From InteliHealth

June 2, 1998

The question: What role do vitamins and minerals play in the development and growth of a toddler? And more specifically, what are the most important vitamins and minerals in the development and growth of a toddler?

George Robert Kim, M.D., F.A.A.P., responds: Vitamins and minerals are important in the nutrition of all children, affecting a variety of biological functions:

• Vitamin A: vision and immune function;
• Vitamin B: carbohydrate and protein metabolism, blood development, neural development;
• Vitamin C: collagen and connective tissue formation;
• Vitamin D: bone and calcium metabolism;
• Vitamin E: antioxidant effects; Folic acid: blood and neural development;
• Vitamin K: coagulation;
• Calcium: bone growth, muscle function;
• Iron: blood formation, energy transfer;
• Magnesium: muscle/nerve function;
• Zinc: immune function;

to name a few.

A deficit of vitamins and minerals can lead to a number of preventable medical problems, so all of these vitamins and minerals in the proper amounts, with a balanced diet of protein, carbohydrate and fat are important to good nutrition, and therefore to the development and growth of a child.

Check the USDA database for a listing of nutritional content of food.