A lot of readers have been asking me lately what kind of vitamins my kids take and the answer is…none at all. Vitamins aren’t necessarily harmful or going to cause medical problems when they're used properly, but it’s not something we personally choose to deal with (or pay for).
First of all, we pretty much rely on our steady diet of whole foods (including lots of variety and plenty of produce) when it comes to getting all the vitamins and minerals we need. No one does a better job than nature when it comes to creating the perfect delivery package for the nutrients your body needs. Secondly, in Michael Pollan’s book In Defense of Food he indicates that those who take supplements may be “healthier for reasons having nothing to do with the pills” because in controlled studies most supplements “don’t appear to work.”
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Now a lot of doctors and nutritionists do recommend taking a daily multi-vitamin, and, since you should of course take your doctor’s advice over mine, I want to share some of the better vitamin brands that are out there. My doctor recently recommended that I take a short term Vitamin D booster, based on my most recent blood results, and when I was out shopping for this vitamin I couldn’t believe how many of them are full of junky additives! Vitamins, especially for kids, are oftentimes full of artificial sweeteners, colorings, and flavorings. I’ve found that there is a bigger – and better – selection if you shop at places like Amazon.com as well as stores that are dedicated to vitamins and health like Swanson Health Products or your local Vitamin Shoppe. I’ll warn you now to just forget Target when it comes to shopping for vitamins because the choices there are pretty slim.
So for all those that feel better about taking (or giving their kids) a regular multivitamin, here are a few "cleaner" options:
- For children: Yummi Bears Organics Gummy Multivitamin
- - For adults: Dr. Mercola Whole Food Multivitamin PLUS
- - For adults or children (dosage varies): Doc's Best Ultra-Pure Naturals Multi-Plus Optimal Vitamins-Minerals-Antioxidants
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Remember that with most anything you get what you pay for, and this is especially true for vitamins! Do you use vitamins or not? What kind of vitamins do you recommend?
Jill says
I agree that most supplements are full of far too much junk to be worth their while, but unfortunately food is not as nutritious as it used to be. In particular, produce. Modern agricultural practices have removed a large portion of the nutrients from the soil which impacts the nutritional value of the crop. This also has a trickledown effect on meat and dairy because the animals are not getting as many nutrients either. Because of this, I take supplements but make sure to research and find high quality versions.
Heather says
I take New Chapter organics whole food vitamins. I am using through the rest of our Yummi Bears gummy vitamins for the kids, and then I plan to stop those and give them a pro-biotic supplement and cod liver oil (I haven't decided what brands yet).
Erika says
I personally have taken Vit D 5000 units the last 2 winters after being found to be quite deficient. I also take Green Pastures fermented Cod Liver Oil for Omega 3's. We eat a paleo diet so I don't take a regular supplement nor do I give our kids one.
Tiffani says
I recently started taking Every Woman's One Daily multivitamin by New Chapter. It's a whole-food supplement made from certified organic vegetables and herbs.
Chandra says
Have you looked at the Shaklee Incredivites? They are all natural and have a lot more nutrients per serving than the recommended products in this post, including Vitamin K, D3 and Iron. I'd be happy to send you a link to review.
Amy says
I also give my children Shaklee Incredivites. I would love an outside opinion on how they stack up against other vitamins. My kids are incredibly healthy and we are happy with it.
Josh says
Shaklee has five different multivitamins evaluated in the Nutrisearch Comparative Guide to Nutritional Supplements. Two products received a 1.5 out of 5 stars and three received only 1 out of 5 stars.
