Did you know that:
* 1/3 of our children are deficient in iron
* Over 90% are deficient in magnesium
* One in 6 kids lack enough vitamin A
* Almost 1/2 are seriously deficient in vitamin C
* Almost 1/2 lack enough zinc
* One in 5 are deficient in folate
* One in 7 are deficient in vitamin B-12
* Almost 1/3 are deficient in B-6
Source: The Vitamin Journal (1996)
I don’t know about you, but when I read this list my jaw dropped. I feed my kids right, try to avoid junk food and yet, the odds are AGAINST me that my kids are getting all they need. In order to give them what they need, in order to cover their nutritional fannies, so to speak, I have to supplement. It’s just plain common sense. If you can’t hit it right every time–and who do you know that does–why NOT supplement?
I’m not going to endorse one product over the other (so those of you with a vitamin product to sell, please don’t email me trying to downline me!) but I will say don’t use Flintstones vitamins or any of those other artificially colored and sweetened varieties. Chances are, if the vitamin has a cartoon on it and is heavily advertised to kids on TV, you don’t want it. On the other hand, watch out for the mega-watt “natural” vitamins in the health food stores. Most of that will end up in the toilet. You want something gentle and supplementary–not great big vitamin dynamite. This is to supplement, not to substitute for your child’s healthy diet.
Just remember: you don’t have car insurance because you plan on something happening. It’s just the prudent thing to do to guarantee you’re covered. And that’s exactly what vitamins and supplements are there for, too–simple coverage for when you don’t get it right. And unless you’re the exception, the rule is no one gets it right all the time.
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My children hate vitamins and refuse to eat them. I talked to my Dr. about this and she said “that was good, kids who don’t like vitamins usually are getting the vitamins they need.” I like what she said because we do cook all our food from scratch and try really hard to be healthy eaters. I think this comment from my Dr. just proves to me that the Awesome Creator knew what he was doing when He created our bodies.