Despite the fact that we’re doing better than a lot of families in this regard, my brood still don’t come close, on most days, to getting their “five a day” in servings of fruits and vegetables as recommended by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). I have to admit that on some days, I fall far short of this requirement myself.

We aren’t alone in this. Of American children aged 2 to 19, only 33 percent consume the daily minimum of fruits (two daily servings) and vegetables (three daily servings) required for good health. And even those children who are doing pretty well in this regard are consuming their fruits and veggies in less-than-optimal forms: more fruit juices and less raw fruit; and more potatoes (including French fries) and fewer dark green and orange vegetables. In fact, almost half the vegetables consumed by children in the U.S. are white potatoes, and 25 percent of those potatoes are fried! One study, published in the Journal of the American College of Nutrition, found that in a week’s time, none of the preschoolers enrolled in the study ate five servings of fruit and vegetables per day. Most ate less than a half-serving of vegetables and only two servings per day of fruit—with one of those servings usually in the form of juice.

The consequences of this kind of poor nutrition are becoming increasingly obvious. Childhood obesity, a direct consequence of a diet too full of calorie-dense, nutrient-poor foods, can lead a child to developing type 2 diabetes, kidney problems, asthma, early puberty, liver disease, sleep disorders, and anxiety or depression that spring from poor self-image and bullying or teasing by peers.

Even a child who is not overweight or obese is prone to subclinical nutrient deficiencies when he or she subsists for years on end on a diet loaded with junk and lacking nutrient-packed vegetables, fruits, and whole grains. Such deficiencies aren’t large enough to cause outright deficiency disease, but research suggests that physical health, emotional well-being, and academic achievement are all affected by even a slight lack of essential nutri- ents. When a child does not consume adequate antioxidant and anti-inflammatory compounds from vegetables and fruit, this lack can affect growth, development, and attention span. On top of this burden is the fact that most children’s diets are loaded with dietary “no-nos” such as artificial colorings, flavorings, refined sugars, and preservatives. Many of these chemicals have been linked to behavioral and learning difficulties.

When a rapidly growing, developing child doesn’t get adequate nutrition, health later in life can be adversely affected. Getting that “five a day” can make a big difference. For example: according to the USDA, simply meeting the minimum requirements to consume five servings of fruits and vegetables per day could reduce cancer rates by 20 percent.

As someone who writes often about health and nutrition, I’ve known all of this for years—since long before I gave birth to my first child. Even as I’ve tried my hardest to get my kids to eat plenty of vegetables and fruits, I’ve been inclined to seek out supplements to help ensure that my children’s bases are covered. Several types have come and gone in our home; the ones I think are the best in terms of nutrition, bioavailability, and freedom from unwanted ingredients end up being the ones the kids won’t swallow because they don’t like the taste. For some time now, I’ve caved and bought their favorite vitamin supplement: the one that delivers a few isolated, synthetic vitamins in the form of a very sweet, artificially colored gummy bear. Although they’re delicious, they’re not filling my children’s requirements.

Fortunately for me—and for any other parent or caregiver who is concerned about their child’s need for a daily multinutrient supplement—New Chapter has combined wholesome, organic fruits and vegetables, natural fruit flavors, and their trademark probiotic culturing process to yield a highly digestible, bioavailable, comprehensive, and palatable kids’ multivitamin: EveryKid.

EVERYKID—FULL OF THE GOOD STUFF, WITH NO “NO-NOs”

With their probiotically cultured, whole-food complexed vitamin and herbal supplements, New Chapter has raised the bar for supplement makers everywhere. Their products are essentially highly concentrated, organic whole foods—whole foods that pack a well-documented nutritional punch. It’s no surprise that when this company turned its focus on crafting the ideal children’s multi, it created a product that is pure and flavorful, and that contains a valuable spectrum of vitamins and phytonutrients.

For thousands of years, people have used friendly bacteria to culture whole foods such as milk (to make yogurt) or cabbage (to make kimchi) or soy (to make miso). It is well known that this process enhances the body’s ability to digest the food, and actually facilitates the production of novel and important versions of the nutrients that are significant for human health. New Chapter cultures whole foods with friendly bacteria found in synbiotics such as Saccharomyces cerevisiae and strains of Lactobacillus acidophilus to enhance the nutritive value and digestibility of these foods when in concentrated supplement form.

New Chapter’s EveryKid contains 100 percent of the daily requirement for vitamins A, C, D3, E, B1, B2, niacin, pantothenic acid, B6, folate, B12, biotin, and vitamin K. Its two flavors—Brilliant Berries and Awesome Apple—are naturally sweetened with organic cane juice, and contain fruit concentrates that are rich in antioxidant phytonutrients.

THE RISKS OF INADEQUATE VITAMIN NUTRITION—AND THE BENEFITS OF GETTING ENOUGH

Nutritional researchers have discovered that subclinical vitamin deficiencies can have a significant impact on children’s health and that supplementation can reverse the ill effects caused by these deficiencies, benefiting health in many ways:

Reduce Respiratory Infections

Subclinical vitamin D deficiency has been linked to severe, acute lower respiratory infections. As more and more children are exclusively breastfed (vitamin D levels in breast milk are dictated by the levels in the mother’s body, so deficiency is passed from mother to child) and protected almost completely from the sun (which stimulates vitamin D production in the skin), vitamin D deficiency is becoming increasingly common in American children. A government study found that the daily recommended intake level for vitamin D is met by less than 70 percent of American children.

