Multi-vitamin for thal-minor toddler

Hello All,

My 14-month son (thal-minor) eats OK when he is not sick. But the last 2 months has not been good because of frequent viral infections and an ear-infection. When he is sick or recovering, he is a very fussy eater and prefers only milk (whole milk). I'm certain he is not getting enough vitamins and minerals.

1. Does anyone have recommendations for a multi-vitamin drop for a 14-month old thal-minor ?
2. Should we consider giving him Vit-D drops regardless ?
3. Is the extra iron in the multi-vitamin drop going to hurt thal-minor toddler ?
4. In general, what can be done to improve his immunity ? I'm guessing diet.

Thanks a lot!

From my experience peds always adviced us to take Vit D drops regardless of our child's current health status. My younger son is probably also thal minor (or Lepore trait) and he is always fussy about food. He prefers milk and feeds mainly on that for more than 2 years now. We give him Nestle baby/child formula though and its fortified with vitamins, probiotics and minerals (including iron). He wasn't gaining very well in his first year but now he's doing well. His older brother was so much different but he's thal free.

Hi Slade, thanks for your comments. Yeah, I would start Vit-D too regardless for my kid too.

Since you have a kid who is thal free and another one who is thal-minor, have you noticed any immunity difference between them ? Does your younger one fall sick more easily than the older one ?

I feel that most other kids of my friends who are thal-free recover from cold viruses very quickly (1-2 days), but my kid takes longer (3-5 days).

Thal minor and iron deficiency can coincide, even though they are not related. Slade, the improvement in your child after taking a formula with iron does suggest iron deficiency is or was present. I think that sometimes the problems of getting young minors to eat a good diet does lead to other nutritional deficiencies and iron is among these. It is most important to find nutritious foods that young children will eat. Normally, I would say avoid the iron rich formula as the iron isn't needed in most cases, but when the child begins to thrive after taking the formula, it is obvious that it is needed at this time. It can be very difficult with young children and even teens, but efforts have to be made to find nutritious foods that the child welcomes. So many thal minors do poorly as children and diet is a big factor. Finding nutritious foods a child will accept can take some time, but it is well worth the ongoing effort.

Hi Slade, thanks for your comments. Yeah, I would start Vit-D too regardless for my kid too.

Since you have a kid who is thal free and another one who is thal-minor, have you noticed any immunity difference between them ? Does your younger one fall sick more easily than the older one ?

I feel that most other kids of my friends who are thal-free recover from cold viruses very quickly (1-2 days), but my kid takes longer (3-5 days).

Sorry for the late answer, Sumit. It's still early for me to say if my younger child is more susceptible to infections or if he recovers slower than his brother. The reason for that is that he's been raised at home and gets much less "child" diseases than his peers (only  gets what his brother brings home).
What I can say for sure is that I, as a thal minor, have always had dificult and longer lasting recovery from infections. I can't say I catch colds and other viruses or bacteria easier than other people but if I get them I'd also get a lot of complications and my recovery would last longer.
Some studies suggest that thals suffer from immune system malfunctions and are more susceptible to certain bacterial infections like salmonellosis and listeriosis. The phagocytes are over-encumbered with removing defect erythrocytes and their percursors and they fail to fulfill one of their most important duties - protecting the body from invading microorganisms. This might be especially true for the thal majors but probably also affects the thal minors.

Thal minor and iron deficiency can coincide, even though they are not related. Slade, the improvement in your child after taking a formula with iron does suggest iron deficiency is or was present. I think that sometimes the problems of getting young minors to eat a good diet does lead to other nutritional deficiencies and iron is among these. It is most important to find nutritious foods that young children will eat. Normally, I would say avoid the iron rich formula as the iron isn't needed in most cases, but when the child begins to thrive after taking the formula, it is obvious that it is needed at this time. It can be very difficult with young children and even teens, but efforts have to be made to find nutritious foods that the child welcomes. So many thal minors do poorly as children and diet is a big factor. Finding nutritious foods a child will accept can take some time, but it is well worth the ongoing effort.

Andy, thanks for your response. We've tesed his iron levels and they are within limits but his Hb is always at the lower end. Now he's eating almost everyrthing we give him and we try wide variety of foods. Maybe he's not eating all that much but it's a start (he is 2y and 4 m now). His weight and size is OK so I suppose he gets his nutrients both from the food and the child formula.