Vitamin B12 Deficiency in Children

A picture of a little boy playing in the water with the wording: “A 2-year old child exhibits sever language and social delay and receives a diagnosis of autism, a quote from the book “Could It Be B12 Pediatric Edition by Sally Pacholok & Jeffrey J. Stuart

B12 Deficiency & Kids

I have been studying Vitamin B12 Deficiency for years and one of my favorite books on the topic was the first book by these authors called “Could It Be B12 Deficiency” An Epidemic of Misdiagnoses. So when I saw the pediatric update version of the book I was quite excited.

Here is an excerpt from the book that you might find helpful.

WHAT DO THESE WOMEN AND CHILDREN HAVE IN COMMON?  

• A 3-year-old boy exhibits severe developmental delay and receives a diagnosis of autism . . .  

• A 28-year-old woman is unable to conceive . . .  

• A 6-month-old baby develops therapy-resistant seizures . . .  

• An 8-year-old boy is prescribed Prozac because of odd, uncontrollable behaviour . . .  

• A 12-year-old boy slowly loses his ability to walk and write, becoming bedridden . . .  

• A 9-month-old baby stops responding to his parents and can no longer sit up by himself . . .  

• A 38-year-old mother is condemned to life in a wheelchair after gastric bypass surgery . . . 

 • A 7-year-old boy has obsessive-compulsive behaviors, and a wide-based gait . . .

. An 18-year-old can’t concentrate or understand her instructors and drops out of her first semester of college . . .  

• A 9-year-old girl needs to attend a special school for handicapped children because she has an IQ of 60 . . .  

• A 15-year-old teen becomes severely depressed and tries to kill herself . . .  

• A 31-year-old with severe postpartum depression has thoughts of harming her infant . . .  

Here’s what these patients don’t have in common: a correct diagnosis. Instead these women and children have been given a plethora of incorrect, often hopeless diagnoses: developmental delay, autism, depression, multiple sclerosis, Asperger’s syndrome, cerebral palsy, attention deficit disorder, and mental illness. But in reality, they all suffer from the same medical condition . . .  VITAMIN B12 DEFICIENCY

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I am forever grateful that I ran across this information many years ago and I have helped many people to uncover their Vitamin B 12 Deficiencies because of it!

I highly recommend having your Vitamin B-12 levels checked when you visit your Doctor or Health Professional at your check-up or if you are having mystery symptoms that correlate with any of the above. And as a general practice with all of my clients, I always recommend everyone know what their B12 levels are.

I hope that you found this helpful and please DO SHARE this. You might just save a life or at least drastically improve the quality of someone’s life.

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Link to Autism & Heavy Metals via Baby Teeth Analysis in Twins

About 1 in 54 children has been identified with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) according to estimates from the Centre for Disease Control.

There has been a lot of research conducted around Autism Spectrum Disorder and I found a good resource in regard to heavy metals and autism. It is from the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences. I will post the link below and I highly recommend reading the full article.

Here is an exerpt:

The researchers observed higher levels of lead in children with autism throughout development, with the greatest disparity observed during the period following birth. They also observed lower uptake of manganese in children with autism, both before and after birth. The pattern was more complex for zinc. Children with autism had lower zinc levels earlier in the womb, but these levels then increased after birth, compared to children without autism.

The researchers note that replication in larger studies is needed to confirm the connection between metal uptake and autism.

“We think autism begins very early, most likely in the womb, and research suggests that our environment can increase a child’s risk. But by the time children are diagnosed at age 3 or 4, it’s hard to go back and know what the moms were exposed to,” said Cindy Lawler, Ph.D., head of the NIEHS Genes, Environment, and Health Branch. “With baby teeth, we can actually do that.”

Patterns of metal uptake were compared using teeth from 32 pairs of twins and 12 individual twins. The researchers compared patterns in twins where only one had autism, as well as in twins where both or neither had autism. Smaller differences in the patterns of metal uptake occurred when both twins had autism. Larger differences occurred in twins where only one sibling had autism.

