Question
When can babies take calcium supplements? My son is five months old and has a bit of calcium deficiency. Do I need to supplement calcium? If so, what type should I give him?
Answer
Babies should start introducing complementary foods around four months old, and these foods should include vitamin D, with a daily requirement of 400 to 800 international units. There are new recommendations suggesting that full-term infants should begin vitamin D supplementation within ten days of birth, with the same dosage as mentioned. This is because although the normal diet of infants (breast milk or formula milk) contains sufficient calcium, vitamin D deficiency can affect calcium absorption. As long as there is no vitamin D deficiency, calcium deficiency is generally not an issue. Therefore, supplementing vitamin D during infancy is a routine practice and there is no need to supplement calcium at this stage unless there are symptoms of low blood calcium or reliable evidence of calcium deficiency.