Eat your greens.
The three words every child hates to hear and that every adult wishes they had listened to.
Hindsight is annoying at the best of times, but when it comes to parental guidance and wisdom, it’s a real punch in the gut. Figuratively and literally – depends how many greens you ate.
We all know that the best way for a child to get enough vitamins and minerals is by eating a variety of foods from the main food groups. But we also know kids love sugar, takeaways and can be very picky.
Teatime hath no fury like a fussy eater.
And that’s just their diets. A child’s immune system is under constant pressure from external pressures, with schools and clubs passing around bugs quicker than a kid can say ‘tag – you’re it’.
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But that’s just it. We are what we eat. Making sure kids get the right vitamins and minerals is essential for their growth, behaviour and cognitive development; and deficiencies in certain micronutrients can have adverse and long term effects on their wellbeing. From a strong immune system and healthy bones to just ‘growing up’, there’s a lot going on that needs to have the best fighting chance.
And with more children eating plant-based diets, they’re at an even higher risk of missing out on what they need. Vegetarian and vegan diets have fewer options to obtain essential nutrients from food alone, meaning kids may need to resort to supplementation to get their recommended intake of vitamins like B12, which is mainly present in animal products that they can’t eat like meats, milks and cheeses.
That said, it’s hard enough to get an adult to take a supplement, let alone a child.
Until recently. The VMS space for children has really transformed to become more engaging, more eye-catching and a lot more tasty, with the gummy format leading the way.
And us, of course.
As well as making supplements more enjoyable for children to take, we’ve really focused on the science and developed the capabilities of our products.
Just as an adult body has different requirements from the age of 20 to the age of say, 50, and then from 50 to 80, a child’s body needs different levels of nutrients as they age. So we’ve crafted a range of gummies that target specific age brackets with what they need most, including:
- A Teen Multivitamin, with a dose of Omega 3 to aid mental and cognitive wellbeing and support the continued development of brain function through teen years.
- Our children-specific supplements, formulated to ensure that the immature immune system is supported to its maximum in recognising and fighting unwanted illnesses.
- Calcium gummies, with added Vitamin D to aid the body’s absorption and utilisation of the calcium, are formulated to support the healthy development of their bones – two vital considerations.
- A 3-5 years Multivitamin, providing a range of vitamins and minerals to support general health, wellbeing and physical development.
We’ve also created vegan friendly, sugar free alternatives to our established range, offering the same level of active nutrients, along with the same great taste and texture.
But our hero product is yet to come. We’re currently working on a liquid dropping range for children. Liquid supplements are a key format for babies and toddlers, as they can be added to milk, mixed into cereal or administered orally, making them extremely versatile – which is the key to success when it comes to a kid.
You could even call our range ‘next generation’.
Sorry, dad humour.