PolyViSol And Breastfeeding?

My baby is just over 2 weeks old and my pediatrician recommended Tri-vi-sol (I'm guessing similar to the one you were recommended) since we are only breastfeeding. It has other vitamins as well and she loves them. I have other friends who are breastfeeding and are doing the same kind of vitamins. Hope that helps!

N.,

I breast fed my baby until she was 14 months old and my pediatrician recommended TriViSol supplements instead. PolyViSol has such a heavy iron taste that my baby still won't take it. PolyViSol has a more pleasant cherry taste. I would give it to her after her morning feeding when I layed her down to change her diaper. Just place the dropper along the inside of her cheek towards the back of her mouth - it will help prevent her from spitting it out. Best of luck to you!

N.,

You certainly don't have to worry about PolyViSol being a new fad or anything. I think I took it when I was a baby, I know my brother did, and certainly my sister. So it's been around for at least 30 years. You may have even taken it - you just may not recognize the name. But when you buy it and open the bottle, you'll remember the smell. :)

~P.

I personally do not feel they are necessary. Breastmilk has lower levels of vitamin D than formula but it's bioavailability is better. I also tend to think the thousands of years of human evolution has probably worked the right balance of things into breastmilk. Just because we don't understand why, doesn't mean it isn't right.

You have to understand that much of a doctor's education on these things comes from the salespeople. I wouldn't do it- and didn't with my three kids. I have never met anyone with rickets or bone deformities due to lack of vitamin D and I work in the healthcare field.

My advice? Call la leche league with any breastfeeding questions. They are AMAZING.

But in all my classes at the hospital and from what my doctors, nurses, and lactation specialists have said, supplements should not be necessary for breastfed babies unless the baby is premature or sick. For eg. if your baby came out jaundiced they might recommend a supplement for the first few days of birth before your milk really comes in. But after that, breastmilk has hundreds of vitamins and minerals that formula does not have, so really it's the formula-fed babies who need the supplements!

Hi N., I brestfeed both my children till they were 15 and 16 months old. My son was born the end of October and my daughter was born the beginning of April. During both of those seasonal times, I never used any supplement or polyvisol drops. My children are very healthy, never had an ear infection to date, knock on wood. I would get a second opinion from another pediatrician. Remember that, she is getting the nutrients through you, so make sure you are taking a multivitamin and eating healthy and drinking plenty of water. Also, take walks outside on sunny days or lay her in a sunny spot a couple on minutes a day to get some natural vitamin D. I know a lot of moms who have breastfeed and not one gave their child drops. Blessings.

Supplements of any kind, vitamins, cow's milk, formula, etc. are not as good as the real thing. Vitamin D is not meant to be given orally. It's not in breastmilk as it's not supposed to be! Take a walk 3 times a week for 15 minutes without sunblock and there is your vitamin D. If I'm correct in this, Poly Vi Sol is made by Enfamil which is a formula company. I guess I'm not willing to trust a formula company in knowing what is good for my breastfed babies. I personally believe that our milk is the very best for our babies and centuries of evolution have perfected it so that it's perfect for our kids.

Hello N.,

I am actually not familiar with a Doctor recommending that to a baby that is breast fed. As long as you are recieving all the nutrients so that you are not going without- your baby is definately getting them. Every Doctor I have spoken with says that a nursed baby really does not need anything else. Now I realize that this may not be the case for all. I would recommend you try another Doctor. One thing I can not tolerate are Doctors who are ignorant- I have met several. Now there are some wonderful Doctors out there who continue to educate themselves. If you feel that you need a better supplement then you should find one- I know SHAKLEE sells wonderful supplements and for you you may want to try the vitalizer (there is one with iron) and there is another product by Homefirst it is "sunshine in a bottle" "proD5" It is D3 with probiotics. If you are taking these then you and your baby will most likely be getting more than enough nutrients. Any questions feel free to contact me.
Here are some links
http://www.homefirst.com/
http://www.shaklee.com/products-vitalizer.shtml
http://www.4woman.gov/Breastfeeding/index.cfm?page=227

Hope this helps
D.

N., I'm not convinced supplementing vitamin D is critical for most babies. My dd was breastfed and wasn't interested in solid foods or vitamin D cows milk until she was over a year. Because she was small, the doc wanted her tested for rickets at one year and her vitamin D level was fine. This was during the winter.

Hi,

My son was exclusively breastfed as well. Our ped. recommended the drops at about 2 months. I tried it for a couple weeks and he would just spit the liquid out so I gave up. He is a healthy guy who didn't seem to miss out on any nutrients without these drops. As long as you are eating a healthy diet and taking a supplement for nursing moms (a prenatal will do just fine) there shouldn't be a problem. Congrats on doing a wonderful job nursing your little one!