Increase Immune Function

With all that’s currently known about the dangers of antibiotics and antibiotic-resistant bacteria, and with some really nasty kinds of infection striking people of all ages, it’s especially important to keep children’s immune systems in tip-top shape. This means a combination of adequate rest, daily exercise, a clean (preferably organic) whole-food diet, as low-stress an existence as possible, and a good multivitamin.

Swiss scientists, in a study published in the British Journal of Nutrition, October, 2007, write that “micronutrient deficiency suppresses immunity by affecting innate, T-cell-mediated and adaptive antibody responses,” which then leads to increased susceptibility to infection. These researchers explain that micronutrients (like those in EveryKid) support the integrity of skin and mucous membranes, which helps to prevent the invasion of bacteria and viruses. These nutrients also enhance cellular immunity—the amazing mechanisms used by the body to target and kill off pathogenic invaders—and enhance antibody production, which means a better response to vaccinations and a faster, more efficient mounting of the body’s defenses against viral infections.

Vitamin C plays a role in boosting immune function—which, as any parent knows, is essential for children who attend school and seem to pick up every bug that comes through. Good nutrition makes a huge difference in a child’s ability to resist or bounce back quickly from frequent infections, and studies show that subclinical nutrient deficiencies may be an important factor in children who seem to catch bug after bug after bug.

Lower Risk of Type 1 Diabetes

Some research points to a link between vitamin D deficiency and risk of developing type 1 diabetes in early childhood.

Increase Brain Function and Development

A study from the Food and Nutrition Bulletin, September, 2006, performed on Indian schoolchildren, found that supplementing at each meal with a combination of vitamins A, B2, B6, B12, folate, niacin, calcium, C, E, and the amino acid lysine significantly improved hematocrit (their blood’s concentration of oxygen-carrying hemoglobin molecules) and their performance on a broad spectrum of intelligence tests. Children who didn’t get the supplements actually saw a downward slide in test performance and poorer hematocrit scores.

Folate deficiency in a pregnant mother is now known to cause neural tube defects—problems where the fetal spinal cord does not completely close up. Deficits in B12 are known to adversely affect an infant’s brain development. Deficiency of both of these nutrients are linked to depression. Scientists believe that the causes of lack of folate and B12 in these health problems are two-fold: first, because of the role of these vitamins play in forming the fatty myelin sheath around nerve cells—a sheath that is essential for proper speed of nerve conduction; and second, because both vitamins are important modulators of healthy tissue growth and inflammatory processes.

Packaged in what New Chapter calls “tongue-tingling powder pouches,” EveryKid is convenient and fun for kids to take: they simply tear the package open and pour the powder into their mouths or into a glass of water. Up to three packets a day can be used. There’s no need to keep this vitamin out of reach of children—a warning given by many other children’s vitamins. This supplement is free of the “no-nos” that crop up in so many other children’s multis. It contains no gluten, no artificial colors, no artificial flavors, no synthetic vitamin isolates, and no aspartame or refined sugar. It’s cultured, whole-food complexed nutrition.

A Note on Mineral Nutrition

In order to provide families with the safest possible nutrition for children age four and older, New Chapter chose not to include minerals in this formulation. I asked New Chapter’s Director of Medical Education, Taryn Forrelli, N.D., why this choice had been made. She told me, “EveryKid does contain trace amounts of minerals, as it’s made from whole foods that contain minerals. Their bioavailability is increased through the culturing process. After nearly 15 years of testing cultured-mineral formations, however, we found that their taste was too strong to mask with the natural, simple ingredients we use in our products. Paul Schulick, New Chapter’s founder and formulator, decided to avoid sprinkling in extra synthetic trace minerals, as many manufacturers do, and to leave cultured minerals out to ensure that the product would please childrens’ sensitive palates.”

Fortunately, whole-food mineral nutrition is very easy to integrate into a child’s diet. Some tips:

• Sea vegetables and leafy green vegetables contain enormous stores of minerals. Try making your own vegetable broth with three quarts of water, three whole potatoes, a few stalks of celery, and a handful of leafy greens (think kale, carrot or beet tops, parsley, cabbage, collard greens), and some kelp or wakame. Add other vegetables you like—I enjoy carrot, onion, and garlic in my broths. Strain and use to make soups or as a cooking liquid for rice. Some children may even enjoy sipping this broth on its own.

• Whole-milk, organic yogurt, organic cheeses, and tofu are good sources of calcium and magnesium.

• Whole grains and nuts are rich in minerals. Try brown rice and sprouted-grain breads; try almonds, cashews and Brazil nuts.

Resources

New Chapter’s extensive line of supplements is available at health food stores nationwide. To learn more, visit www.newchapter.com or call 800-543-7279.

Copyright 2008. All rights reserved.