Vitamin D Supplement for Breastfead Babies

I used Tri-vi-sol too, and was under the impression that it was for babies, vs. Poli-vi-sol for older kids. (Perhaps because Tri-vi-sol had less ingredients?) My pediatrician told us to just give him 1/2 a dropper full a day. My son actually liked it. (Initially there were a handful of times that he'd push away when i approached him with it, but I think it's because it was a new 'taste' since he's only ever had breastmilk at the time). In the end, he liked it as if it was dessert - maybe because it has a sweet taste?

Polyvisol contains iron, which is the main culprit for the bad taste. The DVisol must be new, when I gave liquid supplements to my son (last year), the one with the fewest ingredients was Trivisol (vitamins A,C, and D). He actually liked the taste of this one, and I liked the extra vitamin C.

there is also tri-vi-sol which is what i give my daughter. my ped said she did not need polyvisol and was better with the d only. Nut do suppelement vitamin d defficency is a major helath no-no. You should be taking 2000 iu as well. For me that is my prenatal plus a 1000 iu pill as well

You can disregard this if you want, but we also skipped the supplements in favor of the sun. My pediatrician said not to bother with them, unless there is some reason to think you are deficient? She told me that just my milk alone would give him enough as long as I did normal errands going out and about in the sun every day. A little bit of sun every day for you and baby will be plenty. And just a little, I am very cautious about exposure to sun because we burn so easily.

Why don't you just take the baby out in the sun?? I know you shouldn't have them out for a long time - do to sunburn, but Vit D is something we naturaly make from being in the sun. So if you are concerned with him having a vit D deficiancy - sun exposure should help w/ making the Vit D he needs. Also, you being exposed to the sun will help with your milk having it for him to drink as well - after all everything we eat & are exposed to ends up in our milk we make for them.

I never did the vitamin D drops. I made sure we went outside and got natural vitamin D from the sun. You milk is made for your baby. If your baby is not dark skinned the sun should be enough. I don't give my kids stuff just because the pedi says so. Make sure you do the research before giving things.

I agree that Polyvisol are awful. Carlson's makes a drop in 400iu for bfed babies. It is clean and has no artificial junk in it. You can put it on his tongue or on your breast before he nurses. Also 5-min in the sun will do him good, no need for sunscreen, 5-min will not hurt him, but the sunscreen will prevent the body from absorbing the d3 needed. I did this after my dd was born, just in her diaper for only 5-min per day.

I recommend moms to taste what they are giving their babies and toddlers...chances are if it taste bad, then they will hate it too.

Also make sure you are getting enough too...breastfeeding mothers need this just as much as their newborns, in fact, 5000iu per day...see article below for more info and links on the research.

I wrote an article on my Chicago Family Health column on vitamin d3: http://www.examiner.com/x-7158-Chicago-Family-Health-Exam...

J., MPH
Maternal, Child and Family Health educator

I don't know anything about infant supplements. You might ask the pediatrician about good old fashioned sun shine for vitamin D. About half an hour is all that it takes to stimulate the natural vitamin D production in the human body. Vitamin D is the latest bandwagon for supplement fanatics, and I'd be cautious about it in an infant.

The vitamin drops are completely unnecessary. They are made by formula companies and doctors push them because thats how formula companies get the money from breastfed moms as well. Its absurd, and the vitamins are poorly made, and the D in them is only about 3% absorbed anyway. Plus they contain fillers and chemicals that are just not good for anyone.

All it takes is 5mins of sunshine once a week for the body to produce enough Vitamin D. And if you are exposing yourself to a few minutes of sunshine a week, your milk contains vitamin D. the best part of this? Its 100% absorbed by the body and used properly because its HOW the body was meant to get it. Not through crappy synthetic drops that contain fillers and unnecessary chemicals.

I exclusively breastfed my boys, and neither ever took vitamins while nursing. AS long as you have a healthy diet that includes fruits, veggies, and grains, your child will be getting all he needs through your milk. As long as you expose yourself to sunlight, just a few minutes a week, your body will produce Vit D in your milk for your baby. If you expose him to a few mins of sunlight a week, he will absorb and make his own as well as what comes through your milk.

