I found a good multivitamin liquid that James will take!

[COElizabeth]

I've posted this in response to some questions about iron and vitamin C, but I thought I'd post separately since it's such a good find for me. James hates the Poly-Vi-Sol multivitamin liquid, and I recently discovered a multivitamin liquid he loves. It's peach flavored and made by a company called Schiff. It has iron and most of the standard vitamins, and it smells much better (I think) than the Poly-Vi-Sol. James begs for more. I bought it at Whole Foods. HTH anyone looking for a good multivitamin liquid!

Elizabeth, Mom to James, 9-20-02

[Torey]

My main concern w/ iron drops is the possiblity of staining DD's teeth. Do all iron drops do this? And can you just brush their teeth to prevent staining?

[lfp2n]

Hi Elizabeth

DDs hemoglobin was at 11.2 on her 12 month check up last week so they said thats the low end of OK so she needs spplementation as she won't eat iron fortified food like baby cereal and doesn't have formula (shes mostly breats and some cows milk) and doesn't eat red meat. I looked in Whole Foods for the Schiff but they say they don't carry that brand- do you think its the sort of thing they have in a health food stores?

At the moment I'm getting her to take PolyViSol with Iron but it smells disgusting and its getting increasingly difficult to hide it. I was wondering why people don't like this brand in general- is it 'more' artificial than other brands, I mean theyre all a bunch of chemicals like ascorbic acid.

Also I wondered if any one knows whether polyVisol or Schiff stains the teeth like the previous poster says.

For anyone who hasn't given iron- be warned it looks pretty scary on the way out!

lucy and DD (3/27/03)

[COElizabeth]

I think there is the possibility of tooth staining with any iron-containing drops, but my understanding is that if it happens, it is temporary, and that you can minimize staining by brushing the teeth after giving the drops. I always give James his vitamins at breakfast or dinner when I know he will have his teeth brushed relatively soon afterwards. I did the same thing when he did take the Poly-Vi-Sol drops, and I didn't notice any discoloration of the teeth. He's never taken any of them every single day for a long period of time, so maybe there will be discoloration at some point, but on the other hand, his teeth may get stained from eating too many blueberries, too! I was worried about it at first, but when I read that any discoloration was temporary, I decided to stop worrying about it and just be sure to brush his teeth. FWIW, the Shiff is not nearly as dark as the Poly-Vi-Sol, so it doesn't "seem" as likely to stain, but I don't know if that is true.

My main objection to the Poly-Vi-Sol liquid was that James would spit it out! The Schiff doesn't have any artificial colors or flavors, and that's nice, but my main concern was getting something he would take.

I bought it at the Whole Foods store in Austin while on vacation; I am not sure yet if the ones in Colorado carry it. The distributor is Schiff Products, Salt Lake City, UT 84104, 800-526-6251, www.schiffvitamins.com

HTH.

Elizabeth, Mom to James, 9-20-02

[JElaineB]

I don't know that PolyViSol is more "artifical" than other vitamin supplements - it just smells (and I'm sure tastes) gross!! Ascorbic acid is just vitamin C. In fact, all vitamins are "chemicals" whether you get them in natural foods or in supplement form. Getting them from foods *is* probably best, though. But if the ped recommends supplementing (or if you feel it is necessary) then getting a brand that your child will actually take is probably the best one!