They look like candy and promise better concentration and a healthy immune system. There are also nutritional supplements specifically for children. But do they also need it?
Many manufacturers have long recognized the youngest as a target group for vitamins, minerals and plant extracts. “Around 14 to 19 percent of children and adolescents between the ages of 12 and 17 regularly take nutritional supplements,” says nutritionist Anke Weißenborn from the Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR). “That’s a significant proportion.” For younger children up to six years old it is still less than ten percent.
“Children’s nutritional supplements are heavily advertised on social media and by influencers, often with statements that are not even permitted,” says Angela Clausen from the North Rhine-Westphalia Consumer Center. “Advertising often suggests that children absolutely need extra vitamins when they are faced with new challenges, for example when they start school,” says the expert.
Are vitamin supplements useful for children?
Higher-earning parents in particular rely on these often quite expensive products, according to the motto: “You can do everything even better.” The children’s vitamin bears from the “Bears with benefits” brand, for example, cost 166 euros per kilo. The founders Marlena Hien and Laurence Saunier explain this, among other things, by saying that instead of “cheap and dangerous” nanoparticles and fillers, they use natural food coloring from sweet potatoes, carrots or blueberries and avoid release agents, fillers and allergens.
But how useful are vitamin supplements for children? The Federal Institute for Risk Assessment is critical of the funds: “We have not found any additional benefit in either children or adults,” says Weißenborn, research associate in the Nutritional Risks, Allergies and Novel Foods section at the BfR. “If we are adequately supplied with food, there is no point in taking additional vitamins and minerals,” says the expert.
Healthy eating in everyday life
Children in Germany are generally provided with sufficient nutrients through their normal diet. Only for a few, such as vitamin D and iodine, the reference value recommended by the German Nutrition Society is not reached by everyone. “But that doesn’t mean that these children are automatically in need,” said Weißenborn. And doctors recommend vitamin D for infants anyway.
“In certain cases, nutritional supplements can be useful, for example in children with metabolic diseases,” says Berthold Koletzko, pediatrician and expert in metabolism and nutrition at Dr. from Haunerschen Children’s Hospital of the University of Munich. There are also certain phases of growth in which there can be gaps in the nutrient supply, for example in omega-3 fatty acids and iron. Ideally, these could be balanced out with a freshly prepared, balanced diet.
Warning: overdose
“But the reality of life for many families is not always reflected in this,” says Koletzko. Hectic pace often determines everyday life, and a healthy diet is not always guaranteed,” says the pediatrician. Nevertheless, he advises against simply buying vitamin supplements. “You should always first ask pediatricians for advice,” says Koletzko.
Anke Weißenborn also recommends having a doctor carry out a diagnosis and seeing whether additional intake of vitamins and minerals is actually advisable. Vitamin supplements could also cause long-term health damage, she warns. “Anything that goes beyond normal physiological needs can be stressful for the body.”
Vitamin D is a prominent example of this. “For years it has been said again and again that we are inadequately supplied and that we should take it additionally to strengthen our immune system.” Cases are now known in which parents have given their children much higher doses than recommended. “This has sometimes led to severe disruption of kidney function,” says Weißenborn.
Overdoses can also occur quickly with other preparations, especially if they resemble sweets. “They are not harmless colorful pills and gummy bears, but contain substances that can cause health damage,” says the expert.
Effects and interactions unmanageable
Another problem from their point of view: “Manufacturers are increasingly enriching their preparations with plant extracts, fatty acids or other substances that have a physiological effect. Hardly anyone can understand what effects and interactions these substances may have in the body .”
It is almost impossible for parents to estimate which dosage is the right one, says Angela Clausen. “The percentages on the packaging, for example, only apply to adults,” says the expert. A study of 33 products for children this year showed that in 13 cases the maximum dosage recommendations for adults were reached or exceeded.
There are no maximum levels across Europe for the addition of micronutrients or other substances to food supplements. “This is a big problem,” said Clausen. Theoretically, every manufacturer can put as much or as little into their products as they want – provided the product is safe.
The BfR has developed maximum limit suggestions for the use of such micronutrients in dietary supplements, but only for people aged 15 and over. “We have not derived any maximum quantity suggestions for children, among other things because this would have encouraged an additional product category,” explains Anke Weißenborn. However, this has still established itself. The BfR has bundled information about micronutrients on “microco-wissen.de”. According to Weißenborn, the platform will be expanded to include information that specifically affects children.
“It is always possible and much more sensible to absorb the nutrients through common foods rather than in isolated form via a pill,” she says. Normal foods also contain other important substances such as fiber. “A vitamin pill cannot replace an apple or a balanced diet.”
“Children who eat a healthy, balanced diet do not need any nutritional supplements – we completely agree with that,” say Marlena Hien and Laurence Saunier. But: “As mothers of four children, we know that this does not always correspond to reality and that many children tend to have a very one-sided diet.”
From Angela Clausen’s point of view, the preparations give the wrong impression: “If I have problems with school, for example, I just have to swallow a pill or eat a vitamin bear and then everything will be fine again,” said the consumer advocate. “What’s really good for children is a varied diet, exercise outside, enough sleep and time with their parents.”