In the beginning: balanced nutrition for kids.(Wellness: supplements and functional foods)

Childhood is rife with broken bones, skinned knees and various maladies ranging from colds and flu to chicken pox and attention deficit disorder (ADD). Parents certainly have their hands full with healthy children, much less sick ones. To prevent illness and promote a healthy childhood, many parents turn to diet and nutrition since macronutrients, vitamins and minerals promote healthy minds and bodies.

Before Birth

From the very start of life, nutrition is key: A mother's diet during pregnancy affects the future of her fetus. By taking essential fatty acids (EFAs), for example, a pregnant woman can promote her baby's mental development even before it's born. "Pregnant women should consider the intake of omega-3 oils and evening primrose oil throughout pregnancy in order to possibly prevent preterm delivery, promote an easier birth, assist the baby's brain and eye health and preprogram the baby's cell membranes for optimum lifelong wellness," according to a Spring 2004 publication of Midwifery Today with International Midwife.

Australian researchers from the University of Dundee reported additional good news about EFAs--specifically the omega-3 docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and the omega-6 arachidonic acid (AA). Their 2002 publication in Journal of Family Health Care indicated DHA and AA taken by the mother during lactation improves the baby's cognitive and visual development: Infants receiving EFAs through breast milk exhibited higher IQs than children who received an EFA-deficient formula.

Early Childhood

After gestation and infancy, proper nutrition is still essential, and supplements may give kids a healthful boost in brain power. According to The Healthy Foundation (THF)--a nonprofit organization that supplies at-risk youths with nutritional supplements through two of its programs: Vitamin Relief USA--Children First and Operation IQ--supplementation has several beneficial effects. A survey of 1,372 parents of children in the programs indicated that children taking supplements were more likely to show improvement in concentration (37 percent), grades (31 percent), energy (55 percent) and self-esteem (37 percent), as well as having reductions in irritability (31 percent), depression (29 percent) and anger (27 percent).

"We've seen a marked increase in academic performance, fewer sick days and more days in school attendance, and improved self-esteem," says Michael Morton, executive director of The Healthy Foundation and Vitamin Relief USA. "There has [also] been an observed decrease in oppositional, disruptive and bullying behavior. Why do we continue to do this work? It makes a positive difference now and in the future."