Do Multivitamin/Mineral Dietary Supplements for Young Children Fill Critical Nutrient Gaps?

Abstract Background Nearly a third of young US children take multivitamin/mineral (MVM) dietary supplements, yet it is unclear how formulations compare to requirements. Objective Describe the number and amounts of micronutrients contained in MVM for young children and compare suggested amounts on product labels to micronutrient requirements. Design Cross sectional. Setting All 288 MVM on the market in the US in NIH’s Dietary Supplement Label Database (DSLD) in 2018 labeled for children 1- Main outcome measures Number of MVM products and amounts/day of micronutrients in each product suggested on labels compared with requirements represented by age-appropriate Daily Values (DV). Micronutrients of public health concern identified by the Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2015-2020 (DGA 2015) and DGA 2020-2025 (DGA 2020) or those of concern for exceeding the upper tolerable intake levels (UL). Statistical Analyses Number of products and %DV per day provided by each micronutrient in each product. Results The 288 MVM contained a mean of 10.1±2.27 vitamins and 4.59± 2.27 minerals. The most common were, in rank order, vitamins C, A, D, E, B-6, B-12, zinc, biotin, pantothenic acid, iodine, and folic acid. For micronutrients denoted by the DGA 2015 and DGA 2020 of public health concern, 56% of the 281 products containing vitamin D, 4% of the 144 with calcium and none of the 60 containing potassium provided at least half of the DV. The UL was exceeded by 49% of 197 products with folic acid, 17% of 283 with vitamin A, and 14% of 264 with zinc. Most MVM contained many of 16 other vitamins and minerals identified in national surveys as already abundant in children’s diets. Conclusions A reexamination of the amounts and types of micronutrients in MVMs may be suggested in order to consider formulations that better fill critical gaps in intakes and avoid excess.