Child calcium supplementation can be said to be a very common thing. Many parents, in order to ensure their children's healthy growth and not fall behind, always try various methods to supplement calcium for their children. However, many people overlook the most important question: how to supplement calcium? Based on this, I have a few pieces of advice for parents to avoid the pitfalls of calcium supplementation.
1. Set calcium supplementation goals
If there is sufficient intake of dairy products and dark green vegetables in the daily diet, combined with other regular dietary habits, there is no need for additional calcium supplementation.
2. Pay attention to the calcium content
Most calcium supplements will directly indicate the amount of calcium they contain, but some products may list the total amount of calcium compounds instead. These are not the same thing. If you can't understand it yourself, you can ask the pharmacy staff.
3. Good taste doesn't necessarily mean good effect
Some calcium supplements claim to have added milk, fruit juice, etc., which may have a better taste, but it doesn't necessarily mean they are "high-end". For example, fruit-flavored calcium tablets are often used as calcium supplements for children. If you carefully look at the ingredients, they are just added sugar, citric acid, and flavorings to improve the taste, but sugar and flavorings have no health benefits. Even if it is real fruit juice, the small amount in one tablet cannot have a significant health effect. If a child mistakenly treats the sour and sweet calcium tablets as candy and eats multiple tablets at once, it is not a good thing. Excessive calcium intake can have side effects, so you must be extra careful. Note that you should keep the calcium tablets in a place where the child cannot find them and provide them in the appropriate dosage every day.
4. Choose easily swallowable products
Choose small and slender calcium tablets to avoid swallowing difficulties or getting stuck in the esophagus.
Choose small and chewable calcium tablets. When young children are eating, they should be supervised by adults to prevent the risk of choking.
Powdered calcium supplements can also be used for young children. Mix them in liquid foods like porridge, soup, or puree for safe and convenient consumption.
5. Take calcium supplements with meals
Calcium, vitamin D, and vitamin K are all nutrients, not ordinary drugs. They are normal components of food, so there is no need to take them on an empty stomach like medication. You can take one tablet immediately after a meal, or even during the meal.
6. Separate calcium supplements from soy products
Milk and soy products already contain a lot of calcium. When the total amount of calcium becomes too high, the absorption rate per unit of time may decrease. However, calcium tablets are suitable to be taken with fruits and vegetables because the vitamin C in fruits and vegetables helps with the absorption of calcium. Although some vegetables have astringent taste and contain oxalic acid, most of it can be removed by blanching and it will not significantly affect the utilization of calcium.
7. Calcium supplementation is not needed every day
Some parents, after seeing advertisements for calcium supplementation and being misled, think that their children may be calcium deficient. Coincidentally, their children are teething or going through a growth spurt, so these parents buy various calcium tablets and give them to their children every day. In reality, these parents do not know whether their children are actually calcium deficient. This casual calcium supplementation is not appropriate and is not recommended by doctors. The reality is not as severe as the advertisements claim, and most children are not calcium deficient. Before supplementing calcium for your baby, you should first determine if they are calcium deficient.
8. More vitamin D in calcium supplements is not necessarily better
The first choice for calcium supplementation is products that contain vitamin D? The China Consumers Association reminds consumers to be cautious when taking calcium supplements with excessive amounts of added vitamin D, as taking too much can lead to vitamin D toxicity.
A direct and common phenomenon of calcium supplementation is that it can easily cause constipation in babies. The calcium proportion in formula milk is much higher than in breast milk, but it cannot be fully utilized. In cases of inadequate hydration, excessive calcium makes the stool harder and causes difficulty in bowel movements. In addition, although milk contains a high amount of calcium and phosphorus, the absorption is poor. Therefore, the incidence of rickets is higher in infants fed with milk compared to those fed with breast milk.
