Should I give my vegan kids a multivitamin? Explore whole food nutrient sources for better health

Hi there, it's Gen and welcome to this week's podcast. So this week, I'm going to be talking about whether you should be giving your kids or even yourself a multivitamin. Now, before I start, I just wanted to let you know about my really amazing new Vegan Cookbook that I have coming out really soon. It's Super Boosted Snacks. So it's going to be full of really yummy snack recipes that your kids will love that I as a vegan nutritionist have specifically developed to be packed full of iron and zinc and protein, and calcium as well. And then they've got lots of extra veggies in them and beans as well, that are going to be really great. 

So I'm kind of in the final stages, I'm just putting everything together and doing the publishing side of it. So, it's really exciting. It's going to be out in the next couple of weeks, which is really cool. Make sure that you sign up by the link down below in the show notes and join the waitlist so that then you'll get all the updates and you'll know what's happening with it. So yeah, that's really exciting. That's coming out in the next couple of weeks, my new recipe book called Super Boosted sSnacks. 

So talking about multivitamins, I see a lot of people in different groups, different Facebook groups and things, basically asking for recommendations for a multivitamin for their kids just in case. There are also some vegan or plant based doctors and professionals and staff who also talk about having a multivitamin, just in case. But interestingly, the ones who tend to recommend that you need a multivitamin actually happened to sell their own, there seems to be a little bit of a vested interest in there. Yeah. So anyway, I'm going to talk to you about why I don't recommend a multivitamin. And why I really don't think that you should be taking one or your kids should be having one just in case. And then I'm going to give you sort of what you should be doing when it comes to supplements instead. 

The biggest problem that I see with multivitamins, especially for our kids, is that we see them as kind of a safety blanket. And when our kids are having it, we don't really put as much effort into making sure that they're actually getting all of the things that they need from their food. Instead, we sit there and go, oh well, at least they're getting, you know, their iron and whatever from their multivitamin. So it doesn't matter that much if they're not actually eating much iron, many foods with iron or they're getting some vitamins from vitamin C from their multivitamin. 

So it doesn't really matter if they don't eat as much fruit and veggies. And so it means that we put less effort as parents into actually giving our kids the fruits and vegetables or the other foods that they need. And instead, we rely more on the multivitamin. Now, I want to say now, before we go any further, that I totally get being a super busy mum or dad and really not having time to figure out all those foods. And if you've got super fussy kids and you feel like they're just not eating anything, and you're really worried. Then I totally get that a multivitamin is better than them not getting the nutrition at all and I absolutely agree with that as well. 

So if you have a child who eats literally just plain pasture, or just hot chips or something and then not having anything else, and you can't get anything else into them. What I recommend you do is yes, give them the multivitamin, because at least then they're getting what they need through that. So this is definitely not for parents with super fussy kids. Or if you're going through a stage where everything is just really hard, which we all go through as parents. Then yes, fall back on the multivitamin and use a multivitamin because it helps them but just try not to use it as a crutch going on when you actually can get some more time and go through the super busy, crazy stage that you're in. 

Make sure that you come back to working on getting your kids to be eating the actual foods that they need rather than relying on a multivitamin or, and also, if you've got a super fussy child, start with a multivitamin but make sure that you're actually going and working with a dietitian or a nutritionist. Normally you'd be able to work with me but I personally am going through a really crazy busy stage right now, when I'm recording In this episode. So, I've actually had to cancel my one on one stuff for now. But I do have a nutrition course which will be coming up in the next couple of months that I will be opening up, which really goes through. It's called Healthy Vegan Kids. 

And it really goes through how to get your kids to eat fruits and vegetables and everything for fussy kids and stuff. So keep an eye out for that in the future. But yeah, I just want to say that I'm not sitting here with this episode to shame you. And to sit there and say, oh, you have to make your kids eat all the fruits and vegetables and everything, that is totally not what I'm saying. And, yeah, if you're going through that multivitamin is fine. If you're not going through that, and this is just a just in case sort of thing, then this is where my advice in here is for you. So as I said, giving a multivitamin just in case is, it means that we put less effort into trying to make sure that our kids are eating the fruits and vegetables and the other foods that they need. 

