Toddler Vitamins and Calcium to Prevent Cold and Flu

Q. Could you recommend a good toddler multivitamin and a toddler calcium supplement for my 2 year to keep her immune system strong against cold and flu? She does eat her fruits and veggies.

A. I'm so glad your little daughter is eating her fruits and veggies! I hope she keeps eating lots of them over the years. I would like to make a few suggestions for you to consider.

These are all important nutrients that are often difficult to obtain from diet alone. I would suggest you give this a try for her. Here is a link you can review:

• Multi-Vitamin & Mineral by ChildLife - I would recommend giving her 2 tsp a day with a meal. It's more complete than most children's vitamins because it contains vitamin K, choline, and selenium.

In addition to this, I would suggest adding this mineral formula to help support her bone growth, and the additional vitamin D can also help her immune function:

• Cal/Mag w/Cofactors by Pure Encapsulations - this is a powder formula that you mix with water. It is sweetened with Xylitol, which is a sugar alcohol (though no alcohol in it). Xylitol also help prevent dental carries, so an added benefit. The minerals are highly absorbable, and well utilized by the bones. If she has little calcium sources in her diet, you might want to give her 1 scoop a day (divided in 2 doses), but if she has a fair amount of dietary calcium, then 1/2 scoop a day. Additional vitamin D in this will also help support her immune system.

• Baby Vitamin D drops - one drop a day can also help further support her immune system and growth. However, she may be getting exposed to sunlight daily when she is playing outside, so if this is the case, you may not want to give her these drops on those days. You can use 1-2 drops a day. We are finding that many people do not get enough vitamin D and need to supplement. Weakened immune systems often result from a deficient amount of vitamin D.

• Muco Coccinium, is fine if you would like to continue though cold and flu season, though it is coming to an end soon.

• HLC High Potency probiotic - 1/4 tsp a day is a good maintenance dose, and you can increase this if she starts to feel poorly to 1/2 tsp once or twice a day.

Flu prevention during pregnancy

Q. What do you recommend for a pregnant woman to take for flu prevention?

A. Cold and Flu prevention for pregnancy and lactation is not easy since most supplements say "not indicated for pregnancy or lactation". But, we have done the research work for you with these recommendations to help you safely prevent the flu during pregnancy and lactation.

The safest and best things you can do:

• Eat a healthy diet plenty of colorful, organic fruit and veggies.
• Get plenty of rest, fluids and exercise each day.
• Try not to get close to people who seem sick, don't kiss people, wash hands with anti-bacterial soap frequently or use anti-bacterial gels, which are easy to carry in your purse.
• The power of thought is also very important. Try focus on the thought you will be healthy rather than allowing the fear to take over. Work on letting go of the fear you may be feeling through meditation.
• Take a good prenatal vitamin & mineral supplement, high potency probiotics (HLC Intensive) and try to get about 2 grams of fish oils daily.

A few other key supplements you might want to be taking are:

• NAC by Genestra which has 500mg of NAC per cap, so once a day is fine, unless you start to feel like you are coming down with something, then increasing to 2 caps a day. It is a powerful free radical scavenger and thus supports the body’s natural defense system. NAC increases tissue levels of glutathione, a key component of the antioxidant defense system.
• Zinc Supreme - has 30mg of very absorbable zinc and other co-factor trients. Zinc is critical for immune function, building new tissues, wound healing, leaky gut, digestion, insulin sensitivity, the functioning of over 200 enzymes, skin health, and having a healthy pregnancy. We would recommend 1 cap a day for a month, then every other day through flu season and pregnancy. (40mg is the DRI safe upper limit during pregnancy/lactation)
• Zinc displaces copper, so you may want to add:

• Gammadyn Cu - has 5.12mg of copper per ampoule. Copper helps to decrease acute and chronic bacterial infections, and is indicated for conditions such as allergies, infections, chronic and acute inflammation, colds and flu, warts, and hepatic and digestive disorders. We would recommend 1 cap daily for a month, then every other day through flu season and pregnancy. (10mg is the DRI upper safe level during pregnancy/lactation)
• Vitamin D - get 1000 IU of D3 in one drop. This level would be safe to take along with your prenatal multivitamin. It is now being recommended that we get 1000 IU each day, and they have been finding in research that it plays a strong role in immune function and having these higher amounts can play a role in flu prevention. (2000 IU is the DRI upper level during pregnancy/lactation)

