question for Cat on minerals /vitamin

[mgk]

just wondering if these would be ok ..my ds takes the rx omega just fine along with vit e and digest gold , I was looking for mg /vitamins and I got ultra mag and life source mulitiple by source natural ..now I think perhaps the life force to strong for 9 yr old and I was going to change to mega kid mulitiple and life minerals so he could get the mg/zinc without a lot of b vit ....trying to keep number of pills he needs to take down to a reasonable number ,,,,not sure where to go with a good vitamin mineral supplement .....all other ones I looked at for chidren in my health food store had things he can not tol .....thanks for any advise

[catatonic]

We have the same problem finding a multi-vitamin that doesn't contain something my son can't tolerate. The only thing I've found so far is the Sun Harvest/Wild Oats brand "Basic Multi" which also contains trace minerals. My son is 10 and weighs 97 pounds, so I don't worry about giving him an adult vitamin.

If your son is at or near 70 pounds, the Ultra Mag should be okay at 2 per day. (You might want to start with one, though, to make sure it doesn't cause any stomach upset. Once he's adjusted you can up the dose.) We can't use the Ultra Mag. My son doesn't tolerate high B6 levels well, and he doesn't normally do well on citrate compounds, since they're often made from cane sugar and corn and cause corn syrup type reactions. If those aren't a problem for you, it's a good product.

So is Life Source Multiple. If you've got the capsules, you can use 2 per day instead of the recommended 4 (or just one tablet instead of 2) and you've got a dose that's more appropriate for a child. It's still going to be high in B6 if that's not well-tolerated, at 25mg in 2 capsules. It's also rather high in salicylates, with the pepper, hawthorne berry, turmeric and grape seed, but those might not be a problem for you.

Life Minerals might be better if B6 is a problem for you. You can cut the recommended number of tablets in half, to 2, and the magnesium should be an adequate maintenance dose if your child isn't heavier than about 80 pounds. For a therapeutic dose, you could give additional magnesium if you need to. If you're already giving Vitamin E, then you shouldn't need to give any additional multi-vitamin with this.

You might want to take a look at the Kirkman Labs "Everyday" vitamins, which are made specially for children who can't tolerate additives and Vitamin B6. The magnesium is low, but it's a well-rounded supplement with a low risk of causing reactions. This and additional magnesium would be all you'd need, along with your E and fish oil.
www.kirkmanlabs.com/products/multivitamins/everyday/everyday054.html

I'm not familiar with the mega kid multiple. Where did you see it?

[mgk]

I saw it on the sou rce natural site .....thanks for info ..my son is 94 lbs so I guess adult is ok you are right the salicylates may be a problem for him we have been on feingold diet and I try not to over do ..I liked the source natural line cecause it listed no corn etc on bottle....so it looks like I will go to life minerals without the vit b ....my main concern was mg/zinc...we do dairy as long as lactose free.....one other question what is leicthen for ..probably killed the spelling.....I will also look into kirkman since I already order there probiotics ....thanks again

[catatonic]

Lecithin is a phospholipid (a fatty substance) that comprises most of the brain's protective sheath, keeps cell membranes flexible and permeable, and protects against oxidative damage. Commercially, it's normally manufactured from soy. It's major component is phosphatadylcholine, and hence it is considered a "cholinergic", or something that increases production of the neurotransmitter choline. I look at lecithin as one of the "Big 3" in essential supplements for ADHD, along with magnesium and Omega-3.

There's a good general explanation of lecithin and choline here:
www.wholehealthmd.com/refshelf/substances_view/1,1525,10040,00.html

We use the lecithin granules sprinkled over food or blended into a protein shake.

[mgk]

thank you that is a good article which I will pass on to my sister who has ms, ..one last question does it matter what brand of lecithin granules you use and how much and how often do you sprinkle thse on the food, ? are there any negative behavior side affects from the granules ?....the artcle mention a supplement phosphatidylcholine is this good or bad or same thing ? sorry so many question but trying to fine tune my ds ...he has improved on diet /omega but I am still missing something

[catatonic]

I know the feeling...that there's a piece missing to the puzzle, and if you could just find it...

I use the Now brand lecithin granules, and I give my son 1 Tbsp. daily, which provides somewhat over 1g (or 1,000mg) of phosphatidylcholine. As long as lecithin is the only thing in the product, and as long as you don't have a soy sensitivity, it shouldn't cause any problems. And it's virtually impossible to give too much.

The granules don't taste bad, they're kind of nutty. I've put them on peanut butter toast, on oatmeal, in sandwiches, and in shakes. There are capsules you can buy that only contain the phosphatidylcholine. I haven't used those because my son doesn't mind the granules and because the granules also contain things (like inositol) that aren't in the more refined capsules. But it is easier to swallow a capsule than to use the granules.