Hesperian Health Guides
Vitamin and Mineral Supplements
Contents
Vitamin A, retinol
Vitamin A prevents night blindness and xerophthalmia.
To get enough vitamin A, people need to eat enough yellow fruits and vegetables, dark green leafy vegetables, and foods such as eggs, fish, and liver. In areas where night blindness and xerophthalmia are common and eating enough of these foods is not always possible, give children vitamin A every 6 months.
Do not use more than the suggested amount. Too much vitamin A from capsules, tablets, or oil can be dangerous. Do not give the regular adult dose of 200,000 U to girls or women who could become pregnant, or women in the first 3 months of pregnancy because this can harm a developing baby. For pregnant women, vitamin A is given in smaller doses more often instead of a single large dose.
Swallow pills or capsules. But for young children, crush tablets and mix them with a little breast milk. Or cut open capsules and squeeze the liquid into the child’s mouth.
To prevent vitamin A deficiency in children
As part of a prevention program:
Over 1 year: give 200,000 U by mouth one time. Repeat every 6 months.
To treat night blindness
If someone already has difficulty seeing or has other signs of night blindness, 3 doses are given. The first dose is given right away, the second is given one day later and the third dose at least 2 weeks later.
For each of the 3 doses:
6 months to 1 year: give 100,000 U by mouth in each dose.
For children with measles
Vitamin A can help prevent pneumonia and blindness – two common complications of measles.
Over 1 year: give 200,000 U by mouth 1 time a day for 2 days.
If the child has already received a dose of vitamin A in the last 6 months, give this treatment for one day only. If someone with measles is severely malnourished or already starting to lose her vision, give a third dose of vitamin A after 2 weeks.
Zinc
Zinc helps children with diarrhea to get better faster. It should be given along with rehydration drink.
Over 6 months: give 20 mg, once a day for 10 to 14 days.
Iron, ferrous sulfate, ferrous gluconate
Iron is useful in the treatment or prevention of most cases of anemia. Treatment with iron by mouth usually takes at least 3 months.
Iron works better when taken with vitamin C (either by eating fruits and vegetables, or taking a vitamin C tablet).
Iron sometimes upsets the stomach and is best taken with meals. Also, it can cause constipation especially in older people, and it may make the stools (feces) look black. See advice for constipation.
Drinking liquid iron supplements blackens the teeth. Drink it through a straw or brush your teeth after drinking.
Be sure the dose is right. Too much iron is poisonous. Do not give iron to severely malnourished persons. Wait until they have recovered their health before giving them iron.
Different forms of iron contain different concentrations of this mineral. For example, a 300 mg tablet of ferrous sulfate contains about 60 mg of iron. But a 325 mg tablet of ferrous gluconate contains 36 mg of iron. So read the label of your tablets, syrup, or other iron supplement to learn the iron content.
To PREVENT anemia in pregnant and breastfeeding women| DOSE BY AGE FOR FERROUS SULFATE | |||
| AGE GROUP |
HOW MUCH PER DOSE |
HOW MANY 300 MG TABLETS |
HOW MUCH TOTAL IRON |
| Under 2 years | 125 mg ferrous sulfate |
Use iron syrup, or crush about ¼ of a 300 mg ferrous sulfate tablet in breast milk |
Give enough to provide 25 mg iron |
| 2 to 12 years old | 300 mg ferrous sulfate |
1 tablet of 300 mg ferrous sulfate |
Give enough to provide 60 mg iron |
| Over 12 years | 600 mg ferrous sulfate |
2 tablets of 300 mg ferrous sulfate |
Give enough to provide 120 mg iron |