You might try to find a classical homeopath for a prevention prescription for you. Homeopathy is a specialized science. Some doctors specialize in it and it is important to find the best remedies for the individual, otherwise it may not work. Our consulting naturopath has informed us these 2 remedies seem to be the most successfully used as treatments for the H1N1 virus: Nux_Vomica and Ferrum_Phosphoricum,

"This is a gathering of information submitted from experienced homeopaths all over the country based on their findings of treating cases that are part of an epidemic. They have narrowed down to 2 remedies (Nux Vomica and Ferrum Phosphoricum) that tend to pop up most of the time as successful treatments for the H1n1."

If you come down with H1N1, you should see a homeopath or naturopathic doctor who works with homeopathy to determine the correct remedies for you!

Be well and stay healthy!>

Baby Eczema and Flu Shot for infants

Q. I have a few questions about the flu shot for my 6 month old, and questions about the best way to treat eczema. I don't like the idea of my doctor telling me that I should get my son the flu shot I have never taken it before and don't plan to. I believe since I'm nursing and taken lots of probiotics that should be enough. Tell me what you think. Also my son has really bad eczema. What should I do? Do you sell products for baby eczema? (Steroid free of course).

A. To address your questions about your baby's eczema, I am including weblinks of some products I would recommend for you to try with him.

• Calendula Baby Cream - use topically to soothe the skin

• Calendula Cream Bath - use for bathing; Avoid harsh detergents, soaps, colors/dyes, fragrances, chemical additives such as paraben preservatives or foaming agents such as SLS (Sodium Laureth Sulfate)

• DriCelle Vega Pregnessence (child) - this is an essential fatty acid (EFA's) for infants until the age of 12 months, give 1/2 a teaspoon (1.5g) taken daily up to 12 months of age. Add to formula milk or expressed breast milk AFTER warming and stir until dissolved. A deficiency of EFA's can make babies more susceptible to ezcema. This EFA blend is more specific to brain development, and may not have a big impact in clearing eczema. I would also recommend adding 1/2 tsp of Cod Liver Oil a day as well. This will help reduce inflammation and provide Vitamin A & D, necessary for immune health and development.

• HLC Neonate Probiotic - Would recommend adding daily to help his intestinal health, and immune response. It is now acknowledged that imbalances in the flora of the neonate may significantly increase the risk of childhood allergy and susceptibility to infectious disease. Here is the recommended dosage:

Bottle Fed Babies: Mix apx 1/16 tsp into baby bottle (half of 1/8 tsp) once or twice a day.
Breast Fed Babies: Press clean finger into powder and have baby suckle finger. Or use a tiny plastic spoon (i.e. used at the ice cream/gelato store for flavor tasting). These fit perfectly into the Neonate bottle and then into their tiny mouth, and easily smears onto their tongue. Then follow it with a little breast milk, or let them mash it around their mouth with saliva. They may not even notice they have that tiny bit of powder in their mouth (it tastes slightly sweet). Approximately 33 mg (1 billion viable cells) will naturally adhere to the end of your finger (rough dosage idea). Repeat three times daily.

I would also recommend food allergy testing to see what foods he may be allergic to, or if you are already giving him cow's milk to discontinue until after the age of 1 years old, as eczema can be triggered by food allergies, as well as chemicals in soaps and clothing. Be sure to wash clothing and bedding with perfume free detergents, and wash before wearing.

As far as giving a flu shot, I cannot really advise you one way or the other, as it seems to be a personal decision. Though the flu shot, seems to be pretty controversial, and not free of potential negative reactions from immuno-compromised infants and individuals. However, if it were me, I would give the products I've recommended to help his developing immune system. In addition I would recommending adding this coconut oil based ingredient to applesauce daily to help immune function:

Monolaurin - open 1 capsule and mix with food.

You can use Monolaurin too, just use about 4 times as much for yourself or other adults. Thanks for your email and your continued business. Please let me know if I can be of further help!

