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20 Comments for "thoughts on kids' vitamins"
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Shaklee's Incredivites.... Only one in the US that has lactoferin (an immune booster naturally occuring in breast milk), uses xylitol for sweetener (used to promote strong teeth), and has new recommended amounts of Vitamin D, along with biotin and other ingredients not usually found in most children's vitamins.
STAY AWAY from most of the grocery store brands. They are petroleum based and filled with TONS of synthetic ingredients. Even the "vitamins" are mostly sythetically derived. Kids are getting sicker ON these than not.
And be wary of the new fad in "Whole Food" Supplements. The term "whole food supplements " has no legal definition, and has therefore been used quite loosly. While it is the intention of some marketers to lead consumers to believe
that nutritional products can be made by condensing or compressing whole foods into efficacious, nutritional tidbits, such a result is impossible. Consider that a supplement condensed or compressed from a whole food would
contain little nutrient value, and would require taking an inordinately large number of servings or tablets to get even one serving with adequate
nutritional value.
Take spinach, for example. If we consider a reasonable serving size for spinach to be one cup of cooked spinach, the spinach in that serving would weigh approximately 180 grams. Dried and made into a powder, it would weigh about 30 grams. Since a normal-sized tablet holds about a half gram of powder, at best, to get the equivalent of a cup of cooked spinach, you would need to consume a minimum of 60 tablets.
Just my two cents :) Sorry for the long answer... I'm just really passionate about nutrition and think it's REALLY important to know all the details about the product and the company before consuming them. -
i love the kids vitamins over at Vitamin Shoppe by Southridge. They have one called strong kids and its made by a fitness buff. the guys that work over there give it to their kids. i also supplement with DHA oil along wiht the multi-vitamin.
i have a friend who has used shaklee for years and absolutley loves it so that is a good way to go as well -
So I shouldn't be giving my 4 year old the Flinstones vitamins? What about the Poly Visol knock off I've been giving my 1 year old?
Where do you get the good stuff? -
You know, you have to be careful about vitamins. Not everyone makes a "good" supplement. The truth is, there are only about 3 vitamin manufacturers in the US so most vitamins are not manufactured by the company selling them, and there isn't high quality control or research in the formulation. Any company can choose a pre-made formulation and slap their own label on it. Heck, I could sell a vitamin with my name on it if I wanted to.
So, that said, I research the company very strongly. Does the company manufacture their own products? You wouldn't believe what a difference this makes in quality control. Is the product natural? What kind of research and development went into the product? Is it backed by a guarantee? And are their published studies that prove the product works? Most companies will state this is too costly to do. (That's a quote). But there are a very few who do prove they work.
You get the good stuff from the good companies. I love Shaklee. I just trust them, they prove what they say, and their products made a HUGE difference in my own health as well as the kids. So that's my opinion. But, like I said, research is key! -
Where do I get the Shaklee's? Do they have them at a regular pharmacy like Walgreens or Target or do I have to go to a health food store? Will they work for my 18 month old and my 4 year old?
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Great information, My2kids, thanks! Another vote for Shaklee, here.
Yes, My2kiddos, you can give them to your 18 mo old (and younger) as well as your 4 year old (and older). I've been giving them to my kids since they were 1 and 3. I wish I had known about Shaklee when I was pregnant with my first (or earlier)! (wish I had been a Shaklee baby!)
I just love their motto: "Always Safe, Always Works, Always Green". These are the 3 most important things in my mind when I consider what to put in my and my family's bodies.
By the way, they don't just do children's vitamins, they do a wide variety of natural nutrition products, food, natural (paraban-free) skin care and make-up, personal care and REALLY AWESOME non-toxic home care (how I learned about Shaklee) that saves me a ton of $$$ b/c they are all concentrates!!
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Another vote for Shaklee Vitamins. I also give my ds Shaklee probiotic and Carslon liquid Vitamin D.
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okay, so I give my kids the gummies, they're the only ones they like. I have given them ones from health food stores that are over $20/bottle and they sit, uneaten.
My kids eat the little critter ones. -- the multi, the omega and the vit c/ecanacia one during flu season. Are you saying that these are bad? I would hate to think that I have been giving them things that are not "good" for them... :-/ -
Cupcake,
Can you return the uneaten ones? They should have some sort of satisfaction policy? call the company/manufacturer.
As far as bad and good products, you would have to read the label and ask lots of questions about the products to make a decision about the 'goodness' (efficacy) of a product.
If a vitamin contains things like artificial colors, flavors, sweeteners or synthetic products then I would have to say that yes, what you are giving them is not good for them, and may actually be causing harm.
Here's one reason why: When the body can't use something like a synthetic version of vitamin C, for example (it's not bioavailable) then it is seen as a toxin (or free radical) in the body and has to be filtered by the liver etc. This process of detoxing causes the body to work harder than it needs to. In other words, if your body can't process something that is synthetic/artificial, you certainly are not benefiting from it!
You're better off giving them NOTHING than giving them a poor quality, artificial supplement. Your best bet is to find a company that meets rigorous quality and efficacy standards, has a history of integrity, does their own manufacturing, quality control testing, clinical and published studies (like others mentioned above) There's proof of that here:
[url]http://landmarkstudy.com/[/url]
PS: a number of us have already done that work for you all! It's Shaklee. They are the industry gold standard for natural nutrition.
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So I want to raise a debate here. I do have a high regard for Shaklee just like others say but their prices are so high. Hard to fit into a budget-lifestyle.
Second, someone mentioned how when you look at the ingredient list of many kids vitamins, the first ingredient is sucrose. Shaklee also has sugar as the first ingredient. The difference is the type of sugar. Any thoughts on this?? -
So I want to raise a debate here. I do have a high regard for Shaklee just like others say but their prices are so high. Hard to fit into a budget-lifestyle.
Second, someone mentioned how when you look at the ingredient list of many kids vitamins, the first ingredient is sucrose. Shaklee also has sugar as the first ingredient. The difference is the type of sugar. Any thoughts on this?? -
Well, I agree that Shaklee is priced higher than the competition. However, I am a firm believer in you get what you pay for. I mean, how much is it costing to buy a children's supplement for $6 and your kids can only utilize 10% of it, if that? That means you need 6 bottles to every one of Shaklee. Plus they are full of preservatives, fillers, nasty stuff that actually becomes free radicals in the body. And honestly, the Landmark Study done by the Berkley School of Public Health showed that in most cases you are better off taking NOTHING than taking a low quality supplement. I won't harp on that :)
Shaklee's label lists sorbitol and Xylitol as the first ingredient in "Other ingredients." That does not mean the first ingredient IS sorbitol. I think the type of sweetener makes a difference. Incredivites contain sorbitol and Xylitol, which naturally occurs in berries and fruits. What I think you have to be very wary of is the source of the sweeteners. Most are chemically processed sugar substitutes. However, the Shaklee ingredients are naturally extracted from the source. In addition, Xylitol has been shown to promote healthy teeth. I'd say that's on a different level than high fructose corn syrup, white sugar, or any processed product.
Also, I like that I can go directly to the company and ask for proof and clarification of any issue, of any ingredient, or of any manufacturing process. It's a neat feeling to have access to information!
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