In one of the previous newsletters, I told you about Jenny, the little girl from next door who visits me on Sunday afternoons. She’ll be six next month. When Jenny’s mom dropped her off last weekend, she asked me whether Jenny needed any vitamin supplements at all, it being winter and all.
"What are vitamins?" Jenny piped up.
"Vitamins are an important part of the food you eat. Because our body cannot produce vitamins, you must get them from your food. We only need a small amount of vitamins, and if you eat a good variety of foods, your body will receive enough vitamins to function well."
Jenny looks at me as if I am from Mars. "In which food are these vitamins or whatever you call them?"
"Well, there are many different vitamins, and they each have a different letter. Vitamin A for example is necessary for growing, for skin and tissue repair and for your eyes. There is lots in yellow vegetables, milk and cheese products and liver."
Jenny makes an ugly face when she hears liver.
"Then there are the B vitamins which are important for making red cells and for metabolism. You find them in many different foods like meat, chicken, fish, soybeans, milk, eggs, whole grains, breads and cereals. Now what would be the next vitamin on the list?"
"A, B,… C, I guess," Jenny tries.
"Right, vitamin C. We need that vitamin for skin, muscles, bones, for healing wounds and to defend ourselves against infection."
"I know, I know. Oranges, oranges," Jenny shouts.
"Right again, Jenny. Citrus fruits are very rich in vitamin C, and so are strawberries, tomatoes, potatoes, spinach and broccoli."
"I like strawberries, but I hate broccoli, you know."
I smile at the thought I didn’t tell her Brussels sprouts are rich in vitamin C too.
"And last but not least, there is vitamin D for tooth and bone. If you eat enough dairy products, egg yolks and fish oils, you should be fine."
"I’m going to the kitchen already, OK?" Jenny is becoming impatient for her weekly vanilla ice cream we eat together. She runs down the hallway.
"So, Ivan, do you think Jenny needs vitamin supplements?" Jenny’s mom asks again.
"In middle childhood, vitamins are rarely needed. But for some children a daily supplement may be appropriate. For example, if Jenny had a poor appetite or erratic eating habits, or if she ate a highly selective diet, like a vegetarian diet with no diary products at all, then a vitamin supplement should be considered."
"We eat a wide variety of foods, but perhaps for the winter I’ll give her the occasional chewable tablet. Would that be OK?"
"The over-the-counter supplements are generally safe, but don’t forget, they are drugs. And if anybody takes too much, you can develop toxic signs. Particularly too much vitamin A and D can be toxic, causing nausea, rashes and headaches."
"OK, Ivan, but isn’t it true that in some special situations and diseases vitamins can help with preventing disease?"
"That’s what some scientists say, while others deny it. But one thing is for sure, so-called megavitamin therapy, in which vitamins are given in extremely large doses, has no proven scientific validity and can pose some risks. For example, extremely high doses of vitamin C can cause diarrhea, nausea and cramps. Just try to maximize the vitamins in Jenny’s regular diet. And the same applies to your older children, unless they have unusual eating practices."
Jenny is yelling from the kitchen what is taking me so long.
"You can take the cones out of the cupboard already. I’m on my way."
"She should be home by five," her mom says just before I close the front door.