The findings build on prior research showing that exposure to toxic metals, such as lead, and deficiencies of essential nutrients, like manganese, may harm brain development while in the womb or during early childhood. Although manganese is an essential nutrient, it can also be toxic at high doses. Exposure to both lead and high levels of manganese has been associated with autism traits and severity.

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Heavy metals are very much present in our world today. I myself, have tested very high in lead.

One of the ways to help determine the presence of heavy metals and nutrient deficiencies which can come about through displacement when heavy metals are present, is through Hair Mineral Analysis testing.

This is a service that I have provided for a few years now and find it very helpful for anyone interested in their health or the health of their children.

The lab that I use is licensed by the Ontario Ministry of Health and you can learn more about hair mineral analysis here:

hair mineral analysis info

all posts around hair mineral analysis

Please feel free to reach out to me if you have any questions or would like to chat about this and as always, I hope that you found this helpful in some way.

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• STRESS & One Simple Technique to Help You!
• Foods With Vitamin C
• Throw These Out! LEAD!
• Cachexia or Wasting Away Syndrome & 3 Strategies
• Happiness Is Healthy & Healing

Isotonix DNA Multivitamin Plus

DNA Miracles Probiotics Extra

DNA Vitamin C Chews

Bloating In Kids

Bloating can happen for a number of reasons but when it comes to kids, they often don’t know how to tell you that they are in fact ‘bloated’.

Definition of Bloating

noun

1. a swollen state caused by retention of fluid or gas.”she suffered from abdominal bloating”

There are a variety of causes for bloating:

. Extra intake of air due to nervousness or the holding of breath

. Food sensitivities or allergies

. Lactose Intolerance

. Not enough water

. Insufficient beneficial bacteria

. Eating too quickly and poor food choices

. Constipation

One of the best things you can do with your children to help, is to have open and natural conversations. Children should be taught to ‘listen to their bodies’ and to observe how they feel after they eat certain foods, for example.

Another excellent topic is the “Poop”topic. Make this a natural subject in your house. Learning about how often and what is deemed irregular is very important for kids to learn. Help them to identify if they are having changes in their bowel movements or if they are indeed constipated. Constipation is a huge issue with kids these days. Sometimes it helps to celebrate ‘good poops’ because it encourages the naturalness of having bowel movements.

Another helpful idea for kids that is beneficial all around and that also helps with gut and bowel health, is to encourage and implement lots of fruits into their diet. Here is a link to past posts that I have done on fruit and recipes etc. https://maggiesvitamins.wordpress.com/category/fruit/

Here is a past one on dehydration that might be helpful as well https://maggiesvitamins.wordpress.com/2019/04/29/dehydration-in-kids/

And let’s not forget that sore tummys are sometimes anxiety based. I have written about that too and you can read up on it here. Anxiety is especially high at this time of being at home due to COVID-19. https://maggiesvitamins.wordpress.com/2019/01/30/sore-tummy-6-ways-to-help-your-child-with-anxiety/

One of my favorite products for kids and gut health is Aloe Vera Juice. I have found one that I use with kids and I have yet to meet one who did not love it. The Strawberry Kiwi flavor seems to be a hit with kids. 🍓🍓🍓🍓

Here is a link to that product if you are interested in taking a look. Aloe Vera is a great for supporting the immune system as well and is extra helpful at this time in history. Here is the link https://www.shop.com/THESHOPCONSULTANT/Ultimate+Aloe+trade+-603891601-p+.xhtml?credituser=R1159126

I hope you have found this helpful.

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Kids & Adults & Technology Overwhelm & Clutter!!!

I was reading an article I saw on FB this morning titled “Screentime Is Making Kids Moody, Crazy, and Lazy”.

It jumped out at me because I have been thinking about this for both my 13 year old and myself! I would suggest a read of the article later as it has some great points. I will enclose the link at the end of this blog.