The vitamins are overpriced, made by formula companies, poorly made, and synthetic. You can give your baby the real deal for free, the real deal that is made for his body, absorbed 100%, and can actually be used by his body. Dont bother with the vitamins.

My son is also exclusively breastfed. Congrats to you by the way!! About the vitamin D, the sun gives it out naturally. As long as your baby is out in the sun 10 to 15 mins a day then he will be getting enough vitamin D. Just get rid of the drops and let it be natural. This article goes thru many of the different ideas surrounding vitamin d supplementation. Read thru it and then you can decide which is best for you. http://parenting.ivillage.com/newborn/nbreastfeed/0,,3wvt...

I exclusively breastfed and I did not give my daughter the vitamin D drops at all. Breastfeeding is the way God created me to feed my child and I figured everything is already in there that she needs. If I am getting enough Vitamin D, then she is getting enough Vitamin D through my milk. So my advice to you would be make sure you get enough sun exposure (15 minutes a day) or take a supplement yourself and it will get passed on through your milk. Small amounts of sun exposure on your baby is also an option.
Personally, I don't like that doctors try to make a new mother think that breast milk is somehow not providing a baby what she needs.

L.,
I would avoid Polyvisol, as well as most children's vitamins from stores. They are very poorly formulated and contain fillers. I am not sure about those D only vitamins. Hopefully another mom can address that.
My two cents worth is about making sure the supplements you chose are properly made and researched. I would be leary of any that don't have at least clinical studies on their actual product, if not peer-reviewed research. There are good supplements out there, but most aren't.
Victoria

I exclusively BF. Continue taking your prenatal and YOU dose up on extra D.

I take my 5 month old out in the mornings and give him 10 minutes of sun. That alone, depending on where you live, should be enough. Once it is warm enough for you, let him get a bit of sun. That's how he will get his own Vitamin D.

I think supplements are an easy way for peds to "fix" the problem.

Grain diets contribute to all the vitamin deficiencies of our age. The food pyramid, with it's heavy grain consumption advise, is a total farce. It contributes to deficiency and disease.
http://www.thepaleodiet.com/articles/cereal%20article.pdf
SOYbeans, and CORN are the main ingredients in mfg'd foods. They are a big reason we get sick and the reason we have to supplement.
Magnesium deficiency is a HUGE problem right now (don't hear any advice from the food manufacturers, AMA or FDA on that!)
Trevor Marshall MD says vit d fortification in our food supply contributes to disease and grows bacterial colonies. So called vit d is not a vitamin, it is a controlling HORMONE. a secosteriod.
Excessive vit d supps cause hypercalcemia. (too much calcium to be excreted from bone)
Polyvisol with IRON ,wouldn't do Iron if it were me - iron is a heavy metal and builds up in tissues, causing poisoning. Iron supps are responsible for 30% of periatric deaths, and these included families who were under pediatric dosing care.

You might ask the Doc. my doc said that there is no D in breastmilk. I only used the drops less than half the time.

The Poly-Vi-Sol are the worst tasting of the group. The D or the Tri-Vi-Sol are better....less gagging. Do NOT get the ones with Iron unless your doc says your baby needs them. Can constipate him, tastes worse, and stains if you drop any of it on baby's clothes (or your own). I always used the Enfamil ones until my kiddos could chew hard vitamins (around 2 yrs old) and then switched to Shaklee (tried others but daughter has 4 food allergies and also had reactions to preservatives and coconut oil in the gummies and others).
Best of luck!
A. F.
Local Childcare Coordinator
Cultural Care Au Pair
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http://aferrini.aupairnews.com
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Try D Drops. I believe you can get them at Whole Foods and other health and wellness stores. You just need a drop, so you can actually put it on your nipple and he'll suck it off.

I'm from Canada, and now live in Florida and we still are big on the vitamin D. The average Canadian gets far too little sunlight and vitamin D to adequately be of service. Given that Michigan isn't that far off of the Canadian climate and sunlight factor, I'd be all over vitamin D.

Even now that we are in Florida we still supplement. First off, our modern lifestyle doesn't mean we absorb that much, due to sunscreen use, and keeping kids shaded as much as possible. I don't do sunscreen unless we'll be in the sun extendedly, and welcome 5-10 minutes without. 6 months after we moved down here my daughter was hospitalized due to a urinary tract infection and her blood work came back showing low D levels even despite supplements and increased sun exposure.

