Polyvisol: Side Effects

[spreehincks]

I am a first time mother and my pediatrician prescribed Polyvisol for my son. He is a month old and has been taking Polyvisol for a week. He has had diarrhea for a few days now and is developing a diaper rash. The rash is fairly small, but it looks like burst blisters and he cries every time he poops.  I haven't changed anything else in his diet or in mine, so I'm fairly certain the prescription is the cause. Has anyone else had this problem, or does anyone have any advice?? I've been treating the diaper rash by letting his bottom air dry and applying diaper rash cream. I have started using cloth diapers and I change him the second he soils them. Is there anything else I should do?

[Knitting Mama]

Why does he need Polyvisol at one month old? Breastmilk or formula should be taking care of all of his vitamin needs at such a young age. I can maybe understand needing vitamin D, if you are somewhere that doesn't get good sun, but the rest of it seems like overkill, to be honest.

[spreehincks]

I honestly don't know, the doctor said they are prescribing it to all of the babies aboard Camp Pendleton. It's not like he is malnourished, he grew 3" in his first 3 weeks and gained a whole pound.

[McGucks]

I would also question why a multi is needed at such a young age.  My one year old was prescribed one at 6 months due to it being winter and the Vitamin D issue (as I recall), but a month seems young to me.  He turned out to me anemic by 10 months, so I do now use Polyvisol for iron (in addition to dietary changes & cooking with cast iron to heat up his food).  I usually do 3/4 of a dose and I do skip a few days each week since it makes his poops rock hard and difficult to pass.  He never got ouchies on his bottom from it, though.  Also--you may want someone to verify that it's diaper rash as opposed to a yeast infection.  Good luck.

[spreehincks]

I will call the doctor tomorrow. I don't think he needs the multivitamin, I breastfeed and supplement with formula. Thank You ladies!

[Bokonon]

I agree that Polyvisol is absolutely not necessary unless baby was a preemie, and even then it's not a given.

My son was 8 weeks premature and was on it for a few weeks, but my daughter was 6 weeks premature and only advised to be on Tri-vi-Sol (by the same pediatrician, go figure).  Once I realized how unnecessary it was, I discontinued it.  The biggest concerns with preemies are iron, which can be given on its own, and vitamin D, which can be gotten naturally.  If you are at Pendleton, you have access to plenty of natural vitamin D in the form of good old sunshine, so if your baby was full-term, I can't imagine why giving excess vitamins would be a good thing. 

[JulieInChicago]

Our doctor tried to prescribe polyvisol for vitamin D.  We need D, I know- it's winter in Chicago.  I did my own research, though, and found Just D.  We used that instead.  I think it actually helped our constipated baby go a little easier since it's mostly oil.

[Knitting Mama]

We live in a sunny area, but my daughter has the same extremely pale skin that I have, and I burn in less than 5 minutes of direct sun, so we do vitamin D supplementation. We use Carlson D drops-- one drop on the nipple just before nursing once a day and that's it!

[tzs]

Originally Posted by spreehincks 

I will call the doctor tomorrow. I don't think he needs the multivitamin, I breastfeed and supplement with formula. Thank You ladies!

i was under the impression that formula-fed babes are already getting D in the formula and didn't need the vitamin supplement....no? or is the supplementation with formula not enough?

[spreehincks]

I was under the same impression, that formula had all of the essential vitamins and minerals required to keep a baby healthy. I breastfeed and was supplementing with formula.

[Bokonon]

Originally Posted by spreehincks 

I was under the same impression, that formula had all of the essential vitamins and minerals required to keep a baby healthy. I breastfeed and was supplementing with formula.

Breastmilk has all of the essential vitamins and minerals required to keep a baby healthy, as well as live cells that cannot be duplicated in formula.  There is no need to supplement with formula for nutrients, and it can cause more harm than good.

http://www.kellymom.com/nutrition/milk/infant-formula.html#formula

[Knitting Mama]

Originally Posted by Bokonon 

Breastmilk has all of the essential vitamins and minerals required to keep a baby healthy, as well as live cells that cannot be duplicated in formula.  There is no need to supplement with formula for nutrients, and it can cause more harm than good.

http://www.kellymom.com/nutrition/milk/infant-formula.html#formula

I don't think anyone's disputing that breastmilk is the best choice or suggesting supplementing with formula for the sake of vitamins. I think they're just saying that if a person is breastfeeding and has to supplement with formula for whatever reason, they probably don't need a multivitamin on top of that, because between the breastmilk and formula, that should all be covered.

[Bokonon]

Originally Posted by Cecilia's Mama 

I don't think anyone's disputing that breastmilk is the best choice or suggesting supplementing with formula for the sake of vitamins. I think they're just saying that if a person is breastfeeding and has to supplement with formula for whatever reason, they probably don't need a multivitamin on top of that, because between the breastmilk and formula, that should all be covered.

The OP's comment sounded like it was possible that she is supplementing with formula because she thinks that breastmilk is not complete but formula is.

[tzs]

Originally Posted by Cecilia's Mama 

I don't think anyone's disputing that breastmilk is the best choice or suggesting supplementing with formula for the sake of vitamins. I think they're just saying that if a person is breastfeeding and has to supplement with formula for whatever reason, they probably don't need a multivitamin on top of that, because between the breastmilk and formula, that should all be covered.

yep.....that's what my response was based on and i didn't get any impression from the OP that she was supplementing with formula for vitamins.
 

[mra]

When we go to our pediatrician for well baby visits, the nurse that weighs and measures Julia always asks us a few questions that she marks down, one being "Are you giving her the vitamin drops?" I don't, so I say no and our pediatrician has never even brought it up with us.

I will start giving vitamin D drops around 6 months because I also burn in the sun pretty quickly out here, so even though it's always sunny, we don't spend a lot of time in the sun. Right now I'm taking more than I normally would so it hopefully passes some vitamin D to Julia. I'm not giving the vitamin D now because I'm hesitant to give her anything before 6 months.

[SeattleRain]

Originally Posted by spreehincks 

I was under the same impression, that formula had all of the essential vitamins and minerals required to keep a baby healthy. I breastfeed and was supplementing with formula.

You're right... sort of. If you're breastfeeding and supplementing, you should look into the Enfamil Newborn variety which has extra vitamin D and then for sure you won't need any extra supplements.

[Bokonon]

Originally Posted by SeattleRain 

You're right... sort of. If you're breastfeeding and supplementing, you should look into the Enfamil Newborn variety which has extra vitamin D and then for sure you won't need any extra supplements.

Without knowing if there is an actual vitamin D deficiency, giving a marketing gimmick formula is unnecessary.  The OP lives in Southern California.  There is no shortage of natural vitamin D here.