My daughter had her 9mth checkup yesterday and the ped said her blood test came back showing that she was slightly low on iron. The ped recommended that I buy Poly Vi Sol with iron infant vitamin drops. I have been doing some research and have read that many people are saying that the drops taste and smell horrible and that they make the baby very constipated. My daughter tends to be a little constipated anyway, so I'm sort of worried. Has anyone else had to give their baby these drops? If so, do you have any tips on giving them? I plan to try it for a while and see what happens...I'm sure I'll try to put them in her cereal or mix it with her fruit baby food or something. But, I've heard that they shouldn't be given with formula since milk inhibits the absorption.
Thanks for all of the responses. I have been giving her the drops for 3 days now....I have been mixing half of the dose with her food at lunch and the other half of the dose with her food at dinner. She hasn't refused the food yet..but she does give me a look like she knows that the taste isn't quite right. I'm not seeing any signs of constipation yet either. Hopefully, she won't have that issue. The taste of the drops is really vile though! You would think that the manufacturer could do something to make them more appealing! YUCK!!
Are you breastfeeding? When I was still breastfeeding my daughter the Dr recommended the iron, but I just upped my iron intake and that solved the problem. When I did give them to her though, I mixed them with her food because she would gag if I tried to give it to her by itself.
BE CAREFUL!!! I don't want to scare you but my son was 10 months old when they wanted to put him on the iron drops for anemia. He did fine for about a week then when we were on a trip in the car he turned bright red, got huge hives and had trouble breating. We had to go to the nearest hospital ER and found he was having an anaphylactic allergic reaction. They had to give him an IV and benedryl and we took him home the next day and to see his pediatrician for a followup who said he was allergic to preservatives that they put in the drops. I also mixed it with his food or juice when I gave it to him and he never acted like he noticed too much. Just watch for any signs of an allergy as it could cause a life threatening reaction.
Iron is naturally a mineral that constipates. It also causes gas, and other gastric issues. However, your DR. said your daughter needs it. I spoke to my son's dr for the same issue. We agreed to try my son on Infamil with Iron, instead of giving him the drops, which seemed to work. There are other options, but just make sure to speak to the dr. or nurse before you try anything. When I switched my son, it made him extremely constipated, which meant I also had to give him a stool softener (i'll spare you the details...lol).
I hope this helps.
K. S
I've been giving my son the Iron Fortified Poly Vi Sol since he was old enough to start taking them. I don't give it directly to hit (as it does smell foul) but I mix it in with his food. If you do decide to give her the drops and you notice an increase in constipation, try adjusting her diet to include foods that will help (more apples, for example).
Hi A., My oldest son had to take the same poly-vi-sol drops.They do smell and taste bad ,but I mixed it with his cereal and fruit and we done well with it.It can cause constipation but we used a little karo syrup in his bottle and this took care of it.As he got older and had more variety in his diet,we did not have to use them anymore.oh and one more thing,they do stain clothing if spilled on you or him:)
I had to give them to my daughter when she was 8 weeks old..She never had any problem with them..Oh, and that was the same brand that I used..
My 19 month old granddaughter had low iron too and had to take the drops. I don't know if they were flavored. All I know is that she would take them from me stright from the dropper, while her mother mixed them with juice. But they gave her diarrhea rather than constipation.
I also had to give my baby Poly-Vi-Sol drops at 9 moinths and Icar drops which is pure iron. He was on the Icar for only 2 weeks but he is still on the other. He also suffers with constipation but he has been on lactulose since he was 4 months old and that has helped with the iron worsening his constipation. He goes back on the 21st to check his blood count again.
I had to give my daughter the drops too, but her doctor wrote a script for them. There were a grape flavor and i didnt have any probs giving them to her. You should only have to give her them for a while though, when she starts eating more food it should bring it up, my daughters did. They did not constipated at all. And you can not give them wiht milk. Ask your local walgreens pharmasist, i love those guys and gals, and they will give you some good advise about the drops. Good luck.
I use to be a nanny for a little boy who was taking these vit. Well let me say YES, they stink and YES, they stain. So what we did was wait till bed time and give it to him and brush his teeth right after.
As for constipation, he never had that problem, so I can't say how they will affect your daughter.
I hope this helps a little.
Good Luck, T. D