Assistant to 100 Days (Jill) says
Hi Chandra. I have not looked at the Shaklee products. I believe others have shared some thoughts on those in the comments to the post. Jill
Josh says
As a nutritionist I feel I must chime in and say that I fully support and recommend at least a pharmaceutical grade multivitamin. The main issue I have with supplements is the lack of quality. This is why it is important to look at reputable third party reviews to determine how your brand stacks up. The best is the Nutrisearch Comparative Guide to Nutritional Supplements. You can get it at Amazon. I must also put an end to the Juice Plus commercial happening on these comments. The bottles don't list the amounts of vitamins and minerals on the bottles because they don't want you to compare the product to a multivitamin. They want you to compare it to "whole food". The research shows that while Juice Plus claims to be "whole food" and "natural" the fact is that the Juice Plus capsules contain a variety of synthetic vitamin additives and non-nutritive fillers and only about 25% juice powders by weight. Spend your money on REAL whole foods, not Juice Plus.
Renee says
I'm so glad to see someone else that uses the Nutrisearch Comparative Guide to Nutritional Supplements. I love this book & the children's version.I have friends that thought they were doing there kids a favor by giving them a supplement till I showed them the rating of what they were filing there kids with. Yikes! We love USANA and are so thankful that we found the guide and the supplements. We had tried lots of things, Juice Plus, Shakelee, Arbonne, Meleluca you name it we tried it. Only since USANA has my Ulcerative Colitis gone into remition! yahoo! I would advise everyone to get the book. Not sure if the library has it but we also bought our from Amazon.
Wendi Wilkins says
Josh, I have been looking for almost a year for a well-researched rebuttal to Juice + because I have a Facebook friend who is CONSTANTLY promoting his Juice + "opportunity" and I want to know for myself what the product actually contains. I even had to ask this same friend to send me a picture of the ingredient label on a bottle so I could see that much, because they don't publish that ANYWHERE that I could find and, to me, that's a red flag. I also sent this same picture to Food Renegade's Kristen Michaelis and asked her to expose it as part of her "Decoding Labels" series, but she hasn't published anything about Juice + yet. What do you have as far as solid research about what Juice + REALLY contains?
Josh says
Wendi, I have no bias against Juice+ or any of the brands mentioned in these comments. My team of nutritionists is authorized to recommend 9 of the top rated brands of nutritional supplements and we are always looking for what works best for our patients. Our nutrition scientist reviewed and researched Juice+ and even reached out to several nutrition science experts to determine whether we would carry it. If you evaluate it as a multivitamin it is inadequate. Juice+ does not categorize their product as a multivitamin or vitamin at all. They categorize it as a "whole food", which allows them to skirt the issue of not having a detailed nutrient list like most labels. The only documented proof I could show you is what I mentioned above where Juice+ is not natural at all and has synthetic vitamin additives and only about 25% dehydrated juice powder by weight. Email me and I'll send you the details: jostalli(at)hotmail(dot)com
Heather says
Just curios to know if you know anything about Advocare? I am a personal trainer and several other trainers that I work with really push Advocare to clients.
Assistant to 100 Days (Jill) says
Hi Heather. I do not, but, if you take a look through the comments a couple of readers mentioned them. Jill
Josh says
Yes. Advocare is rated at 2 stars out of 5 in the Nutrisearch Comparative Guide to Nutritional Supplements. I would not recommend it.
Brianna says
QUESTION: What additives are you avoiding in your search for "cleaner" supplements? Obviously, I know to avoid artificial flavors/coloring, but have heard negative things about "magnesium stearate" that I see on a lot of vitamins...
Jason Leake with 100 Days of Real Food says
Brianna - I searched for vitamins without artificial flavors/colorings or magnesium stearate. As with many things, the affects of certain additives can be debated, so we typically choose to simply avoid them when possible. The selected vitamins are certainly not the only clean options out there, and may not be the right choice for everyone, but I did want to provide some cleaner examples. Thanks to our readers for all of their suggestions!
