A daily multivitamin is a healthy basic for adults and
kids alike, right? Maybe not. Late last year, the journal Annals of Internal Medicine deemed multivitamins and mineral
supplements a massive money drain that don’t deliver promised health benefits.
Though the supplement industry is robust — Americans
spend nearly $27 billion on supplements annually — doctors and researchers
aren’t sold on the value of vitamins. According to Josh Boughton, the natural
product director at the Village Apothecary located in Woodstock, “The vitamin and supplement industry is not regulated, like
foods are. That makes it difficult for
parents to make decisions on which vitamins are viable for their children.”
Per a 2009 study by researchers at the University of
California, Davis, most kids and teens who pop a daily vitamin probably don’t
need one because they get adequate nutrition from their diet. The same study
found that kids with nutritional deficiencies are the least likely to take a
supplement.
This leaves confused parents holding the bag — or, in
this case, the bottle of brightly colored chewables.
The diet defense
As it turns out, deciding whether kids need a daily pill
isn’t simple. If your child eats a varied diet that includes a few servings of
fruits, vegetables, dairy, meat and plenty of whole grains, a multivitamin
probably isn’t necessary, says Roufia Paymen, supervisor of Outpatient Nutrition & Education at Northern Dutchess Hospital.
“Make sure they eat plenty of leafy green vegetables,”
says Paymen. She also suggests adding fish to your children’s diet, especially
oily fish like salmon, plus nuts and seeds, and cereals fortified with vitamin D.
“Believe it or not, avocados are also a great source of vitamin D,” says
Payman.
Read more: Super foods to the rescue!
Laughingly, Paymen says that if your family eats out
three or more days a week, your children probably need supplemental vitamins.
“Vitamin D is important to children’s growth,” says
Payman. “Kids don’t get enough vitamin D from the sun for two reasons: one, we
live in the north and during the fall and winter seasons we are exposed to less
sun because of shorter days, and two, kids spend more time indoors playing
computer games rather than going outside.”
Stuart Tashman, MD, a pediatrician at Middletown Medical
agrees. “Almost every patient I test is
vitamin D deficient,” says Tashman. “It’s a rarity when I find a child who is
not. Let’s admit it, most kids are horrible eaters.” The doctor recommends
Tri-Vi-Sol or D-Sol, even for babies who are nursing. “I start kids as newborns
on this vitamin D regiment. Although it is true there is vitamin D in breast
milk, it is not enough.” After six months, he suggests Poly-Vi-Sol, which
includes vitamins A, C and D.
Research agrees with Tashman’s assessment. The American
Academy of Pediatrics recommends 400 IU (international units) per day for
babies and 600 IU for children over the age of one.
When talking about supplements, Tashman says that many
regions in our area do not have fluoridated water. If that be the case, he suggests using
Poly-Vi-Flor, which comes both liquid and tablets.
“If you have concerns about your child’s diet, speak to
your pediatrician,” says Tashman. “For example, if you are a vegan you many
become anemic and require B-12 supplements. Those who drink goat’s milk need
folic acid.”
Then there’s the challenge of finding a kids’ vitamin
that’s not full of unwanted additives or worse. A 2008 study by the U.S. Food
and Drug Administration reported that a significant number of popular
children’s vitamins were contaminated with lead. And they may not contain the
vitamins or doses promised — independent testing service ConsumerLab found
labeling errors in 40 percent of the vitamins studied.
Julie Gallagher ran into this very problem when she
wanted a quality multivitamin for her 3-year-old, Will. “A good diet should
cover everything, but I know I don’t prepare a perfect meal every night,” she
says. But when she started looking, she found that nearly every kid’s vitamin
contained a questionable ingredient: added sugar, artificial dyes (linked to
behavior problems in children since the 1970s) or lead.
Paymen’s rule about vitamins is: NO preservatives, NO
additives, NO artificial coloring and NO gluten. She suggests that you can
usually find vitamins that meet her 4 NOs at local health food stores including
as Adams Fairacre Farm, Nature’s Pantry, Mother Earth and Village Apothecary. She
finds that even some supermarkets like Hannafords also carry vitamins with no
additives.
Paymen offers three suggestions:
1. Read the labels. Even
if the label says organic doesn’t mean it is better for your child. The fewer
ingredients the better;
2. Make sure the supplements have no preservatives,
corn syrup or hydrogenated oil, and
3. Breakfast bars or even yogurt products
are not always a healthy alternative for breakfast. Many include high fructose
and corn syrup.
Boughton from the Village Apothocary disagrees with
Paymen’s assessment. “Vitamin labels don’t tell the whole story. We carry a
whole food vitamin that is made from actual food. For example, the vitamin C is
made from a fruit concentrate and has less sugar than other products, explains
Boughton. He suggests going to a center where staff understands the products
they carry.
READ MORE: 9 ways to keep kids healthy
Is it safe to skip?
With all the questions surrounding supplements, some
parents choose to bypass them altogether. But that may be a mistake, too. Picky
eaters, exceptionally slow growers, chronically ill children or those who avoid
certain food groups due to allergies or preferences may need added vitamins. Paymen says, “It can be very hard for kids on a
restrictive diet to get everything they need for growth.”
In those cases, Paymen suggests asking your child’s
doctor to see what he recommends. For example, dairy avoiders may need
additional calcium and vitamin D supplements for healthy bones and teeth, or will
need to develop a better understanding of the foods required to make sure that they
are getting the necessary vitamin D nutrients. Both Paymen and Tashman agree that vegans can
benefit from supplements. Those who avoid grains or gluten might miss out on
the magnesium or vitamin E found in whole grains.
Supplement savvy
What’s a parent to do? If your child won’t drink milk or
gets stuck in an “I hate veggies!” phase, or if your family follows a
restrictive diet a multivitamin is worth considering. Though food-based
nutrition is ideal, it is not always possible or practical for all kids all the
time.
A few simple blood tests can eliminate nutritional
guessing games. Your family doctor can easily check levels of nutrients such as
D, B12 and iron, and offer customized advice about supplementation.
But deciding whether to supplement is only half the
battle; now you have to pick one. All vitamins aren’t created equal, and some
manufacturers use cheaper ingredients that don’t absorb well, says Haylie Pomroy, a nutritionist, mom and author of The Fast Metabolism Diet.
Go for one with folate (look for
“5-methyltetrahydrofolate” or “L-methylfolate” on the label) instead of
synthetic folic acid; methylcobalamin (the bioactive form of B12); and
cholecalciferol (the most active form of vitamin D). If a vitamin contains
these superstars, Pomroy says, it’s likely high-quality.
After spending a “ridiculous” amount of time reading
labels, Gallagher settled on a natural gummy vitamin. Now the real challenge:
finding a safe spot to stash them so Will doesn’t overindulge. “He loves them,”
Gallagher says. “He’d eat a whole bottle if he could!”
Malia
Jacobson is a nationally published parenting journalist.