Tips on Selecting a Multivitamin for Your Child

Many children suffer from vitamin deficiency, thanks to their picky eating habits and unhealthy diets, among other reasons. Fortunately, children can make up for the vitamins they miss out on by taking vitamin supplements.

However, selecting a multivitamin can be difficult due to the many choices available. When checking the label of a multivitamin, remember to be on the lookout for the following details:

Content

Be sure to choose a multivitamin that is as complete as possible. At the very least, make sure that the multivitamin you get contains vitamin C, the different types of vitamin B, and vitamin K, as these are essential to proper growth and development.

Percentages

After checking the content of the multivitamin, check the percentage levels of each ingredient. These percentages often represent the daily value of each vitamin. Try to select a multivitamin that has 100 percent listed for the essential vitamins previously mentioned.

Extras

Most multivitamins will come with extras such as probiotics and antioxidants. While these extras are not essential, they offer several benefits, such as better digestion.

If you are unsure about what to choose among the vitamins available on the market, you can ask for a recommendation from a doctor. You can also look into contacting a custom vitamin manufacturer.

Common Vitamin Deficiencies in Children

Vitamin deficiency is a common problem among children in the United States. The following is a short list of common vitamin deficiencies that children develop:

Vitamin D

Vitamin D is oftentimes the vitamin that children lack the most. Many experts have pointed to the rise of video games as a reason why this is so, as children who remain cooped indoors playing these do not get enough exposure to sunlight, the body’s main source of vitamin D. Symptoms of vitamin D deficiency include irritability and delayed growth.

Vitamin C

Insufficient amounts of vitamin C can cause children to have poor appetites, joint pain, and frequent nose bleeds. Severe vitamin C deficiency can cause scurvy. This problem can easily be prevented by eating vitamin C-rich foods such as citrus fruits, tomatoes, and broccoli.

Vitamin A

Children lacking vitamin A typically feel weakness and fatigue faster than children who receive adequate amounts of the vitamin. If vitamin A deficiency is left ignored, children can develop symptoms such as night blindness, scaling of the skin, and respiratory infections.

Unhealthy diets and picky eating habits are typically the main culprits in vitamin deficiency cases among children. Fortunately, using vitamin supplements can easily prevent them from developing any ill effects that a vitamin deficiency can cause. As such, be sure to give chewable multivitamins to your children to keep them happy and healthy.

Vitamin C—RDA and Deficiency

Vitamin C—a.k.a. ascorbic acid—is a water-soluble vitamin that is an integral part of the human diet. It is abundant in many fruits and vegetables, but fish, fresh milk and meats such as liver and kidney have it as well. With the vitamin so commonly and readily available, meeting the recommended daily allowance (RDA) shouldn’t be an issue.

RDA of vitamin C

The RDA of vitamin C for men is 90mg, and for women 75mg. Pregnant women, however, should take an additional 10mg, while breastfeeding women need to consume 45mg more of the vitamin daily. Current RDA guidelines require smokers to take at least 100mg of vitamin C per day.

Deficiency

Severe vitamin C deficiency results in scurvy—an illness characterized by bleeding gums and tiny pinpoint bruises. The disease can worsen to the point wherein it causes poor wound healing and abnormal bone and dentine formation. Since an intake of 10mg of vitamin C a day is enough to prevent scurvy, the disease is rarely seen today.

The adverse effects of mild vitamin C deficiency are yet unknown. Stored vitamin C in the body can be depleted within one to three months. People who are vitamin C-deficient may also have other vitamin deficiencies and malnutrition.

Liquid Nutraceuticals: A Growing Trend

Today’s consumers are constantly seeking innovative ways to obtain the general health maintenance they need. They are also looking for more variety and benefits beyond the traditional tablet and capsule technologies that have lorded over the nutraceutical industry for years. Consumers are discovering that drinkable supplements are a new and effective way to address their health needs.

Liquid nutraceutical products offer features and advantages never before seen in traditional tablets and capsules. These diverse products include a wide array of single-serve bottles, single-serve shots, and multi-dose concentrates. Vendors benefit from innovative manufacturing and formulation methods that they can capitalize on to attract and retain customers.

Many people prefer the convenience and simplicity afforded by drinkable products compared to that of pills and capsules. Liquid nutraceuticals ‘go down’ easier than their solid counterparts, and this characteristic can be enticing to people who are resistant to the idea of swallowing too many pills in one day, or are simply unable to swallow a tablet or a capsule.

In response to growing demand, nutraceutical manufacturers have now expanded their liquid production capabilities. Many have recently added syrups, liquid dietary supplements, liquid suspensions, energy drinks, oxygenated water, and nutrient-enhanced vitamin water into their wide range of selections.