Laura Becher says
My family and I also take Juice Plus+ which I discovered at a La Leche League conference. It is the only supplement endorsed by Dr. Sears because it is backed by many independent clinical studies, but mostly because it is completely Whole Food Based and contains 17 raw fruits, veggies, & grains. It boosts our immunity, fills in those gaps on the days when our Real Food intake is a little less Real, and has changed many lives of our friends and family. Synthetic vitamins are unrecognized in our bodies and can do so much more harm than good. Thank you for always educating, enlightening, and encouraging us all to make informed choices for our families! :)
Carol says
We always take vitamin D (1000mg) daily all through the fall & winter (we've already started it for this year) and take more if we feel any symptoms of illness at all and keep it up for a couple weeks after. Most people are severely deprived of vitamin D even those of us who have whole food diets. It's important to remember it's vitamin D3 that we need. Other forms are not what we need. We also keep a good quality vitamin C with bioflavanoids on hand for anytime we may begin feeling ill and use large doses (several grams) as our treatment. We never have to take any 'medications'.
Liesel says
My mother-in-law was in my face a while back about giving my son vitamins. (She takes a gazillion.) I talked to our pediatrician and his answer was ... You can if you want to, but since my son eats a wide variety of foods, it's not necessary. He said should you have a picky eater, then yes, he'd be more inclined to recommend it.
I think it boils down to "eat right" and there is no need to "supplement".
Dr. Harmon says
As another note... Vitamin D is not an essential vitamin, but a hormone. It is essential in our lives which is why you are able to get Vitamin D from sun exposure and you do not have to consume it in foods. A good whole food vitamin will contain the adequate amounts of vitamin D, if you are not able to get in the sun.
Again, any "vitamins" out there that tout themselves as a good replacement for sun are probably synthetic and are going to do you more harm than good. Get your health from food products and from the earth, not synthetically.
Courtney says
My youngest son has to take Vitamin d3 (1000 iu/day) They both have ARPKD an we were told at his last visit to his GI Dr that he needed it. He has a milk allergy when he was younger so he doesn't drink/eat a lot of dairy besides yogurt. Can you recommend a kid friendly vitamin ? he takes the Disney gummy version d3 with Omega 3 simply because I thought it would be a fight to get the liquid.
Assistant to 100 Days (Jill) says
Hi Courtney. I don't have a specific recommendation for vitamin D. I would say obviously it is important to follow your doctor's advice in the case where there is a medical need for vitamins. I am sorry I couldn't be of more help. Jill
Dr. Harmon says
I agree with you on the kids vitamins that are popular and "pushed" on kids. Recent studies have showed that those vitamins (I'm not going to name names) don't even contain the listed or required amounts and have tons of sugar!!
However, I do think that it is very important to supplement your diet with the proper whole food supplements. The reason is because most people do not consume the variety or amounts of foods which contain the adequate vitamins and minerals your body needs to become and stay healthy. We suggest Standard Process to all of our patients because of the reputability and quality of their products... everything is to the highest standards of organic whole foods and herbs. We think that everyone (kids and dogs included) should be taking whole food and Omega-3 supplements.
As another post had stated, you can only get these from a physician, however Juice Plus is another whole food supplement which you can get from a number of people (I just don't care for their multilevel marketing).
Brandy says
Vitamin D is essential. I speak from personal experience which involved my child. If you live in an area in which you do not get plenty of sun year-around or you are a sunscreen NAZI, please, please have your children take a vitamin D supplement. Vitamin D (or lack there-of) is being questioned in a host of diseases. Do yourself a favor...it's worth the chance versus the potential consequence.
Heather says
My kids & family also take juice Plus regularly. It seems like such a natural way to get additional vitamins directly from fruits and veggies.
Lisa says
What brand of vitamin D drops did you decide on?
Amanda creasy says
We use Advocare chewables!
