Every parent must want to have their kids the best nutrition. They must know that vitamins are essential for the growth of kids. However, there are many different types of vitamins and it may be overwhelming for parents to choose the best for their kids. One of the vitamins that is essential for kids is vitamin B.
There are 8 different vitamins that fall under the vitamin B complex category, namely vitamin B1, B2, B3, B5, B6, B7, B9 and B12. Each of these vitamins has specific function that promote growth and development. All of these help in managing the overall health and well-being.
Let’s see some types of vitamin B for kids along with their benefits.
- Vitamin B1 or Thiamine
Vitamin B1 is responsible for producing energy in your child’s body. A growing child may need around 500 to 900 micrograms of vitamin B1 per day.
This vitamin is considered crucial for converting sugar and other types of carbohydrates into energy. Besides, it also protects the nervous system from any kind of damage or degeneration. Lastly and the most important ones, thiamine is in charge of passing on messages from the nervous system (brain) to different organs of the body.
Vitamin B1 can be obtained from these following sources, such as nuts, sunflower seeds, fish, roasted soy, wheat bread and green peas.
Vitamin B1 is not only beneficial for kids, but it also gives these vitamin B1 benefits for health and pregnancy.
- Vitamin B2 or Riboflavin
Vitamin B2 or riboflavin helps boost the production of red blood cells in your child’s body. The sources of this vitamin are grains, plants and dairy products. You can simply feed some food to your child, such as milk, cheese, asparagus, bananas, almonds and others.
This vitamin dissolves in water really well. The body also needs vitamin B to get energy from the food. That’s riboflavin also helps in digestion and energy production. Regarding to its relation with the other types of vitamin B, riboflavin also activates vitamin B6 and produces vitamin B3.
- Vitamin B6 or Pyridoxine
Vitamin B6 is considered as an essential vitamin and works in the overall operation of the internal body functions. A growing child will need around 0.5 to 1.0 miligram of vitamin B6 per day.
There are some other benefits of vitamin B for kids, such as aiding good digestion and immunity, playing an important role in proper functioning of the cardiovascular and nervous system, brain and having a role in mood regulation too.
You can feed these types of food to feed vitamin B, such as poultry, beef, banana, potato, whole grains, nuts and beans and beef.
It is also recommended to obtain vitamin B from a balanced diet as external supplementation could cause to nausea, abdominal pain and neurological problems. Spend time reading about benefits of vitamin B6.
- Vitamin B7 or Biotin
This type of vitamin B is water soluble and considered as a highly-essential vitamin for kids. It is essential for kids’ metabolic processes of fat and carbohydrates. A growing child will need around 12 to 40 micrograms of this.
There are some benefits of vitamin B, such as promoting healthy nervous system, controlling insulin levels (it is proven to be useful in handling type 2 diabetes), and maintaining healthy growth of nails and hair. If you’re looking for some ways to promote healthy growth of hair, you can also try benefits of castor oil and peppermint oil for hair growth.
Your kids can obtain this vitamin by eating these foods, such as barley, corn, fortified cereals, egg yolks, broccoli, cauliflower, cheese, spinach and mushrooms.
- Vitamin B12 or Cobalamin
Cobalamin is important for kids as it is vital for various metabolic processes in the body. The suggested daily requirement for this vitamin is around 2.5 micrograms.
Vitamin B12 is essential for DNA synthesis and has innumerable benefits for children, especially the young ones. Besides, it also boosts the red blood cell production and maintains an efficient nervous system.
Get vitamin B12 by eating these following foods, such as dairy products, poultry, shellfish, eggs and meat.
Beware of vitamin B12 deficiency as it may lead to serious problems, such as anemia, fragile muscles and neurological problems. Make sure your child gets enough source of vitamin B12 from his or her diet.
Vitamin supplements are used when the children doesn’t get the requisite vitamins from their food. However, only give your children supplements when they don’t get adequate vitamins from their food.
Avoid self medication of your child with vitamins. Never change the dosage of the supplements based on your own. Make sure to consult with the physicians or doctors.
Kids need a lot of nutrients for their growth and development. If you’re looking for the ideas about it, you can read health benefits of Yuzu for kids and health benefits of soya beans for kids. Both of them are great food to feed for your children!