are large doses of vitamins that are possibly toxic if one consumes too much.

Tips When Supplementing Children

Here are a few tips to follow when giving supplements to your children:

• Put the supplements away and well out of reach so they don’t treat their supplements like candy.
• Don’t battle over foods with children or use desserts to bribe them just to finish their plate. Give them a vitamin after their meal.
• If your child takes any medication, talk with your child’s doctor about possible drug interactions with certain nutrients.
• Try chewable vitamins if your child doesn’t like taking pills or liquid supplements.
• If possible, wait until your child reaches four years old until you begin giving supplements unless advised by the doctor.

Wrapping It Up

Nutrition plays a crucial role in children’s learning and development, so be sure to check with their pediatrician regarding their diet and supplements.