Valerie says
Hello! I don't like the idea of mulitvitamines for kids as the ones they will eat are sugary. I have started given mine Innate Choice Omega 3, vitamin D and probiotics. I give them the same stuff I take, I drop the vitamin D and omega straight into their mouth, they love it. My two year old begs for the omega. The improvements I have seen are amazing! My speech delayed 2 year and a half year old started talking 2 weeks after starting. My 5 year old has had improved concentration. Both of them have been given multivitamins their whole life but the dr (Chiropractor)explained that most vitamins are best received from foods, however the omega, probiotics and vitamin D are not as easy to get enough these days the natural way. http://www.innatechoice.com/
Jadah Sellner says
We stopped vitamins too for the exact same reasons. The top 2-3 ingredients in children's gummy vitamins are things we are trying to avoid putting in our kids' bodies: glucose, sucrose, gelatin. Although, I just started getting B12 injections since I only eat a minimal amount of seafood, and I do feel the energy difference when I take it. We get all of our nutrients from our daily green smoothies and whole real food too. I still want to do more research. Our new favorite green smoothie right now, Almond Butter and Jelly (packed with fresh spinach): http://familysponge.com/simple-green-smoothies/almond-butter-grapes-banana-spinach/
Shandus says
This is something I've struggled to make a decision about. We eat a very healthy diet (we pretty much adhere to the 100 Days of Real Food rules 95% of the time), but I always worry that we're not eating ENOUGH to get all the nutrients we need. I started taking high dosage Vit D drops when I realized I had mild PPD and it helped a ton, and I'll probably start giving my 7 month old daughter Vit D drops as well. I wouldn't worry so much, but we're hoping to have a 2nd baby soon and I want to make sure I'm getting enough while pregnant. I appreciate reading all the recommendations for Juice Plus!
Melissa says
Also.. I forgot to mention in my last post, I also take a liquid vitamin D drop that is recommended by my naturopath. Vitamin D is not found in plants, so my family and I take that on top of Juice Plus, and also fish oils and probiotics when I feel we need them.
Anna says
What about New Chapter vitamins, I thought those were the best.
Assistant to 100 Days (Jill) says
Hi Anna. I am not familiar with that particular brand. Jill
Amy says
I am a huge advocate of vitamins...I don't think we could possibly eat ENOUGH whole foods in one day to get all the nutrients we need. As a previous poster mentioned, the condition of most soil our fruits and veggies are grown in is not ideal, so I don't believe we truly get as many vitamins and minerals from whole foods as we would like to think. I would never give my kids any kind of gummy vitamin, even organic! Way too full of sugar. At this point I am currently taking a B supplement, vitamin D, fish oil, and a probiotic. My 2 year old son is anemic and is currently taking B and iron, in addition to his usual D and probiotic. We take our dr prescribed Biotics Research and Standard Process vitamins.
Melissa says
This is a great post! I follow your blog and love that you are espousing eating whole foods for your family. On one hand, I completely agree with you that we shouldn't need supplements, and that everything that our bodies need is available in nature. I have also read all of Michael Pollan's books and I think the man is a total genius. However, unfortunately, we have distorted nature to such a degree that even those of us who work hard to eat whole foods, locally sourced, organic, etc (I even try to grow some of the food for my family),... that it has become very difficult to get the nutrients that we need every day. It is not just about the vitamins and minerals, it is also all the phytochemicals in the plants, working together in our bodies that provide optimum health. I have three kids, ages 16, 13 and 8, and I never used to give them supplements because I felt exactly as you did. Then, for lack of sounding like a broken record based on the above comments, I found Juice Plus. The commenter above, Ashley, said it best, when she talked about the research behind the product and how we need these phytochemicals and nutrients even more now in our increasingly toxic world. As a holistic practitioner, mom, fitness and yoga instructor, this is now the product that I recommend to my mommy friends, family and clients. Hope this helps... I would also be happy to answer any questions anyone has regarding this topic :) Thanks for writing such a great blog and continually putting out such fantastic, pertinent and incredibly important information!!