Now one problem is that science has found that we are more likely to eat foods that we are familiar with. So this is especially important for kids is that they need a lot of exposure to different foods in order to learn how to like them. So if you are relying on a multivitamin, and not putting as much effort into actually giving them the fruits and serving them the fruits and vegetables or the other foods that they need. Like beans and stuff like that, then it means that they're actually not going to get the exposure to those foods that they need. And so then they're not going to learn how to like them. So, it's really important that kids are actually getting exposure. Unfortunately, this doesn't automatically mean they're going to eat them. But giving them exposure to different fruits and vegetables and beans and whole grains and things will actually help them over time develop a liking for those fruits. 

Now, in my Snack Recipe book, I have a bunch of recipes, which have lots of fruits and vegetables and lots of beans and whole grains and stuff in them. So they're specifically designed to give your kids more exposure to those sort of foods. So if your kids really don't eat any beans, or veggies or whatever. Actually using snacks is a really great way to actually start to give your kids some exposure to those foods and then over time, they'll start to get used to them. And then they'll be more willing to try them in other ways and savory foods and stuff like that. 

So that's one of the reasons why I have a lot of snacks that have got beans and whole grains and stuff like that in them is because they're a really great way to get your kids used to them. Now, another problem with multivitamins is that they only contain sort of single forms of particular vitamins and minerals. Whereas when you get that vitamin or mineral from a food, it comes with all kinds of things like antioxidants and all kinds of other nutrients, which. To be honest, they're only starting to actually research all the benefits of all these extra things in foods. And so you get the whole package when you actually get it from the food. 

So say cocoa, for example, cocoa is a great source of iron, but it's also a really great source of magnesium and it's also got antioxidants, and it's got a heap of other stuff in it as well. And so if you're giving your child cocoa for iron, then they're getting all of those things as well. Yes, they might be getting magnesium from a multivitamin, but they won't get all of the extra antioxidants and things as well, which are really great for them. Now, getting the single form of a vitamin or mineral has actually in the past, there's actually it's been dangerous. So, one example from the past is beta carotene. So it's the form of vitamin A that we get in fruits and vegetables. 

It makes fruit vegetables orange. So beta carotene is really good for us and it has anti cancer properties and things like that. Now, I just want to say this is a very extreme example. I'm not saying that all everything in a multivitamin is dangerous like this, but this just gives you kind of an extreme example of what I'm talking about. he basically supplement manufacturers and stuff. Beta carotene is so good for fighting cancer, and it's so good for us that they decided to extract it out of things and make a beta carotene supplement. They did some testing, did some studies and stuff with it and did some testing and stuff and they discovered that the beta carotene on its own was actually killing the people in the patients. 

When you actually extract out the beta carotene on its own, it's actually it's too concentrated for our bodies and it was killing the patients. So they have stopped making beta carotene supplements, thankfully and yeah, so they don't do that. So it just goes to show you that beta carotene within like carrots or sweet potato is so good for us and has so many benefits. But it actually needs to work with the other things within the carrots or the sweet potatoes and the other antioxidants and all of the other nutrients that are in there. In order for it to be really good for us, when we pull it out on its own, it's not as good for us. 

And so you have the same thing with when you have the vitamins and minerals in multivitamins, they're certainly not deadly. So I'm not saying that by any means. But they're not as good as if you can actually get those from actual foods. Now, the last problem is that different vitamins and minerals work in conjunction in our body, and we need to keep it balanced. Now our body has mechanisms that keeps all of the absorption of different vitamins and minerals in our body kind of imbalance when we're getting them from food. But when we get a really concentrated dose of from a supplement or something, then our body can't cope with it as much and it can actually throw out the balances of absorption and mean that we miss out on other nutrients. 

