Yesterday was quite an adventure. My friend, Cindi, is moving to Utah so a bunch of us got together for one last morning play date at the Charlotte Nature Museum. It’s centrally located since our group of friends is scattered north and south of Charlotte.
That’s the best picture we could get! Ha. It’s amazing to think that at one point we all were able to sit and chat with our firstborns nestled quietly in our laps. Now we all have two and it’s utter chaos. Fun, of course, but chaos!
You may recognize this little man? His mom and I brought the little ones too!
Let’s here it for my terrible iPhone photos!
Anyway, the play date was great and was over around noon. At this point I figured I could stress about rushing home for lunch and nap or just blow right through it. I chose option B and headed to Whole Foods with my girls for lunch.
We then took our time heading home (and stopping to nurse in the car) and even made a detour for a special treat. (Yesterday I talked about my desire to get my body back and then I go and eat ice cream- ha!)
It was Hailey’s first gummy worm and she thought it was hilarious! The little guy got a few good chews before she spit it into my hand and went for the good stuff.
Ok, ok, on to the topic at hand…
I get a lot of emails about what I feed Hailey. Usually it’s not ice cream as part of lunch, I promise
I’ve realized I often leave out an important aspect, her vitamin.
Though Hailey is a good eater, as I’ve learned more about the importance of supplementation (especially vitamin D) and noticed the positive changes in myself since I started taking my daily vitamins, the more I’ve been more inclined to be consistent with her nutritional insurance policy, AKA, a multivitamin.
You’d be surprised what a lot of kids vitamins contain though. To take a popular one for example, Flintstones, contains hydrogrogenated oil (transfat), artificial flavors and food dyes (Yellow #6, Red #40 and more). Seriously. In a vitamin you give your kids to help them be healthy. Ugh.
I give Hailey Incredivites kids vitamins. Some quick reasons why?
- contains 23 essential vitamins and minerals
- the only kids vitamin to contain lactoferrin, a nutrient also found naturally in breast milk and researched for its role in promoting a healthy immune system (and what kid couldn’t use a little boost to their immune system?)
- NO artificial colors (it is colored with beet juice concentrate and red cabbage extract)
- NO artificial flavors (contains lemon, orange and grapefruit bioflavonoids)
- Gluten Free
But what good is a vitamin if the kid won’t eat it? Well luckily they taste good too! Like a sweet tart. I know because I’ve eaten one here or there myself.
Hailey asks for it first thing every morning.
Don’t you love our mismatched jammies?
I’ll always be a believer in food first, but a quality vitamin certainly helps to fill in any gaps!
Do you give your kids vitamins?
Do you take vitamins yourself?
John J. says
You are such a wise Mother, covering all the health bases for your children. Adding such a quality vitamin such as Shaklee sure makes sense.
Jaclyn @ BumpSweat says
I take a prenatal vitamin now but, before getting pregnant, was pretty lax about taking something daily. I think it’s important because, even though I eat a lot of nutrient-dense food, I can’t always be certain I’m getting what my body needs. I opt for a whole-food vitamin.
Jenn says
Do you ever have a problem baby wearing and then needing to pick Hailey up? I couldn’t as much for my second because I was having to chase the first one around. Which I could hold both of them, just not easily. And with the third I havent been able to at all if I am by myself. With two toddlers going two directions and bending over to help them, it’s been easier for me if the baby is in the stroller. But I don’t have an ergo or ktan, so also wondered if I had a better carrier if I would feel more comfortable bending and stuff.
Brittany Dixon says
It depends on the outing with whether I go with the carrier or the stroller, but Hailey gets jealous sometimes if it’s the stroller (she wants to ride in it!). I’ve been pushing hand-holding for a while so usually it works pretty well for us to have K in the sling and H by my side. The only thing I’ve noticed being difficult is helping H go to the potty while wearing K. We manage, but it sure isn’t graceful 😉
I think it will be a little easier when K is older and can go into a sturdier carrier like the ergo!
Emily says
great to see you guys yesterday! (My poor babe is getting choked in the photo! Ahhhh big brothers!)
Marjorie says
I do take a multivitamin, but mine is a major mainstream brand. I am sure it is filled with junk, unnecessary fillers, etc. So I have been thinking about upgrading. I looked at the Shaklee ones, and they seem to be great quality, but DANG they are pricey. :-/ Even at the member/distributor price.
I have been wanting to start my son on a daily multivitamin as well. He took polyvisol as an infant due to low iron, but he has been off that for a while now. He is a good eater (most of the time), but I would still love to start him on something.
Nothing is wrong with a little indulgence here and there! Yes, even ice cream! 🙂 I still indulge, and I think I owe those little splurges to losing over 55 pounds (30 of that with Weight Watchers) after baby. I am smaller now than when I got pregnant…woo hoo! It sounds counter intuitive, but not feeling deprived is important for longevity.
Brittany Dixon says
Hey Marjorie! I didn’t realize you had lost over 55 lbs- WOW that’s awesome! And yay for ice cream indulgences being part of it 😉
As for the vitamins, if you compare the Shaklee Multivitamin (http://brittanydixon.myshaklee.com/us/en/products.php?sku=20288) to other high quality vitamins, it’s right on par if not less expensive than the ones you’d find at Whole Foods and other health stores. I take the vitalizer strip that contains a multi, fish oils, a probiotic, vitamin b and extra vitamin c because I feel like I could use the extra assurance, especially while breastfeeding 🙂
I don’t want to smother you with info, but if you are interested in learning more, I’d love to send you an email with third party studies on bioavailablity and effectiveness of Shaklee’s vitamins. It’s amazing how many vitamin options are out there that don’t have any support backing up their claims and how many actually contain scary ingredients. No pressure; just let me know 🙂
Marjorie says
I would definitely like to see the 3rd party info. Can you email it to me? Thanks Brittany!