Mark says
It's funny that you mention vitamin D in the post. That seems to be the hardest one to get naturally. Of course you get it from the sun, but for those of us who live in the midwest or north, we probably don't get enough sun exposure during the cold weather months. You can of course get it in products fortified with it (cereal, milk, etc...), but a lot of people who try and eat whole foods don't eat much, if any, of those. From what I have read, vitamin D only naturally occurs in large amounts in foods most of us don't eat every day like fatty fish (salmon, herring, tuna) or oysters. And, it only occurs naturally in small amounts in foods you may eat every day like mushrooms and eggs. From what I've read, you'd have to eat like 2 dozen eggs or 9-10 shitaki mushrooms every day to get the "recommended daily allowance".
Eating lots of whole fruits and veggies will probably get you everything else you need.
Carrie says
I take a whole foods multi and Krill oil when I remember. I love how I feel on them- fewer cravings, less junk, less fatigued. Now only to remember it more often ;).
However, I haven't ever had my daughter take a multi. Not that it hasn't crossed my mind, but it just hasn't seemed as important as just making sure she eats a varied, healthy diet (that and I knew the vitamins in Target weren't going to cut it). She's getting to an age where it might come in handy, though, to start looking into it- she's making more of her own food decisions, and therefore more junk has been creeping in (despite my attempts to educate her otherwise)!
Wendy says
Thank you for this post. This is a subject I have been struggling with. I know our diets are less than perfect. Is anyone familiar with AdvoCare? My kids take the Coreplex Chewable Multi and the Purple Champs DHA vitamins. I take some of their supplements as well. If you talk to anyone who sells AdvoCare of course their products are the best. I have read their literature on the benefits of various ingredients but simply do not have the time to fact-check and cross-reference their claims. I am curious on your thoughts on their products. Thank you!
Assistant to 100 Days (Jill) says
Hi Wendy. I am not familiar with AdvoCare. Glad you enjoyed the post...thanks for reading. Jill
Heather says
We do give our kids a vitamin as an insurance policy of sorts. We eat whole foods, mostly locally grown, but our soils are not as good as they once were and many foods aren't as full of nutrients as we wish they were. We use the Nutristars as they are not full of junk. We love our ped, but when he said to give them Flinstones I knew that we wouldn't be doing that. I am glad he (and the NICU Dr. who worked on our 3rd baby) both were on board with not doing infant vitamins, but instead just using a plain old vitamin D drop that our whole family takes in the winter. Last winter the kids were on good vitamins, we all took 1 spoon of coconut oil every morning and vitamin D drops and no one got sick...way different than the winter before and a huge blessing with a newborn in the house!
Ashley says
Like two previous comments: I also take and educate people on Juice Plus. It stands for every principle that is represented in this blog. It’s is researched based (26 studies) that prove it is bioavailable, reduces systemic inflammation (arthritis, immune problems, etc.), improves cardiovascular function, and SO MUCH MORE. It helps us bridge the gap between what we should eat every day and what we actually eat. We live in a toxic world–we NEED way more fruits and veggies than most people can comprehend or even afford. Juice Plus does just that: offers protection against the toxicity and exposure to disease and illness–it’s truly amazing. Let me know if anyone has questions
I'd be more than happy to share more information with anyone interested--leave a reply and I will respond :) Have a wonderful day--happy learning!
christy says
I am interested in buying juice plus but I don't know how to get them...do I order them online or try to find someone in my area who sells them? Are they organic? What all is in the ingredients? Thanks
Ashley says
Like two previous comments: I also take and educate people on Juice Plus. It stands for every principle that is represented in this blog. It's is researched based (26 studies) that prove it is bioavailable, reduces systemic inflammation (arthritis, immune problems, etc.), improves cardiovascular function, and SO MUCH MORE. It helps us bridge the gap between what we should eat every day and what we actually eat. We live in a toxic world--we NEED way more fruits and veggies than most people can comprehend or even afford. Juice Plus does just that: offers protection against the toxicity and exposure to disease and illness--it's truly amazing. Let me know if anyone has questions :)
Erin says
What about prenatals? Any clean suggestions for those?