So one really good example of this is with calcium. So calcium, iron, and zinc, are all essential for our bodies. But if we have too much of one of them, then we can end up not being able to absorb enough of the other two. And so, if you have a lot of calcium, because our body needs a lot more calcium, so you're gonna have much higher amount of calcium in a multivitamin, or other supplements if you're having that. And so getting a lot of calcium from a supplement and then if you put in something like a fortified soy milk, which is also quite high in calcium, you can actually end up and this is if your kids are drinking a lot of soy milk, and they're having a multivitamin. 

So it can mean that the kids are actually getting too much calcium and that will actually stop them from absorbing as much iron or zinc. There are lots of different ones where as I said, if we're getting it from food, our body is able to work it out. Whereas if you're having a really concentrated dose from a supplement, then it can mean that our body doesn't absorb other important nutrients because we're getting too much from a multivitamin or other supplements. All right, so what do you do instead? 

Okay, so first off, it's really important that if you suspect your child or you or your partner has any deficiencies, it's really important that you go to your GP, and you get tested to see if they have them. Now, last week's podcast episode was all about actually what to do if you get diagnosed with a iron deficiency. It's a similar process for any other deficiency. Definitely listen to that one for my steps on how to actually deal with a nutrition deficiency. Yeah, and that will walk you through what the doctors supposed to do to they're not supposed to just sit there and tell you to eat red meat. So have a listen to that one. 

So the first thing you need to do is if you do have a nutrition deficiency, then you need to work with your GP through testing and stuff and then yes, you should be supplementing but you should be supplementing the mineral or the vitamin that you're deficient in not just having everything. The next thing is that you supplement vitamin B12 and Omega 3. So actually it's not omega threes that you need, it's omega threes convert into EPA and DHA which is what our body actually uses, that's the form that our bodies use. So you need an EPA and DHA supplement. 

Now I am putting in the show notes, you can download it's I've put together a nutrition guide for you. So it talks about the key nutrients that your kids need, and the supplements and so it has a really good guide there and has foods and stuff for them too. So make sure you grab that because it does give you information about B12 and the EPA and DHA. You also need to talk to your GP about iodine and vitamin D. So those ones it really depends on where you live as to whether your your kids actually need supplements in Australia are bright Red is fortified with iodine and we often use a small amount of iodized salt. And so, if you have bread and a little bit of salt, that's actually enough iodine for you, it's really important that you don't supplement iodine without speaking to your GP, because you can overdose on it really easily. 

So it's really important to have a good balance, oh, and seaweed seaweeds a really good source too. But some seaweed are very high in iodine, so you don't want to have too much of those. Now, the other one is vitamin D. So vitamin D we get from the sun. So it really depends on where you live, and your skin and all sorts of things like that. So that's one that you really need to work out with your GP or your doctor, rather than just doing a blanket supplement, that's in Australia. So I do know in the UK that vitamin D is very important because you don't get as much sun as we do and parts of America as well. So yeah, that one depends on where you live. So once you've got those supplements, and those are important, then what you need to do is work on making sure that your child's diet is full of the important nutrients iron, zinc, and calcium.

So I have podcast episodes, which talk about those, make sure you go through those. Also, my snack recipes are really high in them. I was going through and some of the snacks have a child's full daily iron requirement in one chocolate pudding. Yeah, they're really packed full of it. So iron, zinc and calcium are really important but there are plenty of ways to make sure that your kids are getting enough. And then the other important vitamins that you need to worry about are vitamin A, vitamin C and vitamin K, which we do have to get from fruits and vegetables. 

So if your kids aren't really high fruits and vegetables eaters, then it's really important that you focus on making sure that they're getting lots of orange vegetables in order to focus on vitamin A and high vitamin C fruits, and then some greens for vitamin K as well. Again, in my Snack Book recipes, there are lots of recipes that have these in them. So once again, if your kids don't eat these vegetables straight out, there are options. 

So definitely hop on the waitlist for my snacks book because it will teach you how to get some of those vegetables into your kids. And then, also look out for my course which will be coming up in a few months where I will teach you how to do it all as well. And also make sure that you grab the free nutrition handout down below, which gives you some really great ideas for each of the nutrients as well. All right, I will talk to you again next week.