I have noticed that my daughter has been spending less time on her phone as we have had her great niece (yes great niece :-)) over to our house for the past few days after school. Aria is 4 and she and my daughter Sivanna have been playing in the good old fashion ways running around the house, pretending, hiding and such. And I can see how wonderful that is! There is a total different energy to see her engaging with sheer delight playing with Aria verses her time spent on her phone on various apps such as Snap Chat, Tik Tok, FB group chats, etc.

Here is a paragraph from the article and I personally can related to this as I spend a lot of time online:

“Children or teens who are “revved up” and prone to rages or—alternatively—who are depressed and apathetic have become disturbingly commonplace. Chronically irritable children are often in a state of abnormally high arousal, and may seem “wired and tired.” That is, they’re agitated but exhausted. Because chronically high arousal levels impact memory  and the ability to relate, these kids are also likely to struggle academically and socially. “

Agitated but exhaused…. that one really resonated with me. I know that feeling. It brings me to this thought: When we take a shower we take a time out and we always feel better. One of the beneficial parts of taking a nice shower is that energetically the water helps to cleanse off energies that we have picked up. Showers help to cleanse in more ways than just cleanliness of the body. They also help the energetic body to release negativity and clutter.

Too much screen time and online engagement is clutter and with clutter there are energetic attachments and overwhelm. By taking a break we release and disrupt this overwhelm, agitation and lessen our exhaustion. It just makes sense, to me, anyways. This article came at a perfect time for me and was a great reminder.

Here is the link to read the entire article

I for one will be actively looking for more ways to enJOY other things together with my daughter so we both declutter from so much screen time. 🙂 And I don’t see technology as a bad thing. It’s marvelous but as the saying goes everything in moderation.

Have a great day everyone!

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Two young children playing together on a cell phone with serious looks on their faces.

Celery Juice & Ear Infections

Ear infections are a nuisance and can be very painful.

In Anthony Williams book, “Celery Juice”, he says that ear infections are causes by the Streptococcus or Strep for short.

Anthony refers to most ear infections starting in childhood and often repeat rounds of antibiotics are used. He shares that Strep tends to build immunity to anitbiotics which would explain the resistance we see with ear infections to both healing and in that they recurr often.

Anthony says: “When strep is inside the ear in any way, it means it is in the lymphatic system. Celery juice’s sodium cluster salts are able to enter the lymphatic system quickly, easily, and efficiently – within hours of consumption. These cluster salts seek and destroy strep they find there to reduce the risk of future ear infections.

Once again celery juice is something that is so beneficial and is something I personally ingest on a regular basis.

Here is a link to more info on celery juice and all my blog posts about it:

Link to Celery Juice Posts

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111 Clean juicing recipes

More Interesting Fever Facts

Yesterday I wrote about the Miracle of a Fever

Yesterday’s Blog Post on Fevers

Today I will share some more in-depth information about fevers that you may find interesting and hopefully useful.

A fever (pyrexia) can be a response to:

. endogenous pyrogens which are fever causing chemicals produced in the body

. infection

. bacteria

. exercise (a fever is a normal reaction)

. dehydration (a fever indicates this is a serious problem)

Basically it is an immune response.

Yesterday I wrote about the miracle of fevers and for good reason. The fever helps to heal you. However, the inability to strike a fever in response to an infection is a sign of weakness and debility. People with serious illnesses like AIDS or Cancer often do not have enough bodily strength to strike a fever. This is also common with the elderly and makes diagnosing serious illnesses in the elderly more difficult.

As for children and fevers according to a report published in the journal Pediatrics:

“Fever retards the growth and reproduction of bacteria and viruses, enhances neutrophil production and T-lymphocyte proliferation, and aids in the body’s acute-phase reaction… Most fevers are of short duration, are benign, and may actually protect the host. Data show beneficial effects on certain components of the immune system in fever, and limited data have revealed that fever actually helps the body recover more quickly from viral infections…”

A very interesting thing about the body when it comes to fevers is that digestion slows dramatically when the body spikes a fever. Food tends to ferment and putrefy so the best protocol is to fast, rest and drink plenty of fluids.  And of course, monitor, monitor, monitor. You want the fever to run its course and do its job but if it starts to spike too high, it needs to be addressed immediately.