Deanna says
Mare at Just Making Noise covered Pregnancy Supplements earlier this summer. You might like reading this post: http://just-making-noise.blogspot.com/2012/07/pregnancy-notes-whole-food-supplements.html
Assistant to 100 Days (Jill) says
Hi Erin. I don't have any suggestions for those...although I believe reading through the comments some others have offered some ideas. Jill
Lucy P says
Do you follow Dr. Mercola?
Assistant to 100 Days (Jill) says
Hi Lucy. I've looked at his stuff but don't follow him regularly. Jill
Sherra says
I personally take Mega Foods brand vitamines, as like Dr. Mercola's, they are made from foods and not synthisised. I have been using Baby and Me Herb Free while pregnant and nursing my two children (currently weaning baby number 2.) http://www.megafood.com/for-women/baby-and-me-herb-free
I also take New Chapter's WholeMega Fish Oil too. I appreciate the quality of their products as well. http://www.newchapter.com/fish-oil
I take vitamins becuase I know my diet is less than perfect. I do agree though that our real vitamins should come from a well-rounded diet.
Thank you for your site Lisa! I have learned a lot following you for awhile. Keep up the great work-it is inspirational as you are aiming me down the right track! :)
Chelsea Sacher says
Nature's Sunshine is a great source for vitamins and supplements for kids and adults. My children take a calcium supplement seeing as they don't have dairy. They also take a gummy multi vitamin.
Di says
Actually you're better off waiting a while before brushing as the sugar stays in the saliva. Brush too soon and you're putting the sugar/saliva right onto prime freshly cleaned teeth! This is something my dentist told me
Hannah says
We take Juice Plus. They have an excellent deal when you can get free kid gummies for your 4+ child with adult purchase so it cuts the cost back a bit. They are pure whole foods with none of the extra junk! And my kids think they are candy :) Always a plus!! I even started selling them so that I could afford for everyone in my family to be on them.
Misti says
We take Juice Plus here too and love it! Have been for almost 3 years now and have noticed a definite decrease in the amount of colds we get as well as shortened length of any cold illness. It is worth it just for that alone!
Rosanne says
You might want to be careful with gummy vitamins as they can cause cavities. If you do use them, it might help to brush your kid's teeth right after taking the vitamin.
LMrtz says
Thanks for the vitamin recommandation. Do you have any that contains iron?
Assistant to 100 Days (Jill) says
Hi LMrtz. I don't know off the top of my head, you would have to look at the nutritional information and ingredients. Jill
Sarah says
This is a great whole food Iron supplement!
http://www.amazon.com/Megafood-Blood-Builder-90-tablets/dp/B000F4ZRCC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1390608563&sr=8-1&keywords=megafood+blood+builder
Sarah says
They are alson non GMO
Amy says
Juice Plus offer great vitamins!! All that are in them are dehydrated fruits and veggies - they are a great whole food vitamin! :)
Joyness Sparkles says
I had a pharmacist once (only once as many people understand our moder medical system) tell me to forget vitamins and get on whole foods. He even spent an hour taking me around the grocery store pointing out what to eat and what to avoid. I will never forget him and his kindness. He was one of the first people to open my eyes to our sad state of nutrition in America.
Lesley says
We don't use vitamins either. Both my doctor and our pediatrician have said we don't need to take them b/c of our diet. We eat lots of fruits and veggies and a well rounded balance of meats. Both have said vitamins are usually only needed when you don't have a balanced diet. This is kind of gross but I read somewhere if Americans bottled their pee itwould be the most expensive from all the vitamins we take but don't need. Your body only absorbs what is needed ad the et is eliminated.
Nikki says
We always recommend Standard Process as a vitamin. This is not OTC and requires a dr that issues them, but unlike many vitamins they come from true and natural sources.
Another key test - if you drop a vitamin into a glass of water and it has not completely dissolved in 30 minutes - toss it.