Do you give your baby a multivitamin?

[Katie Shell]

I kind of felt that doctors' recommendations for breastfeeding mothers to give their babies a multivitamin was an attempt for the formula industry to get at bfing moms and totally uncalled for. Now I feel that what's the harm and it might actually do my baby some good. I bought one at a health food store but am still debating whether or not to use it. The rest of the family takes a multivitamin as well as other vitamins, why not the baby (2 mos). With sniffles abound from my preschooler I'm starting to think a little boost to immune system might be helpful.

[PatioGardener]

Supplements with iron in them can be harmful if baby is not iron deficient. Kellymom explains it nicely.

Personally I would rather avoid anything but Mama's milk until baby is no longer exclusively breastfed. (I do supplement myself with vit D, as I have been tested low and we live in Canada.)

[MamaPhD]

I take prenatal vitamin still per our pediatrician's advice.  Idea is that he gets vitamins from my intake through breastmilk.  The only one he gets directly is vitamin D drops.   

[GoBecGo]

I just bought my kids vitamins.  My DD1 (5yo) enjoys a daily multivitamin and they were doing a 3for2 in the market so i bought one suitable for the baby (11mo) as well (it's drops you give by syringe into the mouth).  I never gave DD1 drops as a baby and if the offer is over when the drops i bought are finished i probably won't get more.

Mine doesn't have iron or other minerals, only vitamins.  

I personally take a multivitamin+mineral sometimes, but TBH for me the "natural" time to take such things is in the morning and because i take thyroxine first thing and therefore cannot take the vitamin (it interferes with absorption) i have to rely on being in the house at lunchtime (or taking the vitamins with me which i never seem to manage to do) so i don't manage to take one every day.

I don't think these things are desperately necessary for the majority of babies, nor do i think they're necessarily harmful.  I don't worry about giving it religiously - if i forget for a day or two oh well - but i do try to give it (more than partly because at the correct dose i will only use half the bottle on the baby before the bottle has to be chucked out 4-weeks from opening it!  For that reason poor DD1 has been getting it in her OJ instead of a chewy vitamin the past few days, i don't want to waste it!!!).  TBH i don't think i would have given anything when she was still EBF because that's a balance and wisdom i wouldn't want to interfere with, but once a baby is eating other foods anyway, sure, why not.