Factors That Can Inhibit Vitamin D Production

Vitamin D is an important vitamin, especially for growing children, as it helps bone development by enhancing the body's efficiency in absorbing calcium and phosphorus. When the skin is exposed to a normal amount of sunlight, the human body automatically produces the necessary amount of Vitamin D. However, there are factors can inhibit the amount of Vitamin D your body produces.

Winter Season

Winter can reduce your body's Vitamin D production. This is because the added layers of clothing you wear to act as a shield against the cold also shield the skin from the sunlight. The low angle of the sun in highly elevated areas during this season also affects one's exposure to the light.

Skin Color

For many people, spending 10 minutes under the sun without sunscreen is enough to spur production of a good amount of Vitamin D. However, people with darker skin need to stay exposed to the sun for a longer period of time in order to produce the same amount. This is largely because their skin has a larger amount of melanin, the compound responsible for making skin dark. This also absorbs sunlight, competing with the substance that needs sunlight for Vitamin D production.

While exposure to the sun is the best way to get Vitamin D, it is unavoidable for some people to stay indoors all day. With this in mind, taking a Vitamin D supplement is a great way for them to get the recommended amount of Vitamin D.

How Certain Activities Cause Vitamin D Deficiency

These days, many people stay inside their homes and crank up the air conditioning in order to beat the heat. Compared to children 10 or 20 years ago, children now also tend to stay indoors and play video games. A good number of people drive to their office, work for eight hours, and drive back home.

At first glance, there doesn't seem to be much of a connection between these three instances. However, doing any of these three activities can contribute to a person developing Vitamin D deficiency.

Vitamin D is largely responsible for the development of healthy bones. Getting it in the prescribed amount can help prevent medical conditions such as rickets and osteomalacia. Vitamin D is found in a number of foods such as oily fish (sardines, salmon) and eggs. However, the body's main source of Vitamin D is exposure to sunlight.

With this in mind, it is important to get out and under the sun for at least 10 to 15 minutes a day in order to get the necessary amount of Vitamin D. This is especially important for expecting mothers and young children. However, there are certain scenarios or medical conditions that can prevent a person from spending time outside. As such, taking multivitamins or having a custom vitamin made are alternative solutions to getting the required amount of Vitamin D.

Understanding Probiotics and Their Health Benefits

Probiotics are microorganisms that present a number of health benefits to the host. They can be found in different foods, especially yogurt, and are believed to help with digestion and protect against harmful bacteria. In food supplements, the most common type of probiotics used are lactic acid bacteria and bifidobacteria.

According to the journal “Animal Nutrition and Health”, probiotics are beneficial to the health of the host animal by contributing to intestinal microbial balance. Health benefits associated with taking probiotics include improved immune function, lower cholesterol levels, higher tolerance to lactose, reduced blood pressure, and better brain function. They can even be used as treatment for irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and diarrhea.

It should be noted that most of these associated benefits still need to be confirmed by extensive scientific research. At present, no probiotic product is licensed in the U.S. as a biological drug product for use in the prevention, cure, treatment, mitigation, or diagnosis of an actual human disease. Nevertheless, there's plenty of encouraging evidence suggesting that probiotics can help in the aforementioned illnesses and conditions.

Orally administered probiotic products are often marketed as dietary supplements, medical foods, conventional foods, and drugs. For those thinking of taking probiotics supplements, be sure to check with your doctor to confirm that they're right for you.

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/264721.php

Supplements for Fibromyalgia

Is your fibromyalgia becoming more unmanageable? Then it's likely that you're looking for the ideal solutions to your condition. Here are some of the common supplements promoted for fibromyalgia. Don't forget to consult a qualified medical professional for specific recommendations and dosages.

Magnesium

The body needs magnesium to perform over 300 biochemical reactions. Magnesium is often recommended for people with fibromyalgia because it is necessary for the generation of energy in cells. However, magnesium in high doses may cause nausea, diarrhea, muscle weakness, and loss of appetite, among other things.

Vitamin D

Some researchers have attributed fibromyalgia to vitamin D deficiency. One particular research involving 994 patients found a strong correlation between decreased vitamin D levels and higher levels of generalized bone and/or muscle pains.

S-adenosylmethionine (SAMe)

A couple of preliminary studies showed promise that SAMe can help with fibromyalgia. One of these studies evaluated the effect of SAMe or placebo in 17 fibromyalgia patients. Improvements were observed in the patients who took SAMe, but not in the ones who took the placebo.

5-hydroxytryptophan (5-HTP)

There is preliminary evidence that 5-HTP may reduce the number of tender points (specific areas in the body that are painful when pressure is applied) in people with fybromialgia. Researchers believe that this is because of the supplement's ability to effect pain-modulating systems in the brainstem. Such supplements are often offered by private label manufacturers.

http://altmedicine.about.com/cs/conditionsetoh/a/Fibromyalgia.htm