IRON SUPPLEMENTS FOR KIDS
Growth and Development

ESSENTIAL IRON SUPPLEMENTS FOR KIDS

8 mins read

Why Is Iron Essential For Healthy Development in Children?

A child rejecting a plate of vegetables essential for iron deficiency.

Is your child getting enough iron? Iron is an essential nutrient for your child’s development. Iron supplements for kids can be offered with carefully chosen healthy foods for children, so that it can complete its job of moving oxygen from the lungs to every cell of the body to ensure the immune system works effectively. When your child doesn’t have enough iron to support this function, they can become iron deficient, which shows in symptoms such as lethargy, tiredness and being prone to infections, which can also then lead to iron deficiency anaemia.

What Is Iron Deficiency?

There are different degrees of iron deficiency. Your child could simply have depleted iron reserves or in extreme cases, anaemia or hyper-anaemia. Anaemia is when your blood doesn’t contain enough healthy red blood cells. If you don’t treat it, your child can have physical development delays, can be lethargic and seem lazy. Hyper-anaemia can also result in hair loss and heart palpitations if it’s not treated. Research has shown that anaemia and a lack of iron in the body can cause cognitive development issues and increase the risk of infectious diseases.

How To Boost Your Child’s Iron Levels

Milk to be poured into a heart shape.

A well-balanced diet and a loving, supportive home environment are key factors to ensuring your children grow up healthy and strong. Various factors that are out of your control can lead to a deficiency in a mineral like iron. The best you can do is feed your toddler the right nutrient-dense foods and watch out for the signs of iron deficiency, such as fatigue. Also ensure you take steps to help correct the imbalance with healthy foods for kids.

Essential iron-fortified cereals - a little girl drinking milk from a glass.

Here are some tips to boost your child’s iron levels:

A balanced diet is essential. Iron-fortified cereals can boost iron levels in younger children and are the perfect way to start the day

  • Older kids can get all the iron they need from red meat, chicken, fish, beans and dark green leafy vegetables
  • Vitamin C helps your child’s body absorb iron. Include Vitamin C rich foods like melon, strawberries, citrus foods, kiwi, broccoli, tomatoes and potatoes into your child’s diet
  • Your doctor can do blood tests to find out what your child’s iron levels are. They may then prescribe an iron