Fortified Toddlers

By Christine Gorman

Talk about malnourished children, and most Americans think of skeletal waifs in Africa. But starvation isn't the only form of malnutrition. Too much of the wrong kinds of food--crackers, candy and soda, for example--can impair a child's development as well. In fact, children's diets in the U.S. have got so far out of whack that half of American kids now consume less than the recommended daily allowance for iron, calcium or zinc--three key minerals vital to the growth of small bodies.

The potential consequences are so alarming that a few nutritionists have started encouraging parents to give their toddlers multivitamins formulated especially for young children. (For infants, breast milk is still best.) Many youngsters don't like taking supplements, however, and some parents are uncomfortable providing them.

Enter Mead Johnson, a leading manufacturer of infant formulas. This week the company is introducing EnfaGrow, a new line of fortified solid foods that it hopes will help bridge the nutritional gap for kids ages 1 to 4. "These foods are not a substitute for a healthy diet," says Susan A. Roberts, a research scientist at Mead Johnson. "But they may help, particularly with finicky eaters."

There's a lot of good science behind what Mead Johnson is trying to do. It's become increasingly clear that our long-term health is profoundly influenced by what we eat and drink in infancy and early childhood. Researchers are uncovering distinct "windows of opportunity" in which various cells in the body are most receptive to--and most in need of--particular nutrients. For example, studies suggest that a lack of iron early in life can lead to as much as a four-point drop in IQ. At the same time, there's a lot that researchers still don't know, particularly about what makes those hated vegetables so good for you and your kids.

Toddlers will definitely like the new EnfaGrow products. The Cookie Bars taste like animal crackers. The Cracker Bites are tiny cheese crackers that taste a lot like the ones fed to kids in day-care centers today, but these are fortified. We all know that real food--like apples and bananas--is better, but if you're giving your kid cheese crackers anyway, there's nothing wrong with adding a little extra iron, calcium and zinc.

Remember, however, that too much of a good thing can be just as much of a problem as too little. Although it would be hard for youngsters to overdose on EnfaGrow--they would have to consume so many calories that they would stop eating long before they got into trouble--you should monitor their consumption.

You may wind up doing more math than you expected. Each box has a nutrition label that tells you how much of 14 vitamins and minerals is included. A Cookie Bar, for example, contains 3 mg of iron, or 30% of the daily value for a toddler. Nine Cracker Bites contain 20% of a day's iron. So your child would get 100% of the daily value for iron by eating 3 1/3 Cookie Bars, or 18 Cracker Bites plus two Cookie Bars. "Vitamin supplements are easier," says Susan B. Roberts, author of Feeding Your Child for Lifelong Health (and no relation to Susan A. Roberts). But if you don't want to use vitamins, she says, "these are a pretty good bet."

So try the new EnfaGrow snacks if you're unsure about how healthy your child's diet is. But don't give up on those fruits and vegetables.

For more information on children's nutrition, visit time.com/personal You can send e-mail for Christine to [email protected]