As children grow and develop, nutrition is the key that ensures their optimal health and balance. Most of the time, the necessary nutrients can be easily obtained through the diet we consume which implies diversity in food and beverages. This covers most of our essential vitamins and minerals. However, sometimes it just isn’t enough.
In this case, multivitamin supplements come in to save the day. Multivitamin supplements are supported by scientists, and they especially come in handy in the following situations:
- if you have children who are picky eaters
- those with issues in growing
- children following a strict diet, especially vegan
- children with dietary restrictions caused by allergies
Now, these scenarios can be hard to manage for parents just as they are, but if you add gluten intolerance to this, it looks like a mountain impossible to climb. If you recognize yourself in any of the above-listed scenarios, make sure to stay with us as we cover how supplements can directly be useful to you and your children!
Get a free sample pack!The first steps in introducing multivitamin supplements
It is very important to know how sometimes adding that extra boost might do more harm than good. This is why the first thing to do when it comes to involving any type of supplement in your child’s diet is to get the green light of approval from a healthcare provider.
It is crucial to choose multivitamins that are tailored for kids' use and appropriately dosed in regard to your child's needs. This dosage is essential to be determined since it directly causes improvement in nutrition gaps, but at the same time, can be dangerous if it leads to overconsumption of some nutrients.
Specific and different multivitamin needs
Your child having celiac disease or being gluten intolerant calls for a gluten-free diet to ensure optimal health. The tricky and sometimes discouraging part is that you need not only to watch the ingredients of your child’s food and drinks, but also any vitamins and supplements that go into their body.
Since many dietary supplements, which include vitamins, contain gluten you have to keep an extra eye out since they lead to symptoms of gluten intolerance or allergy. We are here to help assure you that the Chewwies multivitamin supplements are completely safe and approved for those who are living a gluten-free lifestyle!
After having established the first steps with your healthcare provider, you might have gotten a report which includes a variety of vitamins in need of supplements, or only certain vitamin groups.
Children might have detected deficiencies in overall vitamin levels, and for this, it is best to introduce the consumption of a multivitamin addition that will aid all the necessary areas. These should be taken once a day, and they can also be paired with any specifically needed supplements!
However, our bodies are unique and they might need only particular nutrients to optimize our well-being. In this case, some kids may not need a variety of vitamins supplemented, but they rather benefit from individual supplements. For example, kids who are not consuming the prescribed servings of dairy alternatives or vitamin D fortified milk probably need a boost of vitamin D.
Tip: the prescribed servings include four 8-ounce servings when it comes to vitamin D, whether it be in milk or dairy alternatives!
Extra tip: When we say to be careful when checking ingredients, we mean: be as careful as possible! For instance, some supplements will indirectly contain gluten in form of wheat starch. This type of supplement should also be avoided because wheat contains gluten. A better alternative is a supplement that uses corn or starch from tapioca.
By far the most frequent deficiency for children is iron. The best iron sources are seafood, lean meat, poultry, cereals, leafy greens, and beans, but there are also some multivitamins that contain iron.
Difference between celiac disease and gluten intolerance
To make sure you are well educated on the dietary needs of your child, it is important to understand just how specific those needs are. Here we have prepared a brief but detailed distinction between celiac disease and gluten intolerance.
If we are trying to break it down, gluten is just a protein. This protein can be found in rye, wheat, and barley. Now, some people simply can not properly digest this protein. The cause can either be an autoimmune reaction or sensitivity to this protein.
When it comes to gluten intolerance, this is first noticed by abdominal pain, gas, diarrhoea after eating gluten, and bloating. Gluten intolerance can not be identified with laboratory tests. This is why tracking your child’s symptoms after gluten consumption is essential for a diagnosis. When a person is gluten intolerant, they will have negative tests for celiac disease as well as a wheat allergy.
Celiac disease, on the other hand, is an autoimmune disorder that occurs when the immune system responds to gluten in an abnormal way. The digestive system of the child is physically compromised by this disease and they are unable to adequately absorb nutrients from their diet. This is when celiac disease leads to growth stunting, nutrient deficiencies, weight loss, and development delays which calls for medical attention.
Both situations require completely getting rid of gluten from the child’s diet and lifestyle. As well as avoiding gluten in food and drinks for managing the symptoms, nutrients must be delivered to your child’s body in a different way - usually by supplements.
In conclusion
When your child has nutrient deficiencies, the road uphill seems improbable. Adding gluten intolerance or celiac disease can make this mission impossible.
However, even doctors and scientists have approved multivitamin supplements to be the rescue you need in ensuring your child’s proper growth and development.
Consulting with your healthcare provider should be the first step, but once you have your diagnosis set out, that’s when we come in!
Chewwies has options for multivitamin supplements and distinct vitamin deficiencies. To be able to best decide which nutrients your child needs assistance with, it is crucial to understand the different difficulties gluten can cause in children’s bodies.
Any adjustments in your child’s diet should are always best consulted with your physician!