Despite a parent’s best efforts to provide their child with an overall healthy and well-balanced diet, the reality is that most children are not getting the complete nutrition they need.

National nutrition surveys confirm that children are not consuming the recommended number of food group servings based on the Food Guide Pyramid, with 63% of 2-9 year-olds not consuming enough fruit, 78% not consuming enough vegetables, and only 12.7% consuming two or more servings of whole grains per day. [i],[ii]

In a recent study, 25%–30% of infants and toddlers ages 9 months to 24 months did not eat fruits or vegetables on a given day. In fact, French fries were the most commonly consumed vegetable for infants and toddlers 15–24 months of age, and an astounding 46% of 7- to 8-month-olds regularly consumed some type of dessert, sweet, or sweetened beverage.[iii]

Studies also have found that children and adolescents may not be getting the recommended amounts of vitamins A, C, D, and E, as well as the minerals calcium and magnesium.[iv] In fact, based on the Healthy Eating Index (a tool used by the USDA to measure the diet quality of Americans) most diets of 2-9 year-olds were found to be “poor” or “need improvement.”[v]

To make matters worse, trends in food consumption indicate children are eating larger portions; drinking less milk (but more fruit juice and soda); eating more calorie-rich, nutrient poor meals away from home; and skipping breakfast.[vi] These poor food choices and unhealthful eating trends are fueling the childhood obesity epidemic as well as increasing the prevalence of diseases that rarely were diagnosed in children until the past 15 years—including hypertension, elevated cholesterol, arthritis and other orthopedic problems, and a frightening increase in the diagnoses of type 2 diabetes.

Given these unhealthful eating trends and suboptimal nutrient intakes—combined with the fact that many essential nutrients are not stored in the body and must be supplied in the diet on a regular basis—parents should be encouraged to provide their infants, toddlers, and young children with a comprehensive multivitamin-multimineral supplement to fill in nutritional gaps caused by dietary shortfalls.

Another nutritional challenge most children face today is getting adequate amounts of omega-3 fatty acids from the foods they eat. Omega-3 fatty acids play an important role in proper growth and development of the brain, eyes, and nervous system. Many organizations, including the Institute of Medicine’s Food and Nutrition Board, the World Health Organization (WHO), the American Dietetic Association, and Dietitians of Canada, recommend increased consumption of omega-3 fatty acids in children.[vii],[viii],[ix] Yet studies indicate most American and Canadian children aren’t getting much omega-3 from their diet.[x],[xi]

DHA—or docosahexaenoic acid, one of the omega-3 fatty acids used most readily by the body—is found in fatty fish, yet children consume only 20–50 mg of DHA per day. And because of the growing concerns about environmental contaminants in our fish supply, the FDA and EPA advise young children to limit their fish intake.[xii] Supplementation with a high-quality dietary supplement that uses highly purified fish oil offers a means for safely providing DHA to our children without worrying about the mercury and other environmental toxins present in the fatty fish that provide the food source of DHA.

Estimated        Nutrient           Intake  for       U.S.      Children          Compared       with     the       Daily            Value
NHANES 2003-04 Estimated CSFII 1994-96 Estimated
Key Nutrients Daily Value > 4 yr Nutrient Intakes 2-5 yrs‡ Nutrient Intakes 9 yrs and under†
Calcium 1,000 mg 1,003 mg 100% DV 870 mg 87% DV
Iron 18 mg 12.6 mg 70% DV 13.5 mg 75% DV
Vitamin D** 400 IU n/a n/a 236 IU** 59% DV
Vitamin K 80 mcg 38.3 mcg 48% DV n/a n/a
Vitamin E 30 IU 6.4 IU 21% DV 9 IU 30% DV
Thiamin 1.5 mg 1.39 mg 93% DV 1.39 mg 93% DV
Niacin 20 mg 16.7 mg 84% DV 16.6 mg 83% DV
Vitamin B6 2 mg 1.55 mg 78% DV 1.47 mg 74% DV
Folate 400 mcg 136 mcg 34% DV 247 mcg 62% DV
Vitamin B12 6 mcg 5 mcg 83% DV 3.65 mcg 61% DV
Magnesium 400 mg 203 mg 51% DV 205 mg 51% DV
Zinc 15 mg 9.4 mg 63% DV 9 mg 60% DV
Copper 2 mg 0.9 mg 45% DV 0.8 mg 40% DV
Fiber ~25-30 g 10.8 g 25%-36% DV 10.8 g 25%-36% DV

†Data from U.S. Department of Agriculture Continuing Survey of Food Intakes by Individuals (CSFII) 1994-96.

‡Data from What We Eat in America, NHANES 2003-04, U.S.D.A. 2007.

**Data from: Journal of Nutrition 2005;135:2478-85.

 

[i] Position of the American Dietetic Association: Dietary guidance for healthy children ages 2 to 11 years. JADA 2004;104:660-77.

[ii] Harnack L, Walters SA, Jacobs DR. Dietary intake and food sources of whole grains among children and adolescents: Data from the 1994-96 continuing survey of food intakes by individuals. JADA 2003;103:1015-19.

[iii] Fox MA, Reidy K. Novak T. Sources of energy and nutrients in the diets of infants and toddlers. J. Am Diet Association. 2006;106:S28-S24.

[iv] Report card on the diet quality of children. Nutrition Insights: A publication for the USDA Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion. October 1998.

[v] Report card on the diet quality of children. Nutrition Insights: A publication for the USDA Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion. October 1998.

[vi] Report card on the diet quality of children. Nutrition Insights: A publication for the USDA Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion. October 1998.

[vii] National Academy of Sciences Institute of Medicine—Food and Nutrition Board. Dietary reference intakes for energy, carbohydrate, fiber, fat, fatty acids, cholesterol, protein and amino acids. 2002-05.

[viii] Information obtained on 3.13.09 from: www.issfal.org.uk/recommendations- of-others.html.

[ix] American Dietetics Association. Position of the American Dietetics Association and Dietitians of Canada: Fatty acids J Am Diet Assoc. 2007;107:1599-1611.

[x] Madden SM, Garrioch CF, Holub BJ. Diet quantification indicates low intakes of (n-3) fatty acids in children 4 to 8 years old. J Nutr. 2009;139:528-32.

[xi] Ervin RB, Write JD, Wang C. et al. Dietary intake of fats and fatty acids for the United States population: 1999-2000. Advanced Data. Vital and Health Statistics, Number 348, 2004.

[xii] Obtained on 3.24.09 at http://www.epa.gov/waterscience/fish/files/MethylmercuryBrochure.pdf