Dietary supplements for children and adolescents

It goes without saying that dietary supplements are a “supplement to food” for children and adolescents, just as they are for adults, as the term suggests. A healthy diet as a basis is particularly important for growing young people, even if it is not easy to implement. Unfortunately, today’s food no longer contains the same amount of nutrients as it did a few decades ago.

Nutrient requirements for children and adolescents

The energy requirements of adolescents are very high as they are growing. Bones, muscles, brain and organs are developing and the metabolism is working at full speed. Children, at least, are usually on the move more than adults and have a lot to learn. Their young bodies need a wide range of macro and micronutrients to provide them with the energy they need. This is why a nutrient-rich diet is so important for children and adolescents. They get urgently needed micronutrients and secondary plant substances by eating vegetables, fruit, berries, wholemeal products and pulses. Carbohydrates, proteins and fats are also very important nutritional components, but it is the quality and quantity that counts. Low-quality fats, sugar and harmful food additives should be kept to an absolute minimum, but often make up a large proportion of today’s diet. Admittedly, encouraging children and young people to adopt healthy eating behaviour sometimes requires an extra dose of creativity and patience.

Nutrient deficiencies

As a study* shows, children and adolescents may well have deficiencies in some micronutrients, which can have a particularly negative effect on them when they are still in the middle of their development. Targeted supplementation with high-quality food supplements can therefore be considered. However, there are some important points to bear in mind. Food supplements are not intended to replace a balanced diet, but to supplement it. Furthermore, high quality is relevant; they must not contain any questionable additives. The supplements do not necessarily have to come in the form of funny gummy animals or colourful tablets, as such dosage forms almost always require the use of harmful additives such as coating agents, separating agents, gelling agents or sweeteners.

Dosage suggestion

Which dietary supplements could be useful should always be clarified on an individual basis. When it comes to dosage, it should be noted that the requirement for children should not simply be adjusted to their age or body weight, as this tends to be higher than for adults. The following rough dosage suggestion can help you to find the right dosage:

1-3 years: 33% of the adult dosage (selenium 20%)

4-6 years: 50% of the adult dosage (selenium 30%)

7-10 years: 66% of the adult dosage (selenium 50%)

11-14 years: 100% of the adult dosage (selenium 80%)

From 15 years: 100% of the adult dosage

*VeChi-Youth study: Cross-sectional study between October 2017 and January 2019 with a total of 401 children / adolescents between 6 and 19 years in Germany
https://vechi-youth-studie.de/ergebnisse/