Which number(s) of Unda should I take for the beginnings of a cold?

Q. I am getting the beginnings of a cold this morning and I have a very important writer's conference I'm teaching on on Wednesday. What UNDAS should I take to prevent this cold from coming on?

A. I'm sorry to hear you aren't feeling well! It seems it is always easy to get sick right before a big event because your stress lowers your immune system function. The Unda's for colds could be as follows:

Unda 2, Unda 5, Unda 15, Unda 37, 5 drops ever hour until feeling better then decrease dose to 3 times a day.

Unda 220 if additional respiratory support is needed or Unda 312 if you have a sore throat.

Also, EC+ Immune Complex, can also be added for additional immune support (4-6 capsules the first few days of feeling sick, then lower the dose to 3-4 caps a day until you are feeling normal, then 1-2 caps for a few more days).

It is also very important to increase liquids and broth-based soups or just homemade broth, I've included our recipe for you!

Prevention of Swine Flu with Muco-Coccinum

Q. Is Muco Coccinum effective for prevention of the Swine Flu? Also I have allergies which give me with a chronic cough. Which supplement would help with that?

A. The Muco Coccinum helps to elevate the bodies immune response to any flu. The company makes no claim that it will prevent the Swine Flu, but that is could help the body better respond to an infection of the flu.

At the first sign of symptoms, take one tablet allowing it to dissolve under the tongue. If symptoms persist, take one tablet two or three times during the day. If symptoms continue to persist after three days, discontinue use and seek advice from a health care practitioner.

Preventatively: Muco Coccinum® 200 may be prescribed right from the beginning of the autumn season, with one tablet to be taken every 15 days.
For particularly sensitive individuals (children and the elderly):
1 tablet per week throughout the winter season.

For your chronic cough associated with allergies, I would recommend working on improving your bodies reactivity to the things you are allergic to. Here are some suggestions to try. Sometimes one may work better than the other, so if choice #1 doesn't work as well as you'd like, then try choice #2.

• Aller-gen by Genestra, may be a better product to start with to improve your body's response to allergens.
• Allergiplex by Unda - this can help lower the histamine response to pollens.

Keep in mind, we can also work with the Unda line using 2-4 remedies at once, but you might want to try one of these suggestions first.

Products available in Canada
Muco Coccinum
Aller-gen by Genestra
Allergiplex by Unda

Immunokinoko-AHCC: Powerful Protection against a Host of Pathogens

ImmunoKinoko AHCC is what I first think of when I want to arm myself against the Swine Flu, biochemical warfare and other immune attacking health issues.

Throughout history, we've always contended with disease-causing bugs. Our ancestors used garlic, salt, herbs and fermentation to kill bacteria, fight infections, and stimulate their immune system. In the 1950s we discovered Penicillin in nature, and have capitalized on its benefits, which we're now realizing are limited since it doesn't address viruses, fungus, parasites or tumor cells.

As our human race and hunger for survival persists, so does the mission for more effective medicine. Today, we want to share with you the news about a special plant extract from Japan which can literally help people prevent and fight disease caused by resistant bacteria, fungus, tumors, and viruses. It comes from hybrid medicinal mushrooms, and is manufactured through an enzymatic fermentation process. AHCC promotes numbers and activity of T-cells, Natural Killer Cells, and infection detecting Dendrites.

Research has proven AHCCs ability to protect against Avian flu and West Nile viruses, Methyl resistant bacteria (MRSA's), opportunistic infections including Candida Albicans, and cancer.

Over 80 valid studies have been published supporting the evidence that AHCC helps the immune system respond to pathogens and tumors. It has been studied by researchers at Harvard Medical School, Yale University School of Medicine, and other highly qualified medical institutes. Currently, we have several clients with some forms of cancer using AHCC with some reported decrease in cancer spread and/or tumor size, thus living a better quality of life. If you haven't already added it to your 21st century survival tool box, now is the time!

Check out the scientific research and videos on ImmunoKinoko-AHCC

For more information on dosing or other questions, you may contact Rockwell Nutrition's Licensed Health Care Team.

-Rachael Richardson, RD, LN.