N.:
I am stepping in as an internataional board certified lactation consultant

these vitamins are absolutely not needed and unbalance the delicate balance of the vitamins from breastmilk.

WE ALL NEED VITAMIN D... and yes i am shouting... go outside/ take a walk/ do not cover the baby with a blanket. there is an increase in vitamin d in people of all ages due to not getting exposure to sunlight.

if there is a way to get to it/ mothering magazine has had some excellent articles on this. try their website.

P., RLC, IBCLC
Breastfeeding and Parenting Solutions

N.,

When I was nursing the one doctor told me to do that too, but then the nurse told me that is more for african american babies (darker skin). I did buy it, but the taste must be awful because he hated it. I exclusively breast fed all my children (3) and they turned out perfectly fine.

Hope this helps and don't mean to offend if you are african american.

L.

Hi N.;
My doctor recommended the vitamin D right after my daughter was born. He said they are seeing an increase in Rickets a bone disorder in strictly breastfed babies do to lack of vitamin D. He also said that he recommended the tri-vi-sol because babies don't need the iron. I asked what the risk would be if I didn't want to give it to my daughter and he said he would monitor her for signs of rickets but as long as I kept the windows open and had her in the sunlight in the house I didn't really need to worry. He also assured me there was no downside of giving it to her I just don't like the idea of the artificial stuff in my baby yet.

Hi, I know alot of people gave their experiences, but one more!!! I exclusively breastfed both of my kids, and their Pediatrician suggested the PolyVisol as well - and I gave it to them. I figured better safe then sorry, as I did not want to have to have them get blood from them to see...Vitamins will not hurt anyone!!!
All the best......

Hi N.,

You may want to ask your ped about carlson's infants vitamin D drops. I have a bottle of trivisol and when that runs out I am switching to the infant D drops based on my peds recommendation. It is a little more expensive but you only use a drop and it lasts a year. I have a really hard time giving my 3 month old the trivisol because she spits it out and it gets everywhere. My ped also stressed the importance of vitamin D and apparently there was a new study shown that recommends even a higher dosage of D is needed by babies and toddlers - I think it was 400 iu per day. I can email you the newletter from our ped or you can probably check their website at www.townandcountrypeds.com.

Bottom line is I think it is probably necessary as it seems like this is common advice from the medical community.

Good luck,
H.

There have been new studies suggesting Vitamin D will prevent the flu. This is very true and we live in the Northern latitude where the sunlight we get during the fall & winter months is not the same as the sun down in Florida. Therefore, we do not get enough or adequate sunlight for our body to produce enough Vitamin D. Vitamin D is important for many reasons: for bone health & maintain our immune system are the 2 most important. I, myself, take Vitamin D drops and I have been giving my daughter (now 15 months) vit.D drops since she was born. She has avoided the flu & most viral diseases. I nursed her until she was 14 months old. For proper & effective dosages, I will have to speak (or email me) with you. I'm a Naturopathic Doctor and I can help you with your concerns.
Dr.A.

I tried giving my daughter the vitamins when I started her on solids (she refused the vitamins by themselves). She then stopped eating the food I put the vitamins in, so my daughter doesn't get them, and I'm not worried at all. We go outside every day and that's good enough for me.

the drops are actually quite important. It is true you should have been told about them at 2 months but there's not really any harm from the delay. Our sad winter sun is really not adequate and the vitamin D is really important for bone strength. For a full explanation go to nytimes.com and put "rickets" in the search box; the article from August 26, 2008 is very informative. It's free to sign up to the times to read the article if you are not already signed up with them. Hope that helps.

the new thing is to give Vitamin D supplements to breast fed kids. But I personally feel that the 15 minutes a day of sun exposure is easier, safer and better. Force yourself to take the baby outside for a walk daily and there you go, no need for the drops. And it stores up, so on a nice day have them outside for an hour and you got a whole week's worth of Vitamin D.

Hi N.,

I also exclusively nursed my son who is 1 now. My pediatrician told me about the vitamins at his first visit. I did give them to him for a bit until he was gaggging from them. So I stopped and pretty much forgot about them. At his 1 year appointment, they pricked his finger to check for Vitamin D, which is why they want you to give her the vitamins and he was a little under the norm. Nothing major, but still. He did eat milk based products (yogurt, cheese), and loved being outside but that wasn't enough. So, I would say YES, give it to her. I am going to give them to our second one come Aug.....Sorry so long, hope it helps! My son is completly healthy, don't get me wrong, but there was a bit of guilt when they told me the number was not where it should be!!

I excusively breastfed all three of my children as well and was instructed to give them vitamin drops daily when they were infants. My kids are now 5, 3, and 14 months. I've heard that rickets is on the rise. I certainly didn't want to take any chances. I didn't notice any side effects from my kids taking the drops.

