Naturopathic Information - MICROgenics Everyday Please Multi Vitamin

Children's Growth & Development

• Intense growth occurs in children while they develop bones, teeth, muscles, and blood. Nutrition plays a major determinant of a child's growth potential. Insufficient dietary intake may cause deficiencies and impaired growth.
• Children accumulate stores of nutrients which are useful for the growth spurts in adolescence. Positive childhood growth and development depends on adequate amounts of vitamins and minerals
• A study found children aged 3-5 years who had poor growth rates and were fussy eaters found that those given a multivitamin supplement had greater increases in weight and height and fewer upper respiratory tract infections than those given nutrition counseling only
• Includes B vitamins for energy production, brain and nerve function
• Calcium and Magnesium are needed for adequate mineralisation and maintenance of growing bones in children
• Vitamin A, C E and Zinc help to maintain a healthy immune system and defences
• Vitamin C is essential for the production of collagen and connective tissue in the joints, ligaments, bones, and tendons
• Iodine is a component of thyroid hormones. Thyroid hormones are responsible for maintaining a healthy metabolic rate
• Iron is important for healthy red blood cell production and transporting oxygen to all cells in the body
• Vitamin D maintains healthy calcium levels by supporting absorption and deposition into the bones
• Folic acid supports healthy cell growth and DNA replication
• Zinc is essential for growth, a deficiency may result in poor appetite, decreased taste acuity and poor wound healing
• The family is the primary influence in the development of children's food habits. Naturopaths encourage preparing and eating family meals together in a pleasant positive atmosphere, allowing sufficient time to eat and chew food properly. A recent study explored how aspects of the family environment may relate to the onset of unhealthy eating patterns. A number of themes emerged those being: provide a supportive home food environment; model healthy eating habits and physical activity patterns; help your children build self-esteem beyond looks and physical appearance; encourage appropriate expression of feelings and use of coping mechanisms