Bookmark Website  | Free Registration  | The Team
The Lounge  | Champions  | The Wire |  Schedule |  Audio  |  Arcade  |  The Top Ten  |  Historical  |  Email  |  Video

Vitamin Supplements and Your Child


In a perfect world, your children would eat a balanced diet with the right amount of fruits and vegetables recommended by nutritional standards. However, we all know that rarely happens. Many children do not like and sometimes refuse to eat some kinds of fruits and vegetables. This makes it difficult to ensure they are receiving a well-balanced diet that provides all the vitamins and minerals needed for a healthy life. There are things you can do as a parent to ensure your child is receiving adequate amounts of vitamins and minerals in their diet.

Using vitamin and mineral supplements to ensure a well-balanced diet can begin during pregnancy. It is very important for pregnant mothers to obtain the recommended dose of folate and vitamin B-6, since it is an essential component in the formation of genetic material and hemoglobin in red blood cells. Lack of folic acid can cause the mother to become anemic and increases the risk of miscarriage. Folic acid deficiency may also cause the child to be born with a deformity or disability. If you are pregnant and you feel you cannot obtain the adequate amounts of vitamin B-6 on your own, it may be a good idea to look into a vitamin supplement for the duration of your pregnancy and talk to your Doctor.

Once your child is born there are more steps you can take in the first 2 years of their lives, which may increase their vitamin intake and provide a healthier lifestyle. Babies who are breastfed often lack vitamin D. This is not as necessary if the mother is eating a well-balanced diet, however breast milk alone does not give the baby the recommended daily amount of vitamin D. Formula fed babies do not need any vitamin supplementation. Medically approved, commercial iron-fortified formulas provide babies with the recommended amount of vitamins they need, so babies require no additional supplements. Giving vitamin supplements to a baby who is already receiving the daily recommendation can be harmful and potentially become very dangerous for your child.

When your child reaches the age of about 2 (and older) and is eating solid foods from all food groups, vitamin supplements are usually not necessary. Try and provide the adequate amount of vitamins and minerals to your children through the foods they eat regularly. Sometimes this can be an impossible task and if you think your child is lacking the sufficient amounts of vitamins, the best thing to do is to contact their doctor who will recommend whether or not vitamin supplements are necessary. It is important to remember that vitamin supplements are meant to accompany food and are in no way meant as a replacement for a healthy diet.

Health-related information changes frequently, and while every attempt has been made to ensure the content in this article is up to date and accurate, you should always check with a doctor or nutritional expert before undertaking any substantial change in diet or lifestyle.

Jeff Matson is an avid health enthusiast who owned and operated his own natural health food store. Now retired, Jeff spends his time keeping fit, walking marathons and writing articles as a contributing editor for http://www.vitamin-insight.com – a site that offers information on vitamins, medicinal herbs and other supplements.


MORE RESOURCES:

Combined supplements no better for cholesterol
Fox News
Red yeast rice supplements usually cost about $20 for a bottle of between 100 and 200 600-milligram tablets. Previous studies found that phytosterols, plant-derived steroids found in vegetable oil, lower LDL levels when used alone. Outside of dietary ...



Dangers of sexual enhancement supplements: why men should avoid them
Boston.com (blog)
Men who opt to buy fake Viagra or other sexual enhancement supplements have no idea what they're actually taking because the product labels don't reflect the true ingredients, according to a commentary published earlier this week in the journal JAMA ...



Dr. Roach: Calcium supplements are not necessary for all women
LubbockOnline.com
Dear Dr. Roach: I have been taking 1,000-1,200 mg of calcium daily for a long time now — more than 12 years. I am 46. I don't get much, if any, dairy in my diet, but I am a good vegetable eater. Should I be concerned about calcium supplements and ...

and more »


The Dangers Lurking in Male Sexual Supplements
TIME
“Rock Hard” and similar so-called “natural” supplements for men often contain potentially dangerous drugs — some of which have never been tested on animals, let alone humans. In an editorial published in JAMA Internal Medicine, Pieter Cohen, assistant ...



How can solo travelers avoid dreaded single supplements?
Fox News
But what about the solo traveler and those crippling single supplements? I have found just one company -- GAP Adventures -- that doesn't penalize the solo traveler with these fees (which can be substantial). Can you help us out with some research on ...



Sports Supplements: OK for Kids? (Part 1 of 2)
Natural Products INSIDER (blog)
In the classroom or on the athletic field, who doesn't want to give their child every opportunity to perform to their abilities? Year-round training, increased pressure to compete at a high level (and not to mention the endless hours driving to ...



Sex Supplements May Contain Hidden, Harmful Drugs
Yahoo! News
Consumers should not buy sexual enhancement supplements, either online or in stores, because the products may contain undisclosed drugs that could cause serious harm, medical experts say. Although advertisements on sex supplements purport that the ...

and more »


Brisbane Times

Ex Sharks doctor claims two Cronulla players contacted Stephen Dank for ...
The Daily Telegraph
Givney was the doctor who raised concerns about Dank and his offsider Darren "The Gazelle" Hibbert allegedly providing supplements to the club for 11 weeks in 2011. In the statement, which forms part of an independent document detailing the club's use ...
Dr David Givney's statementAdelaide Now

all 3 news articles »


'Flashdance' Blu-ray Supplements Detailed
High-Def Digest
Check out the bonus features for the 1983 dance flick getting the high-definition treatment in August. As previously reported, Warner Brothers will be releasing 'Flashdance' on Blu-ray on August 13.



Dr. K: Calcium supplements questionable for men
Greenville Daily Reflector
During 12 years of follow-up, men who took more than 1,000 milligrams (mg) of supplemental calcium per day were 20 percent more likely to succumb to heart disease than those who didn't take calcium supplements. But there was no connection between ...

and more »

Google News


Advertisement



Section Site Map - Submit News - Feedback - Comments - Advertise with Us

Copyright © 2006 Luminati Inc. All rights reserved.