The optimal range for a fever to do its job is between 99 and 102 degrees Fahrenheit. Always seek proper medical attention if a fever starts to spike higher than this. For more guidelines around this here is a good and informative link:

https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/fever/symptoms-causes/syc-20352759

In closing I cannot stress enough the power of rest. Whether you are fighting a cold, fever, or the flu, rest, rest, rest! Support your body in supporting you. 🙂

Maggie Holbik.com is a Board Certified Nutritionist, Registered Nutritional Practitioner, Natural Nutrition Clinical Practitioner and Certifed Life Coach who loves sharing information about wellness of body, mind and spirit.

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Back to School Health Tips

In many parts of the world it’s back to school time and that means more colds, flues and other nasty bugs.

Sniffles, sneezes, and gastrointestinal bugs creep into our kid’s lives and affect all of us. Many parents assume that colds, flu, and other common illnesses are simply part of the curriculum when they send their children off to school or daycare. That’s not surprising since some kids can “catch” 5 to 10 colds per year but yet there are others we get through with a lot less. Prevention is the key here.

What are some things you can do to help lessen the threat of these intruders?

There are many, but a few that are my top favorites are:

1) Sleep! Not getting enough sleep can suppress the immune system and increase the odds of catching a cold or the flu. People who are sleep deprived develop fewer antibodies and are more prone to chronic inflammation.

Set up a regular bedtime and stick to it! Routine is very helpful for children and sleep allows time for the body to clean up intercellular waste, rest, rejuvenate, heal, and restore resources. Sleep is absolutely vital for children’s health and ours!

2)Washing Hands Frequently!

Lathering up is one of the simplest ways to prevent sharing pathogens. Most upper respiratory viruses are spread by direct contact and something as simple as sneezing into your hand and then touching a doorknob, desk,computer keyboard, or phone could spread the bugs. In turn touching all of those things means kids need to wash their hands often to remove these pathogens. Supporting Article

What’s the best way to wash up? Just lathering up with good old-fashioned soap and water will do the trick and most importantly doing it often. Teach your kids to wash their hands and to make it a habit. For example my daughter is now in the habit of not only washing her hands before meals but also when we come home from shopping or other events. As soon as we arrive home, we wash our hands.

3. Nutrition

See food as medicine. We all know it is often tough to get kids to stay on course with health eating so if we see it like a game of trying to get more nutrition in than the negative nutrition we can work at tipping the scales in favor of our children’s health.

It it is also a good idea to teach our children to listen to their bodies and monitor how they feel after eating certain foods. In this way they can tap into what the body intuitively knows is beneficial for it or what foods burden it and make it sluggish.

Here is a former blog post I wrote on kids and dehydration but it applies to nutrition as well. There are lots of useful tips in here and I encourage you to enJOY this post as well. Link to Dehydration Post

4. Stress
Lower your child’s stress load. Stress comes in many forms. For example video games can cause stress. Too much screen time and stimulation can cause stress. Arguing in front of your children causes them extreme stress!

Help your child to lower their stress levels by spending time in nature with them, unplugging, reading books, reassuring them that the world is a friendly place and that they are loved.

Another thing that helps lower your children’s stress load is by making sure YOU are happy in your life and that you are doing things to support yourself. In life we all want to see our loved ones content and children are no different. If they see their parents as resentful or burdened they feel it. Be sure to teach them that happiness is important and that it is a choice. Choose Happy always! 🙂

5. Supplementing

With all of the toxins we are exposed to, the lack of nutrients in our soils, the presence of heavy metals in our environment and in the world, and the inability to eat adequate amounts of plant based foods on a daily basis, it is mandatory in my opinion, that children supplement with a good multi vitamin as well as a good source of Vitamin C to keep them on top of their immune game. Other supplements that are important as well are Zinc, Selenium, Omega III’s and Probiotics.