Hi N.,
I gave both of my Daughters Poli vi sol vitamins and I breast fed both almost a year each, they smell bad but I dont think it could hurt, my feelings are better safe than sorry! If you do decide to give them to your baby make sure you have a burp cloth close by just in case she spits up, the vitamins stain. Have a great day!
MJ

I also exclusively nursed my daughter and my doc rec. polyvisol drops too. I started them from the begining though. I have to say that I am not good about giving them. They smell horrible and my daughter does not like them. She was better about taking them before we started solids, but now that she knows what yummy things (besides breastmilk) tastes like, she does not want the vitamins.

N.,

The American Academy of Peditratics has stated that all breastfed infants get at least 400iu of Vitamin D3 b/c most mother's are deficient in their diets. When my daughter was born in July 2007, I sat her naked outside on my porch, 5 min on one side and 5 min on the other so she could get her daily dose of vitamin d3...however, we can't do that during the months, but you can do it through the window on a sunny day. A study recently published said children born during the summer months are taller, healthier and stronger bones b/c of the natural sunlight. You can add vitamin d3 to your diet and Carlson's makes Vitamin D3 drops up to 2000iu per day and you can take up to 6000iu per day, it is literally one drop. Carlson's also makes it for infants for 400iu per day, again literally one drop. Vitamin d3 is important for also maintaining a healthy immune sytstem as well as bone development, etc. If you are still taking your prenatal while b-feeding (as you should be) add the vitamin d3 drops or you can go to www.vitacost.com and purchase DHA fish oils Nordic Naturals Ultimate Omega plus Vitamin D3, these are molecularly distilled and pharmaceutical grade, high quality, not all fish oils are created equal. Studies show women that supplement with fish oils have smarter babies. So this supplement is a double bonus!

When you do decide to give your child vitamin supplments, the same website offers Childlife Liquid Multi better quality for like $8.

Good Luck,
J. W. MPH
Wellness Educator

I have a infant in the NICU right now as he was 12 weeks premature. He get only breast milk and those are the vitiams they give him, he seems to do just fine with it.

My son is a great eater, but so many studies have come out recently on how important Vitamin D3 is for growing bodies. My son uses the PolyVisol drops during the winter months, b/c our sun in Chicago is not strong enough (too far away) during these months - even when it is out in full force. We started giving him the drops in November, and will continue through April. My daughter is not the best eater, so she gets year around vitamins to ensure she gets her iron and D3.

Hi N.,

The reason behind giving vitamin D to breast-fed babies is that their skin is very sensitive (so it's not a good idea for them to get it from the sun). I believe that, in order to get the RDA you need to be in bright sunlight without sunblock for at least 15 min. per day. And Vitamin D deficiency can be a serious problem.

But, it's possible your baby might be getting enough Vit. D from you...

If you're still taking prenatal vitamins with iron in them, you probably don't need to give PolyViSol, but you could give TriViSol instead (it only has Vitamins A, C, and D). That way, at least, you're giving your daughter fewer (and for now potentially unnecessary) ingredients. We used TriViSol until my daughter was 1 year, and just started PolyViSol (she is nursing less frequently and I'm no longer taking prenatal vitamins, even though I still take a multi-vitamin with iron).

Best of luck whatever you decide,
R.

I've had the same experience recently. My son is nine months old and he is eating table food and being breast fed, but the ped still wants me to give him the drops because of Vitamin D. I know my son doesn't get enough sun exposure at this time to get the Vitamin D, but he does get things in his diet fortified with D. She still thinks he should get the drops.

The few times I've given them to him I think I've noticed a connection with stomach upset...but not sure about that just yet. I wonder if anyone else has noticed that?

I nursed both my girls and they never had any problems and were both born in the winter so they didn't get much sun exposure until at least six or seven months of age.

I nursed for 8 months and I gave my son Polyvisol every night and I still give him vitamins now. I would have the polyvisol with iron flavored with sour apple. I know it sounds like a weird flavor but it's the best and my son gave me no problems at all taking it. The stuff by its self is pretty nasty so get it flavored.

most of us these day avoid direct sun exposure and so the supplement is necessary for many of us. The incidence of rickets has risen significantly in the last decade. The drops are easy to give and can prevent a variety of conditions that result from vitamin d deficiency. There isn't a down side to giving them and there is plenty of upside.

I see you have a lot of advice already, but I just wanted to add my experience. When my daughter was nine months old, my pediatrician asked me if I was giving her vitamin suppliments. I was not, as that was the first I'd heard of it, and I didn't think that she needed any suppliments since I was breastfeeding. He told me that she probably had low vitamin D. So she went for all her blood work, and they tested her vitamin D levels as well. Turns out she was fine all around. So although he still recommended she take the vitamins, I don't give it to her. I think in the end it's your decision. But my personal opinion is if your daughter is healthy and a good eater, and growing at a steady rate, she probably doesn't need the vitamins. But I don't think they would hurt either.