Brittany Dixon says
I’m searching your blog and can’t find your email address- can you email me (brittany@ahealthysliceoflife.com) and I’ll send it to ya? Thanks 🙂
Paulina says
I was so ignorant about the importance of Vitamin D when my first baby was born. I was breastfeeding and figured that she didn’t need anything else, so I only gave her the drops once in a while when I thought about it. This time, I have been informed about it so now our whole family gets a vitamin D drop daily. I know you have shared the shaklee prenatal vitamins you take, but do you take something else for D? Or is included in the prenatal dose?
Brittany Dixon says
I was ignorant about vitamins as a whole for a long time, so you aren’t alone! In the vitalizer strip (what I take) there are 1000 IUs of vitamin D and in the Shaklee multi there are 800 IUs, which is awesome because I don’t have to think about it. With melanoma in my family, I’m big on sunscreen so it makes me feel better knowing the fam is getting vitamin D daily without having to sacrifice my skin 😉
Namagiri Sridhar says
Hi Brittany,
I am interested in these vitamins. I had a few concerns – the source of b12 was cyanocobalamin and controversial ingredients – carrageenan and maltodextrin among others like isomaltulose in the additional ingredients. Also there was no probiotics. Just wanted to get your opinion.
Does your daughter still take it?
Nust
Namagiri Sridhar says
Also what is the source of lactoferrin?
Janet says
I was so excited when I found Incredivites two years ago…I was giving my sons Flinstones even though I knew they weren’t great. Now they are the healthiest they’ve ever been! The proof is in the pudding…I only know when illnesses go around because of Facebook, because my kids are never sick. I take Vitalizer and feel better than I EVER have…at 42. It’s crazy how much energy I have and how I pop out of bed in the morning and no longer need an afternoon nap! 🙂
Brittany Dixon says
Thanks so much for sharing Janet! I feel the same way about vitalizer, like where was this energy before??
Heather says
I can’t even tell you how perfectly timed this post was since yesterday I spent ages looking online for a good multivitamin for my toddler. I want to avoid artificial colors and all of that other junk, but also needed to find a good one that covered everything (including magnesium). I just might be giving these a try!
Shelby says
I give my kids Shaklee vitamins as well! Even my 10 month old gets 1/2 of an Incredivite crushed up and mixed into cereal. I take Vitalizer and we won’t be switching to anything else!
megan says
That Hailey is such a cutie pie!
Erin says
I love these vitamins! They truly are phenomenal! My boys look forward to taking them every morning. They are one of the first things they ask for every day. They say, “mommy can we have our super hero vitamin .” It warms my heart to know they are getting a vitamin that I can wholeheartedly trust. My husband and I also take the Vitalizer and we can honestly say it was one of the best decisions we have ever made. We love our Shaklee products!!
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Jessica says
Wow! I came across your blog while searching for information on Health Coaching. I am currently enrolled in the Dr. Sear’s LEAN Health Coaching course.
Your blog is AMAZING!! I love all the recipes and nutritional information.
In place of a multivitamin, my family uses Juice Plus. It is a whole food supplement that has been researched and published in over 30 Medical, Nutritional, and Sports journals. The company, Juice Plus, has farms that are completely organic, farmers picks the produce at the prime ripeness, juices the produce, and at a very low temperature turns the juice into a whole food powder. It is then put into a capsule or gummie!! And what’s great about this product is that the company is devoted to inspiring healthy living around the world that kids eat Juice Plus FREE for 4 years with an adult order.
Looking forward to reading more posts on your blog. Have a wonderful day.
Jennifer says
I am interested in these vitamins for my 21 month old, but on the description it says it’s for kids ages 4-12. Do you know why they need to be 4 to take it?
Brittany Dixon says
Great question! Let me look into this and I’ll get back to you as soon as I get a response from the medical doctors at Shaklee.
Brittany Dixon says
Hey Jennifer! So the recommendation for 4+ is due to chocking hazard. For children 2-3 years old that can safely chew, then 1 Incredivite a day is recommended. I’ve been Hailey 1 a day since she was two. They are about the size of a dime and are chewable. I hope this helps!
Jennifer says
Ok great! Thanks so much for looking into that for me! I’ll probably hold off until she’s 2 then as well, I think she’d be fine but better to be safe than sorry! 🙂
Spray Nutrients says
You are such a nice mother. I am also very conscious about the health of my kids but i never administered them the vitamins. It is a very good idea to give them some extras after consulting the doctors.
Danielle says
Hi! My family currently takes Honest Company vitamins….any idea how Shakelee vitamins compare??
Brittany Dixon says
I don’t know much about the Honest Company but I can tell you about Shaklee. Shaklee does extensive testing on their products to guarantee purity and confirm the certificate of authenticity, which other companies do not do. In over 50 years, they have never had a recall of a product and put the safety and efficacy of their products at the top of their priorities. Please feel free to email me with more questions; I’m happy to answer them for you!
Betty Wellness says
During my child rearing years I soon learned to included the vitamins in what they love to eat. I lot count how many times I included the vitamins in the smoothies I was making and they loved it. Great story-line and I love your pictures.