But yeah, Polyvisol and Dvisol are full of things that aren't needed. The D Drops are just vitamin D, easy peasy.

Our ped never even suggested vitamins for our babies. We just always made sure they got 15-20 minutes in the sun every day. Our children have turned out fine so far without them!

Vitamin D is certainly causing quite a stir right now and for good reasons! Not only does your baby need it, but so do you. I encourage you to look at my web site to discover the science behind this newsworthy dietary supplement!
http://www.marketamerica.com/thevoiceoftruth/sku-13071/si...

Be well!

S.

So many people are advocating against the vitamin D drops it is almost scary. Many adults are Vitamin D deficient - which is why the government has our milk enriched with Vitamin D. Your making the right call by giving it to your child! It is the one Vitamin that is not given in high enough of a quantity in human breastmilk. While we do make our own Vitamin D when we are exposed to the sun, we usually keep our kids pretty well covered (especially as babies) and use sunblock on our older kids. And in this part of the country where we can't count on the sun shining every day, it is even more important to make sure we get enough Vitamin D!

Now on to your question - While the Poly-Vi-Sol won't hurt, I elected to go the D-Vi-Sol route - why give the extra vitamins we know they are already getting? I started my daughter on it at about 2 months, and while she hated it for the first week since she was used to only breastmilk, she was soon begging for it. When I got the bottle out she would smile and reach for it. We didn't have any trouble with it. Even now that she is 2, she remember what the bottle looks like and if she sees it she wants some!

I can't remember when exactly we stopped the D-Vi-Sol, but I think it was somewhere around a year old when she was regularly eating solids and started drinking regular milk.

I applaud you for making the decision to supplement your child's Vitamin D. The illnesses associated with Vitamin D deficiency are way scarier, and can easily be prevented!

why are you giving him a vitamin d supplement? If he is exclusively breastfeed and you are taking your prenate vitamins he shouldn't need a supplement unless he was a premie and the dr is doing it for percautios matters. I seriously don't tink he needs anything more than you and your milk. If you would like to do more of a vitamin thing to where he gets more d than the rest why not eat food more that have d in them so it gets to your milk. Good luck!

Hi L.---I would agree with just getting some unfiltered sun as often as possible. Another option would be to offer a small amount of high quality fish oil or cod liver oil...those that contain naturally occuring vit D.

I also agree with supplemental vitamins not being necessary. Be sure that you are eating at least 7-13 servings of fresh fruits and veggies every day and your baby will be getting all of the nutrients he needs through your breast milk.

If you find eating that many servings hard to do, I have some great info and research on a whole food based supplement which offers nutrients from 17 different fruits, veggies and grains. The independent research shows that first, it is absorbed and can be measured in the blood, that it helps to strengthen and balance the immune system, protects and repairs DNA (thing anti-aging) and shows improvement in cardiovascular function. In fact, free radical damage decreased by 75% in as little as 28 days.

Hippocrates said to let food be our medicine, and he is right. Please feel free to contact me if you would like more information on how to optimize your family's health. I am taking a series of wellness classes taught by a Naturopath who has her PhD in Nutrition. I've got lots of goodies to share. I'd be happy to do so. Good luck and enjoy the summer sun with your family. In health, D. ###-###-####

My pediatrician told us that because of the part of the country we live in, you can't rely on getting Vitamin D from the sun anytime but the summer. (we're in kansas city) I thought he also said that you can't pass D through breastmilk and that's why he suggests the supplements. Our bodies get rid of the unnecessary vitamins anyways, so as long as you're not giving him more than the suggested amount, I wouldn't be worried about the vitamins that he doesn't need.

My daughter went on vitamins as well. My doctor put her on them, for more reasons than just the vitamin D, so you should definatly talk to them about why your child is on them, and the benefits. My daughter was exclusivly breastfeed, and when she started on solids, she wasn't eating much and still doesn't. So she went on them, because of how she eats, and she is now 2. I would rather he be on the vitamins than not be on them, becasue at these young ages, is when they need them the most.