August means back to school. I always think of September as the back to school month, since that’s what it was when I was little, but now most kids are going back be back in school by the third week of August if not sooner.
Hopefully this will be a more normal school year than last year, but even on the most normal of normal years, there can still be stress and anxiety for many about starting school. Theanine is a great supplement for stress and anxiety and is safe for both kids and adults. It’s an amino acid that’s found in green tea that can help kids to feel more calm and less worried. It can even be used before bed to help with sleep, not that it makes you tired, but it’s effective for sleep since it helps to encourage a calm state of mind. It’s especially helpful for school age children and teens since in addition to enhancing feelings of calm, it also can help with increasing focus (something most of us would benefit from). It’s available in gummies or capsules, and most children start with a 100mg dose, whereas most adults take 400mg.
See this article on our website for more information: Theanine for Reducing Stress and Increasing Focus
Preventing illness is always a concern once school starts again, since with so many kids packed in together, colds and other respiratory viruses are more likely. There are a number of great kid-friendly immune boosters we’d recommend, like our elderberry gummies by Zhou, which also contain a good dose of immune boosting zinc (plus they’re great tasting). A few other immune supplements that we recommend for kids are probiotics and vitamin D- we have both available in good tasting chewable supplements. Probiotics have shown in research to help with preventing respiratory infections in children, resulting in fewer missed school days, and vitamin D is a great all-around immune booster that’s great for everyone.
Here are a few helpful articles from our website with more information:
Keeping Kids Healthy this Winter
Manuka Honey Throat Lozenges for Cough and Sore Throat
Elderberry: A Potent Antiviral Against Colds and Flu
Finally, a few other supplements that can be helpful for kids are an omega 3 supplement and a multivitamin. Omega 3s are essential fatty acids that are crucial for brain function, and many kids are deficient because they have to be obtained through either diet or supplements, and most kids don’t eat a lot of fish. A great tasting, high potency supplement is Barlean’s Omega Swirl (for both kids or adults). We’ve found that most kid’s omega 3 chewables or gummies have very little actual omega 3 in them, so we recommend Barlean’s Omega Swirl liquid as an easy way to get the recommended amounts in just one teaspoon (it’s not at all oily or fishy, it tastes like lemon cream).
See our article Improving Children’s Concentration at School for more information.
Multivitamins are great for kids or adults that are picky eaters or people without the best diets, since they help to fill in nutrition gaps. A multivitamin is not a substitute for a healthy diet, but it’s a simple way to ensure you or your children are getting the nutrients you need every day for optimal health.
Please stop by the store this month so we can help you to find the supplements that are right for your individual needs.