Media Release:

Keeping your Kids Vitamin D and Calcium Healthy this Winter

A recent Australian National Children's Nutrition and Physical Activity Survey shows that many Australian children are not consuming enough vitamin D and calcium, with average intakes lower than recommended levels. ¹

Nestlé nutritionist Penny Small explains: "Most parents recognise how important calcium is for their kids growing bodies, but they also need to be aware that vitamin D is in fact essential to helping the body absorb calcium. It's therefore important parents now put vitamin D on their health radar and ensure their kids receive the recommended daily amount of vitamin D, to allow their children to continue building and maintaining healthy bones".

Professor Rebecca Mason, of the Bosch Institute and Head of Physiology at Sydney University explains: "In Australia, sunlight is the main source of vitamin D - which is produced in the skin as a result of exposure to UVB rays. However as a sun-smart nation, we need to be aware of the health dangers resulting from extended sun exposure on the one hand and the tendency to spend less time outdoors on the other. As a result, obtaining vitamin D from food sources has become an important consideration."

Building vitamin D into a child's diet can often be a challenge as vitamin D is found only in a few foods - such as oily fish, eggs and fortified milks and margarine.

Penny Small: "With a restricted number of natural food sources to choose from, it's important parents try to maintain a balanced diet for their children to allow them to obtain the important nutrients they may be lacking. A glass of NESQUIK Plus when combined with reduced fat milk is a great way to help build strong bones in kids, as it contains 25% of their daily vitamin D needs and 50% of their calcium needs."

Nestlé has relaunched its NESQUIK Plus product to better meet the nutritional needs of growing Australian kids. Now fortified with calcium and vitamin D the new NESQUIK Plus also has 25% less sugar², so when made with reduced fat milk as recommended it is even more fun, delicious and nutritious than ever before.

In addition to these nutritional benefits, NESQUIK Plus has the Heart Foundation Tick of approval and no artificial sweeteners, colours or flavours - so parents can feel comfortable about giving their children great tasting NESQUIK Plus Chocolate as part of a balanced diet.

Top 5 Tips to Maintain Healthy Vitamin D and Calcium Levels
Tips courtesy of Penny Small (dietician) and Professor Rebecca Mason, Vitamin D expert and Head of Physiology at the University of Sydney.

1. Brighten your winter days and get outside with a brisk midday walk to get your daily dose of sunlight.
2. Incorporate foods which are a source of vitamin D into your diet, such as eggs and salmon.
3. Have a banana chocolate smoothie with NESQUIK Plus (fortified with vitamin D and calcium) for afternoon tea.
4. Remember you need vitamin D to absorb calcium more effectively, so the two should go hand in hand.
5. If you are concerned, you can get your GP to take a vitamin D test to see where your levels are at - the good news is you can work on getting them to the healthy level today.

Vitamin D Content of Foods³

View Vitamin D & Calcium: The Kids' GROWTH Duo Fact Sheet

References

1. Source: 2007 Australian National Children's Nutrition and Physical Activity Survey.
2. The new NESQUIK Plus has 25% less sugar than standard NESQUIK powder.
3. Source: FSANZ; NUTTAB Food Composition Tables 2006.

Mum Zone Release Date: 2nd June 2009

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