Toddler Vitamin Recommendation Needed

I don't know if you have an ALDI there, but they have a great gummie vitamin that only calls for one a day and my kids know they just get one. It's also more afordable than the others.

Avoid most supplements from drug stores or Target/ Walmart, etc.
Do you have a local health food store or natural food store?
They will have brands that focus on the best most natural varieties...still read labels.
Country Life has a great liquid vitamin.
Nordic Naturals has vit. my son loves.
I often find a brand or two I like at a health food store and then price compare (usually more economically) on line at sites like vitacost.com (I do not sell or have any affiliation with this site).

Hope this helps!

Yummibears are great and my kids love them. They also take fish oil supplements too.

I am also going to recommend a gummy, it does have sweeteners but no iron. They only get 1 a day until they turn 4 then they get 2. I give my kids the One a Day Scooby Doo vitamins. I give them their vitamins and then a few minutes later they brush their teeth for the night.

Good for you for reading labels! Actually the one I was going to recommend is a gummy so I won't.
But even as an adult, and a registered nurse AND a wellness educator, I just recently noticed an artificial sweetener in MY B12 vitamin. I felt very mis-lead since the label said something about "no artificial flavors, no MSG, no this or that."
I personally stay away from things with sodium benzoate, especially when listed with ascorbic acid or the man-made Vitamin C. There is a lot of research to show there are issues linked to sodium benzoate (I don't care how little they claim is in there) but combined with the chemical version of Vitamin C turns into Benzene, an known carcinogen.

Good Luck and again, good for you for watching labels and teaching your son the importance of health,

Lori K

i use to use flinstone vitamins, but i never found any that didnt have sugar added. if you are worried about the sugar hurting their teeth i would give him/her one with some water then wait for about ten minutes or so or give it to him just before he eats. then make a habit of having him/her brush their teeth after they eat so the vitamin and food deposits dont sit on their teeth. the dentist told me to do that for my kids to help cut down on some of the cavities they might end up with other wise. if that suggestion isnt what you were hoping for then i would call and as his/her doctor their recommendation as to what vitamins their would use.

Not all the gummies are 2-3 a day, and just because it says 2-3 does not mean you have to give him 2-3. Remember he is 2, and that serving size could be from 2 yr olds (who only need 1) to 12 yr olds (who weigh more and may need 2-3). We buy ours from a health food store. The brand we buy is YummiBears, and it has a little brown bear on the front. We always buy a WHOLEFOOD vitamin, for us and the kids. The one in particular is a green wrapper - wholefood fruits & vegetables + antioxidants.

YummiBears are free from most allergens (wheat, wheat, soy, gluten, etc) and do not have artificial colors, flavors, preservatives, or salicylates. I sound like a commercial for them but we have used them for a couple years on our kids and have been happy with them. Just make sure he chews them fully since he is still young so that he doesn't choke. Hope that helps!

Hey M.,
You can easily get what you are wanting by asking your pediatrician to prescribed a muli-vitamin. If it has Iron it will have a strong odor and smell your child might not be found of. Also, depending on your water source, etc, you might want to ask about a vitamin with flouride. I agree that medicines should not be package as candy. Do call your pediatrician or dentist. If you do not have a pediactric dentist, seek one soon. It is recommended that babies see the detist by their first birthday.
Best Wishes,
-MB

Hi M.,
I am not sure why you don't want iron.

But you may want to check out Shaklee Kids at http://www.shaklee.net/healthforlife. Shaklee is the number one seller of natural supplements.
Scooby Doo and Flintstones are synthetic and it would probably be better to take nothing at all than those. Labels don't tell the whole story.
Victoria

I agree with Victoria. Shaklee vitamins have been wonderful for my girls. My almost 2 year old takes one a day, my 4 1/2 year old takes two. They both like them and as far as the candy thing....I believe that children are generally smart and understand more than we think they do. That is why I explain about the difference between them. My girls actually get more vitamins than they do candy, it really isn't an issue for our house. When I was young, I used to pretend that candy was my vitamin:).

I dont have a recommendation for a multi, but I do have a recommendation. make sure to give adequate amounts of magnesium. Most multi vitamins are severely lacking in this VERY important mineral.
Magnesium deficiency is common, especially now that they are adding calcium, iron and zinc to foods.
Just a couple of its hundreds of virtues: Magnesium will help harden his teeth and keep him from getting cavities. it will keep his nerves relaxed so it can keep temper tantrums at bay. It will help him sleep.

There is magnesium citrate, magnesisum malate (both internal forms can cause loose stool- just cut down the dose a little) or magnsium oil that can be rubbed on the skin and absorbed that way.

I give my kids a multivitamin that their pediatrician calls in for them. I'm not sure if they have iron or not. They do have fluoride, but I think you can get it without it. They take 1 a day.
Good Luck!!