Hi Natalie, You're probably just hearing about the Polivisol drops, because there is some new research out showing that our little ones do not get enough exposure to the sun, therefore they need more vitamin D. There are a lot of reasons for this, but the short version is that with the current conditions we have to be more careful about sunburn, so we don't expose them as much as they might have been in an earlier era.

We gave my daughter trivisol(without iron) on the advice of my doctor when I was breastfeeding. My daughter never had any problems taking it and would take it straight from the dropper each night. She actually seemed to like it. I accidently bought the polyvisol once and my daughter refused to take it and I totally understood. It smelled terrible. Taking the trivisol each night made taking a vitamin a nightly routine so that when she moved on to Flinstones (at 2) it was a very easy transition.

If you aren't comfortable, talk to your pediatrician about why he/she wants you to give your daughter trivisol. If you don't want to follow your pediatrician's advice you may want to look for a pediatrician you agree with more.

Good Luck,
D.

Try TriViSol. I nursed my daughter for 8 months and supplemented with TriViSol. She actually loved the taste - strong cherry flavor I think?

N.,

Sounds like your dr. dropped the ball. I was advised by my son's pediatrician to give the supplement at his first or second newborn visit. I don't think sunlight is enough, so it's better to start the supplement late rather than not at all. I remember it being a challenge to get him to take it though. He used to spit at least half of it out. Good luck!

The doctor told me I should have been giving my daughter the vitamins as well but they never said anything about it. Our bodies process the vitamins before it gets in toth milk so our babies get low doese. However, she said since she showed no problems, not to worry but I may want to start anyway. She is currently 10 months. I had given them to my older kids but they hated it-though they were given bottles so it was easier to slip into teh bottle.

When I was nursing, I thought nursing was enough. If you take quality vitamins and get enough nutrition, that is being passed through to the baby. I did however start my daughter on a powdered multivitamin once we introduced some juice and solids. I gave her Shaklee powdered infant mix and she never tasted it or noticed the difference. I fell in love with the company and became a rep, so I can tell you that they're amazing. They base their vitamins from whole food and are not synthetic chemical derived vitamins as most other things you find out there. They have a higher level of testing and integrity than I've ever seen so you know the products are safe. They do over 80,000 tests on their products annually and test them every step of the way from the raw materials to the finished products. Knowing what I know now, I wouldn't give my daughter anything else. I can send you more info if you'd like. Let me know & good luck!

As my pediatrician explained it, the vitamins are mostly to make sure that the baby is getting enough vitamin D and iron. It's hard to get enough D from the sun, not only because there's not a lot of sun around this time of year, but also because sunscreens block it. There's not much vitamin D in breastmilk. I was also exclusively breastfeeding, and we needed to make sure he was getting enough. It's just to make sure. Nothing to worry about too much. My son actually liked the taste, so it wasn't too bad.

I gave polivisol to both of my boys and I did feel it was very important. You get more than just the vit. D too. (which in the winter months how can you have you baby get 15 minutes of sun exposure. You need direct sun, being bundled up makes it difficult) My sister didn't give her kids the vit. and whos kids are better off??? I don't know, However, what does it hurt? You have to trust your doctor. If you are against it and you are questioning your doc, maybe find a new ped that shares your views. Not all peds are the same.

Haven't read the responses so it's likely someone has already said, but we use TriVSol -- the doc recommended that instead of Poly as it tastes better. My son won't take them willingly (taste them -even though the smell good, they taste TERRIBLE!! The Poly smell bad - haven't tasted those.) so we put 1/2 a dose in one bottle, 1/2 a dose in a second bottle. The doc recommended them starting at 1 month - he's 5 months now and seems to be doing fine.

Something about breastmilk not containing enough C, D and E (I think.) I think the bottle says if they're on less than 17 ounces of formula a day, then it's recommended they take them. So if you're exclusively bfeeding, then go for it.

I gave my son Trivisol when he was 2 months old, I was breastfeeding him exclusively till he was 8 months. He needed the extra iron. When he started solids I started the polyvisol. He is so used to taking his vitamins from such an early age he likes taking them. It's winter and I feel he needs the extra vitamin D. If you have nothing against taking vitamins then I recommend them. My son is 19 months old and has been healthy since birth.

Natalie,
Everyone has advice either way. I'm not one who likes to give my son anything that could be harmful but I do give him the viatamin. I eat a very healthy diet but with the rise of rickets and the simple fact that what does it hurt. I put the drops in one of his bottles of breastmilk and have had no problems. I started my son on it about 4 months and will probably keep doing it (he's 6.5 months) until he is on a diverse solid diet. But you need to do what you feel is right not what everyone else says or does because every child is unique.