You want your child to grow up as healthy as possible. Balanced nutrients are an important part of your child’s health. Multivitamins can give you confidence that your child is getting the nutrients they need, but at what age should multivitamins be started?
When Should I Start Multivitamins For My Child?
According to professionals at George T. Bochanis Law Offices, children should not require a multivitamin if they are getting well-balanced nutrition. While your child is breastfeeding, they shouldn’t need supplemental vitamins as long as you’re getting a balanced diet.
Children who eat lean meat or fish, beans and pulses, eggs, fruits, and vegetables every day may receive all of the vitamins that they need through their diet. However, many parents find that convincing their toddler to eat a well-balanced diet can be challenging.
Therefore, many parents start a multivitamin around 6 months of age. At this age, toddlers begin to make their own decisions about what they do and do not want to eat, making it much harder to make sure that they get all of their essential vitamins and minerals through their diet.
What If My Child Generally Eats Well But Has Bouts Of Picky Eating?
If your child generally eats very well, you may not find a multivitamin necessary. However, if your child has occasional bouts of refusing to eat certain foods, you may worry that they are losing out on nutrition during these times.
It is perfectly acceptable to keep a multivitamin on hand to supplement your child’s diet when they’re feeling picky without feeling that you need to give the multivitamin everyday. Even if your child is eating a very healthy and well-balanced diet, a multivitamin won’t hurt, so if you’re uncertain about how nutritious your child’s diet is, err on the side of offering a multivitamin.
What Are The Most Important Vitamins For Children?
There are 15 vitamins and minerals that are important to your developing child, but three are even more essential than the rest:
- Vitamin A. Enables your child to develop healthy eyes and skin and lets your child see well in dim light
- Vitamin C. Necessary for your child to absorb iron from their diet, which is essential for healthy blood. Vitamin C also maintains your child’s immune system.
- Vitamin D. Bones need vitamin D to develop correctly, so inadequacies in this vitamin can lead to weak bones and stunted growth. Vitamin D is difficult to get through diet, so children growing up in climates without lots of sun at certain times of year or children who wear clothing that covers the skin may depend on supplementation for sufficient amounts.
What To Look For In Multivitamins For Children
Not all multivitamins are created equally. You will need to be discerning to pick the best vitamin for your child. Here are some things to keep an eye out for:
- Sugar-free. Your child gets enough sugar in their diet without also getting a sugar dosage from their vitamin. Furthermore, you don’t want your child associating candy with health.
- Formulated for 15 key vitamins and minerals. Your child’s vitamin should have all 15 major vitamins and minerals. Vitamins A, C, and D are especially important.
- Fresh and organic. Avoid preservatives and fillers and stay away from pesticides with organic vitamins drawn from the purest fruits and vegetables and delivered fresh to your door.
- Tastes good. Just because your child’s vitamins are free from added sugar doesn’t mean they have to taste icky. Choose vitamins that are naturally sweetened with fruit.
Consider Multivitamins For Your Child
Multivitamins for children can help to level out your child’s nutrition and make sure that they are getting all of the essential vitamins and minerals they need, even when they aren’t eating as well as they should be.