As a Board Certified Nutritionist I work will many sources of supplements and I would be happy to make individual recommendations to anyone who reaches out to me. I will though share here for everyone, my favorite kid and adult friendly source of Vitamin C that is delivered in an Isotonic form.

Here is are the links for more info:

USA link for info on Isotonix Vitamin C *Science Based & Backed*

Canadian Info For Isotonix Vitamin C *Science Based & Backed*

I hope you have found this helpful and useful. Feel free to reach out to me with any questions you may have.

Maggie Holbik.com is a Board Certified Nutritionist and Certified Life Coach who also runs a Facebook Page to support Parents. If you would like to follow along there, here is the Moms For Kids FB

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Dehydration in Kids

Children are very prone to dehydration. We often work hard at making sure our kids eat their meals and snacks but hydration often gets overlooked.

Children are even more prone to dehydration because of their size, activity level, often lack of interest in drinking fluids, as well as dealing with sensitive taste buds.

If you notice that your child is not urinating frequently and/or their urine is of a darker color and has a strong smell, your child is probably dehydrated. Dehydration can show itself as constipation, low energy, crankiness, nausea, dry mouth, dry skin, lack of tears, skin that does not bounce back when pinched, sunken eyes, diarrhea, urinary tract infections, and even headaches, to name a few!

One of the best ways to help with hydrating the body is to encourage the consumption of vegetables and fruit, especially fruit. Fruits are jam-packed with micro-nutrients and lots of water.

Easy ways to encourage fruit eating, is to:

. Lead by example! Eat fruits often and find creative ways to eat more fruits and to try new fruits

. Incorporate fruits into meals as salsas, in salads, as toppings on desserts etc.

. One of my favorite ways and it works very well. Leave cut up pieces of fruit in the reach of children. When my daughter has friends over for a sleepover for example, in the morning I knock on the bedroom door and say something fun like “Room Service” and deliver a plate of various fruits cut up. They always eat it! They may not eat the whole plate but they always eat quite a bit.

. Make fruit bowls. Take a banana and chop it up in small pieces or even mash it and then add any other chopped fruit that you like. I change it up all the time and add things like chopped apples, berries, pears, melon and whatever I feel like. I even sometimes drizzle maple syrup or honey on top for added nutrients and for more deliciousness. I have not met a person yet, child or adult, who can resist my fruit bowls. When you make them into bowls like this it is like eating something substantial and the taste is incredible!

. Make fruit smoothies and homemade fruit juices. There are tonnes of recipes if you search Pinterest or Google. I saw one the other day where you put frozen pineapple and orange juice and it looked amazing!

. And on that note, keep bags of frozen fruits in your freezer and let the kids go at it. My daughter loves to make smoothie concoctions with her friends and they have a lot of fun doing it. Frozen fruits make it really easy.

. Lemon water is a GREAT way to hydrate the body. In the morning juice a half of a lemon, add hot water and a bit of honey in a large cup or tea pot and let it sit for a minute. This is the BEST way to start the day. It wakes up and energizes the liver, provides micro-nutrients like vitamins and minerals, and hydrates the body big time! It is a great source of Vitamin C too. Anytime you can add lemons or the juice of lemons to your child’s diet, it’s a big win! Squeeze lemons on salads and even vegetables and other foods. Lemon helps to kill bacteria and also enhances the flavors in food. You can’t go wrong with lemons ever!

Lemon and honey water

As a side note, as a Nutritionist who is also a forever learner and education seeker, I can say with complete confidence that I NEVER worry about the sugar in fruit, if that is something that comes to mind. The natural sugars in fruit are necessary for the brain and the liver to function properly. People are suffering out there because a lack of this natural sugar!!!! And let’s face it, it is almost impossible to have our kids overeat the healthy stuff, so I just work at ‘more’… getting in more of the good stuff.

