The
#1 Children’s Vitamin Brand in the US contains ingredients that
most parents would never intentionally expose their children to, so
why aren’t more opting for healthier alternatives?
Kids
vitamins are supposed to be healthy, right? Well then, what’s going
on with Flintstones Vitamins, which proudly claims to be
“Pediatricians’ #1 Choice”? Produced by the global
pharmaceutical corporation Bayer, this wildly success brand features
a shocking list of unhealthy ingredients, including:
Aspartame
Cupric
Oxide
Coal tar artificial coloring agents (FD&C Blue #2, Red
#40, Yellow #6)
Zinc Oxide
Sorbitol
Ferrous
Fumarate
Hydrogenated Oil (Soybean)
GMO Corn starch
On Bayer
Health Science’s Flintstones product page designed for healthcare
professionals they lead into the product description with the
following tidbit of information:
82%
of kids aren’t eating all of their veggies1. Without enough
vegetables, kids may not be getting all of the nutrients they need.
References:
1. Lorson BA, Melgar-Quinonez HR, Taylor CA. Correlates of fruit and
vegetable intakes in US children. J Am Diet Assoc.
2009;109(3):474-478.
The
implication? That Flintstones vitamins somehow fill this nutritional
void. But let’s look a little closer at some of these presumably
healthy ingredients….
ASPARTAME
Aspartame
is a synthetic combination of the amino acids aspartic acid and
l-phenylalanine, and is known to convert into highly toxic methanol
and formaldehyde in the body. Aspartame has been linked to over 40
adverse health effects in the biomedical literature, and has been
shown to exhibit both neurotoxicity and carcinogenicity [1] What
business does a chemical like this have doing in a children’s
vitamin, especially when non-toxic, non-synthetic non-nutritive
sweeteners like stevia already exist?
CUPRIC
OXIDE
Next,
let’s look closer at Cupric Oxide, 2mg of which is included in each
serving of Flinstone’s Complete chewable vitamins as a presumably
‘nutritional’ source of ‘copper,’ supplying “100% of the
Daily Value (Ages 4+), according to Flintstones Vitamins Web site’s
Nutritional Info.[2]
But
what is Cupric Oxide? A nutrient or a chemical?
According
to the European Union’s Dangerous Substance Directive, one of the
main EU laws concerning chemical safety, Cupric Oxide is listed as a
Hazardous substance, classified as both “Harmful (XN)” and
“Dangerous for the environment” (N). Consider that it has
industrial applications as a pigment in ceramics, and as a chemical
in the production of rayon fabric and dry cell batteries. In may be
technically correct to call it a mineral, but should it be listed as
a nutrient in a children’s vitamin? We think not.
COAL
TAR ARTIFICIAL COLORING AGENTS
A
well-known side effect of using synthetic dyes is attention-deficit
hyperactivity disorder. For direct access to study abstracts on this
topic view our Food Coloring research page. There is also indication
that the neurotoxicity of artificial food coloring agents increase
when combined with aspartame,[3] making the combination of
ingredients in Flintstones even more concerning.
ZINC
OXIDE
Each
serving of Flinstones Complete Chewable vitamins contain 12 mg of
zinc oxide, which the manufacturer claims delivers 75% of the Daily
Value to children 2 & 3 years of age. Widely used as a sun
protection factor (SPF) in sunscreens, The EU’s Dangerous Substance
Directive classifies it as an environmental Hazard, “Dangerous for
the environment (N).” How it can be dangerous to the environment,
but not for humans ingesting it, escapes me. One thing is for sure,
if one is to ingest supplemental zinc, or market it for use by
children, it makes much more sense using a form that is organically
bound (i.e. ‘chelated’) to an amino acid like glycine, as it will
be more bioavailable and less toxic.
SORBITOL
Sorbitol
is a synthetic sugar substitute which is classified as a sugar
alcohol. It can be argued that it has no place in the human diet,
much less in a child’s. The ingestion of higher amounts have been
linked to gastrointestinal disturbances from abdominal pain to more
serious conditions such as irritable bowel syndrome.[4]
FERROUS
FUMARATE
The
one clear warning on the Flinstone’s Web site concerns this
chemical. While it is impossible to die from consuming iron from
food, e.g. spinach, ferrous fumarate is an industrial mineral and not
found in nature as food. In fact, ferrous fumarate is so toxic that
accidental overdose of products containing this form is “a leading
cause of fatal poisoning in children under 6.” The manufacturer
further warns:
Keep
this product out of reach of children. In case of accidental
overdose, call a doctor or poison control center immediately.
HYDROGENATED
SOYBEAN OIL
Finding
hydrogenated oil in anything marketed to children is absolutely
unacceptable. These semi-synthetic fatty acids incorporate into our
tissues and have been linked to over a dozen adverse health effects,
from coronary artery disease to cancer, violent behavior to fatty
liver disease.[5]
GMO
CORN STARCH
While
it can be argued that the amount of GMO corn starch in this product
is negligible, even irrelevant, we disagree. It is important to hold
accountable brands that refuse to label their products honestly,
especially when they contain ingredients that have been produced
through genetic modification. The ‘vitamin C’ listed as ascorbic
acid in Flintstones is likely also produced from GMO corn. Let’s
remember that Bayer’s Ag-biotech division, Bayer CropScience,
poured $381,600 of cash into defeating the proposition 37 GMO
labeling bill in California. Parents have a right to protect their
children against the well-known dangers of genetically modified foods
and the agrichemicals that contaminate them, don’t they? GMO corn
starch is GMO, plain and simple. We’d appreciate it if Bayer would
label their “vitamins” accordingly.
In
summary, Bayer’s Flintstone’s vitamin brand is far from a natural
product, and the consumer should be aware of the unintended, adverse
health effects that may occur as a result of using it.
(Shared from Sayer Ji)
A
balanced natural children’s Vitamin Incredivites and Vita Lea Ocean
Wonders by Shaklee Corporation offers one of the most comprehensive
complete multi vitamins for children without the additives and
colorings.
Shakleekids
Incredivites is the first children's chewable multivitamin in the
U.S. with lactoferrin, which helps kids' immune systems stay
supercharged. Packed with 23 essential nutrients, it's the world's
best kids' supplement-with 600 IU of vitamin D to support strong
bones and teeth, and 100% of the Daily Value of all eight B vitamins
and vitamin C. Just two a day and off they play. Now that's
incredible!
Vita-Lea
Ocean Wonders is a kosher-certified chewable multivitamin for kids.
It's packed with 19 essential nutrients and provides 100% of the
Daily Value of vitamin C. Plus, Ocean Wonders now has more vitamin D
- 600 IU per serving, that's 150% of the daily value! - as well as
calcium, magnesium, and more to help support strong bones and a
healthy body. With cool dolphin, sea horse, and fish designs in
natural orange, grape, and mixed berry flavors, Vita-Lea Ocean
Wonders is sure to be an ocean of fun. Just two a day and off they
play!
Whatever
your little superhero is up to, count on Shakleekids to deliver
nutrition their growing bodies need. So they can out run and
outshine.
Click here and go to Children's Health for more information.
Wishing
you health and wellness from the inside out,
Lisa
LQ
WELLNESS
Professional
Wellness Coach
973-383-0955
lisaquinnwc@embarqmail.com
Make
sure to follow me on Twitter @lq_wellness
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~Robert Ingersoll ~
