Iron Overdose

Iron is the most common cause of poisining in children, so you must be careful to not give too much, or leave the bottle within reach. There are many foods rich in iron other than meat and many cereals and other foods are supplemented with iron. You may want to consult a nutritionist or look on a vegetarian web site for ideas. Many people go without meat their whole lives and have plenty of iron in thier diets.

I don't know the reccommened dose for a two yr old (for a woman it is 18 mils) but if the pedi told you to give 1/2 a flinstone then that is safe. I would watch for signs of constipation. When I was pregnant, the dr. gave me about 40 mils! can you say "constipation??" any way, many vitamins are flushed through the system if there is an excess, and most others we can exceed the daily reccommened dose by 5 or more times before we might begin to see a real problem, but heavy metals, like iron and zinc, you don't want to go too far over the reccomended dose unless a dr. is prescribing it, and even then you want to watch out for signs of toxicity. Most dr's only know the basics about supplements, but talking rx they can be geniouses! I was diagnosed (alternatively) with an adrenal disorder, and when I went to a new dr and told her, she knew very little about it or how to diagnose. We need to remember that the medical field is vast, and expecting a dr of one particular medicine to know all about every ailment and cure is asking for a bit much. You can go on line and get more detailed info on iron at toxic levels and you will know more about it than your pedi. Dr's are human, and can only remmber so much from med school! the rest they look up in books just like us common folks! best of luck

E.,

Personally, I believe in the use of vitamin/mineral supplements. They can truly enhance lives, but I would choose one carefully that isn't loaded w/sugar like a piece of candy. I have never allowed my kids to consume the ones filled w/sugar. There are better choices out there than Flinstones! Many of the cheaper vits sold at the store like 1 a day and centrum have proven to be 0% effective!!! So, do a little research before you decide which is the best for him. It sounds like his health is really important to you.

Blessings,
M.
Mom to 5 Wonderful Kids
www.4MyChildrenSake.com

I have worked a pharmacy in Guatemala on a few mission trips. We give all kids that come through the clinic a bag of 14 vitamins. We tell them all they are vitamins and not candy, but we are handing them to some kids as young as 3 and 4. They are the size of American 2-yr-olds. The docs decided that 14 would be a safe amount that if they went home and ate them all anyway, there wouldn't be a problem.

If your pediatrician told you to do it, I'm sure it's safe. Just follow the recommended 1/2 and keep them out of reach.

Your pediatrician should be your first source of information, but not your last!

There are plenty of alternative sources of iron available. It is up to you to ensure that your daughter is offered a well-rounded diet. At a minimum, I would want a blood test done to ensure that she actually NEEDS iron. Each person has different needs and processes food and nutrients at varying efficiencies.

Should your daughter actually need something, I'm with some of the other moms...there are a lot more natural choices than a FLINTSTONES!

I think the biggest problem with too much iron is that it will harden the child's stool(in large doses). My son had to stop taking vitamins because his was having trouble going to the bathroom due to large amounts of iron. So if you notice that she can't poop, or starts to have trouble pooping, go back to the doctor and talk to him/her again.

This is a kind of question you should ask your pediatrician, not unlicensed caregivers like us moms. When it comes to the health of your baby, don't leave it up to suggestions and advice from folks who are only guessing.

Forget the vitamins, just go w/ Cheerios. 3/4 cup = 50% of a child under 4's DRV.

Or, depending on what else she'll eat, cook or heat it in an iron skillet. A small bit of the iron will leech into the food, particularly if the food contains a lot of vitamin C (think spaghetti sauce). This is why so few of our grandmothers were iron-deficient: they cooked on iron, we cook on teflon.

Also, consider that Chex mix, dried peaches, Cream of Wheat, clams (good luck w/ that), pistachios and tofu all have considerably more iron in them per serving than ground beef. Check out Toddler 411 by Denise Fields and Ari Brown, pp 148-149 for a great food chart.

you pay your ped. to treat your child. I would suggest you listen to the dr., that's what he/she went to school so many years for.

They have a My First Flintstone's made especially for toddlers (2-3 years)...the dosing is on the bottle for this age group. You give one tablet of the toddler version.

The regular version, I have given 1/2. Your pediatrician or the pharmacist should be able to confirm the dose if you are not comfortable.

Just keep this and all medications out of the reach of children--they are more "crafty" than you think (there...the pedi nurse in me came out).