I hope you found this post on hydration helpful and happy fruit chopping! 🙂

Maggie Holbik.com is a Board Certified Nutritionist, Registered Nutritional Therapist, Natural Nutrition Clinical Practitioner, and Certified Life Coach who loves being a Mom to her daughter Sivanna Roses… as a side note Sivanna is working on a presentation for school called “Healthy Eating” and her mom is quite proud of this. 🙂 Oh ya!

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My favorite non-toxic cleaner, SNAP All Purpose Natural Concentrate… great for washing veggies!

Sore Tummy – 6 Ways to Help Your Child with Anxiety

As a parent, how often have you heard the words “I have a sore tummy” or “My tummy’s sore”? I’m sure most parents have heard these words but some more than others.

I have taught my own daughter, who gets a sore stomach, to tap into and listen to the clues that her body offers. Sivanna is 12 and she has been listening to her tummy talk for several years now. She is learning what foods make her feel a certain way and she also knows that when she is experiencing anxiety it shows up in her gut.

There are many forms of anxiety that children feel. Some of which, but are not limited to, separation anxiety, fear, dread, uncertainty, worry, feelings of inadequacy, and the list goes on.

The stomach is often called the second brain, is referred to as ‘gut instinct’, and is home to the enteric nervous system, and is also linked to the solar plexus chakra.

The solar plexus or third chakra is a control center for will, personal power, personal responsibility, mental capabilities, the intellect, forming personal beliefs, decision making, self-confidence, independence, personal identity and personality, so it seems very fitting that as children grow and evolve, the tummy is a barometer for anxiety and angst.

How can we help our young children with anxiety?

1.  First and foremost we can help by discussing and creating conversations around what they are feeling in their body and what it means to them. Sivanna and I mutually came to the conclusion that some of her tummy strains, were anxiety and we openly discussed it. Now, when she feels this particular type of angst, we peel back the onion layer, so to speak, to see what is underlying there.
2. Listening to your child. This is something I have to work on myself. I know I never truly listen enough. Let’s face it, we all want to be heard and listened to. While the conversation may not seem important to us, it is extremely important to them. Try listening with an open heart and a non-judgmental mind to make room for clearer communication and your child’s willingness to share.
3. Let you child know that they are ‘safe’. Let them know that they can openly discuss anything with you at anytime. Let them know that there is NO-thing that they cannot share with you. They need to feel safe and that  they will be worthy of your love and support NO MATTER WHAT!!!! This is indeed what unconditional love means. We all need to feel safe, heard, and supported.
4. Ask your child for their input on what they are feeling, what they think might be underlying in this particular way of feeling, and really probe them for input. Children love to be heard, love to share, and love to feel that they are worthy of providing input.  It is also a good idea to ask them for possible solutions to help relieve the angst or anxiety. Ask them what ideas do they have to alleviate this feeling they are having?
5. Sleep! Make sure your child gets enough sleep! We all know what it feels like to be tired and worn out. It’s hard to cope with life. Make sure you support your children in a routine that provides adequate sleep, rest and downtime.
6. Proper nutrition and nutritional deficiencies play a BIG role in children’s anxiety. Children don’t always eat optimally for many different reasons and they may suffer from common digestive and assimilation issues, just like adults, so making sure your child gets the proper micro-nutrients such as vitamins, minerals, enzymes etc. is hugely important to help with both anxiety and overall health.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 I really believe the more we openly discuss the issue of anxiety and teach our children to tap into what their body and mind is saying to them, the more we can help them. Let’s start the conversation…..

Maggie Holbik.com is a Board Certified Nutritionist, Certified Life Coach, Certified Infinitie Possibilities Trainer, Mom, Step Mom, Gramma, Great Gramma, Mom by Heart and often referred to as Momma Maggie 🙂  She runs a facebook page for parenting support and it can be found at Link to follow Maggie’s Parenting FB Page

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