Guidelines for supplementing zinc for children 4-5 years old

Zinc is an important trace mineral in the body of young children. Zinc deficiency can lead to growth retardation in children. Therefore, children should be supplemented with zinc daily from nutritious food sources. Besides, parents need to know how to supplement zinc for 5-year-old children because giving them excessive zinc supplements can be dangerous for children.

In addition to supporting brain function, zinc plays an important role in the health of children's immune systems and may help prevent disease. Moreover, when supplementing with zinc for a 4-year-old child or any age properly, it will also help the child's body to quickly heal wounds.
As children reach adolescence, they will need more zinc to support the growth and development of the reproductive system. This mineral also helps with the senses of smell, taste and sight, and supplementing with zinc can also prevent cell damage - a factor that leads to heart disease and cancer later in life.

The amount of zinc that children need depends on their age. However, most young children can get enough zinc with a healthy and balanced diet.
There is absolutely no exact daily recommended amount of zinc for children under 7 months of age, but then until the child is 4 years old, they should be supplemented with 3 milligrams of zinc per day.
Next, between the ages of 4 and 8, the amount needed to supplement zinc for 5-year-olds is 5 mg of zinc per day and for 9 to 13-year-olds it is 8 mg. Women and men between the ages of 14 and 18 need 9 milligrams and 11 milligrams of zinc per day, respectively.

Zinc can be found in a wide variety of foods. Animal meats such as beef, pork, chicken and fish are good sources of zinc. One serving of roast beef can provide 7 milligrams of zinc and the same amount of pork will provide 2.9 milligrams; chicken is 2.4 milligrams.
For seafood, one serving of Alaskan king crab provides 6.5 milligrams of zinc and the same amount of lobster contains 3.4 milligrams.
For dairy products, a can of yogurt has 1.7 milligrams of zinc, a slice of cheese or a cup of milk or a packet of instant oatmeal provides about 1 milligram of zinc.
Here are some suggestions for some of the best sources of zinc to build meals that guarantee zinc supplementation for children 4 years and older:
1 slice of cooked beef: 3 mg 1/2 grilled hamburger: 2 ,7 mg 1 slice of grilled steak: 2.6 mg 1 pack of dry roasted almonds: 1 mg 1 pack of instant oatmeal: 0.8 mg 1/4 roast chicken thigh: 0.6 mg 1/4 cup lentil stew: 0.6 mg 1/2 slice Swiss cheese: 0.5 mg 1 tablespoon almond butter: 0.5 mg 1/4 cup raw tofu: 0.5 mg 1/4 cup peas Cooked orchid: 0.4 mg 1/4 skinless chicken breast: 0.4 mg 1/2 cup raw milk: 0.4 mg

It is not likely that a child will get too much zinc from the diet alone. However, if parents give their children too much zinc (for example, by giving them zinc in tubes or from vitamin supplements), it can cause side effects such as vomiting, delayed digestion, abdominal pain, and diarrhea. looseness and headache. Moreover, prolonged consumption of zinc in excess can also cause toxicity.
Therefore, the maximum amount considered safe by the Food and Nutrition Board of the Institute of Medicine for children 1 to 3 years old is 7 mg, and 4 to 8 years is 12 mg.

Depending on your child's specific dietary needs, regular meat feeding is one of the simplest ways to increase intake of this essential mineral.
Besides, when feeding your child a can of yogurt with chopped nuts, this is a zinc-rich snack. A simpler way to supplement zinc for 4-year-old children is to give them a glass of milk with meals to increase their zinc levels.
Thus, if children can eat most foods at the same time as the family, most children do not need zinc supplements. Giving children zinc supplements in the form of tubular zinc can cause poisoning. In addition, zinc can also prevent a child's body from using iron properly and can also lead to a decrease in the amount of copper in the blood.
Moreover, if you give your baby zinc tubes or zinc supplements in general, this can cause an unpleasant metallic taste in the child's mouth, making them picky eaters, skip meals. Therefore, when there is any reason to suspect that your child is deficient in zinc, it is necessary to consult a pediatrician or nutritionist for advice. Your doctor will determine if your child really needs a zinc supplement and will prescribe medication to safely supplement it.
In short, zinc for children's health is helping the body make proteins and DNA, and also helping the immune system fight bacteria and viruses. Most children can get enough zinc through their diet alone, but zinc supplementation for children 4 years of age and older can be helpful in some cases. Parents when using zinc tubes for children need to follow the doctor's prescription to ensure the right dose.
In addition to zinc, children should also be supplemented with necessary micronutrients such as selenium, chromium, vitamins B1 and B6, ginger, acerola fruit extract (vitamin C), ... to improve taste, eat delicious, achieve the right height and weight, strengthen the resistance to get sick less and less digestive problems.
The improvement of symptoms can take place for a long time, so it is recommended that parents be calm and persistent when supplementing with nutrients for children, even through eating or functional foods. In particular, the use of functional foods should choose those of natural origin that are easily absorbed, do not allow children to use many types at the same time or continuously change the types of functional foods.