Boosting children’s immunity is a top priority, especially during cold and flu season. A balanced diet is crucial for building strong immune systems in kids, but which vitamins and minerals are most important?
In this blog post, we’ll explore the key nutrients and food sources vital for your child’s immunity. Stay until the end for some of the best immune-boosting superfoods and recipes for kids.
Our child’s immune system has several layers to keep them safe. Each layer relies on micronutrients (vitamins and minerals) for optimal function.
These nutrients help the body produce antibodies, white blood cells, and other immune warriors that actively combat infections. A diet rich in these elements equips your child’s immune system with the artillery it needs to fight off illnesses, from common colds to more serious infections.
How is nutrition connected to immunity?
We know that the foods we eat affect how our body functions. But how do the foods we eat prevent us from getting sick?
It all comes back to the gut! More than 70% of our immune system is located in our digestive tract. This means that the foods we eat are in direct contact with the cells that protect us from bacteria and infections.
If a child is deficient in these important nutrients, their immune function suffers and they are more at risk for bacterial attack. This leads to more inflammation and sometimes even infection.
Top 5 Immune-Boosting Vitamins & Minerals
The below vitamins and minerals are what we have the most research on to improve children’s immune systems. They have been proven to prevent respiratory illness and contagious digestive diseases.
Remember – more vitamin does not necessarily mean higher immunity! After we consume sufficient amounts of a particular vitamin or mineral, we will either excrete it in urine or store it in fat. Excess supplementation is not used by the body. This means that it is often not necessary to supplement our kids with vitamins and minerals.
The below lists give us practical ways to meet all of their needs through real food! For example, just ½ cup of red pepper or ¾ cup of orange juice is nearly four times the daily need for vitamin C.
**Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) is provided for ages 4-8. RDA is the amount sufficient to meet the average child’s dietary needs. These values are slightly different for other age groups. Please click here for alternative age group’s RDAS.
Vitamin A
Recommended dietary allowance (RDA): 400 micrograms (mcg) per day
Food sources:
- Sweet Potato, ½ large potato = 700 mcg
- Spinach, ½ cup cooked = 500 mcg
- Carrots, ½ cup = 450 mcg
- Fortified Milk, 1 cup = 150 mcg
- Cantaloupe, ½ cup = 135 mcg
- Red Peppers, ½ cup = 117 mcg
- Mango, 1 whole = 110 mcg
- Fortified Breakfast Cereal, 1 cup = 90 mcg
- Egg, 1 whole = 75 mcg
Vitamin E
Recommended dietary allowance (RDA): 7 milligrams (mg) per day
Food sources:
- Sunflower Seeds, ¼ cup = 7.4 mg
- Almonds, 20 almonds = 6.8 mg
- Peanut Butter, 2 Tbsp = 3 mg
- Spinach, ½ cooked = 2mg
- Broccoli, ½ cup = 1.2 mg
- Kiwi, 1 fruit = 1.1 mg
- Tomato, 1 fruit = 0.7 mg
Zinc
Recommended dietary allowance (RDA): 5 milligrams (mg) per day
Food sources:
- Cheddar Cheese, 3oz = 3 mg
- Fortified Breakfast Cereal, ⅔ cup = 2.8 mg
- Pumpkin Seeds, ¼ cup = 2.2 mg
- Pork Chop, 3oz bone-in = 2 mg
- Turkey Breast, 3oz = 1.4 mg
- Shrimp, 3oz = 1.4 mg
- Lentils, ½ cup cooked = 1.3 mg
- Yogurt, ⅔ cup = 1mg
- Milk, 1 cup = 1 mg
- Peanuts, ¼ cup = 0.8 mg
- Brown Rice, ½ cup cooked = 0.7 mg
Vitamin C
Recommended dietary allowance (RDA): 25 milligrams (mg) per day
Food sources:
- Red Pepper, ½ cup = 95 mg
- Orange Juice, ¾ cup = 93 mg
- Orange, 1 medium fruit = 70 mg
- Kiwi, 1 fruit = 64 mg
- Green Pepper, ½ cup = 50 mg
- Strawberries, ½ cup = 50 mg
- Broccoli, ½ cup = 40 mg
- Cantaloupe, ½ cup = 30 mg
- Baked Potato, 1 medium = 17 mg
- Spinach, ½ cup cooked = 9 mg
- Green Peas, ½ cup = 8 mg
Vitamin D
Recommended dietary allowance (RDA): 15 micrograms (mcg) per day
Food sources:
- Salmon, 3oz cooked = 14 mcg
- Mushrooms, raw ½ cup 9 mcg
- Milk, 1 cup = 3 mcg
- Fortified Non-Dairy Milk, 1 cup = 3mcg
- Fortified Breakfast Cereal, 1 cup = 2 mcg
- Egg, 1 whole = 1.1 mcg
- Tuna, 3oz = 1 mcg
- Cheddar Cheese, 3oz = 0.8 mcg
Other Vitamins & Minerals that Affect the Immune System
Folic acid
Recommended dietary allowance (RDA): 200 micrograms (mcg) per day
Food sources:
- Spinach, ½ cup cooked = 131 mcg
- Fortified Breakfast Cereal, 1 cup = 100 mcg
- White Rice, ½ cup cooked = 90 mcg
- Asparagus, 4 spears = 89 mcg
- Spaghetti, ½ cup cooked = 74 mcg
- Romaine Lettuce, 1 cup = 64 mcg
- Avocado, ½ cup = 59 mcg
- White Bread, 1 slice = 50 mcg
- Green peas, ½ cup = 46 mcg
Vitamin B6
Recommended dietary allowance (RDA): 0.6 milligrams (mg) per day
Food sources:
- Chickpeas, 1 cup = 1.1 mg
- Tuna, 3oz = 0.9 mg
- Salmon, 3oz = 0.9 mg
- Chicken Breast, 3oz = 0.5 mg
- Fortified Breakfast Cereal, 1 cup = 0.4 mg
- Potatoes, 1 cup = 0.4 mg
- Turkey, 3oz = 0.4 mg
- Banana, 1 medium = 0.4 mg
- Ground Beef, 3oz = 0.3 mg
- Waffles, 1 ready-to-eat = 0.3 mg
Vitamin B12
Recommended dietary allowance (RDA): 1.2 micrograms (mcg) per day
Food sources:
- Nutritional Yeast, 2 Tbsp = 15 mcg (Nutritional Yeast is a cheese-like seasoning you can add to mac and cheese, soups, and sauces)
- Salmon, 3oz = 2.6 mcg
- Tuna, 3oz = 2.6 mcg
- Beef, 3oz cooked = 2.5 mcg
- Milk, 1 cup = 1.3 mcg
- Yogurt, ⅔ cup = 1 mcg
- Cheddar Cheese, 3oz = 1 mcg
- Egg, 1 whole = 0.5 mcg
Copper
Recommended dietary allowance (RDA): 440 micrograms (mcg) per day
Food sources:
- Potatoes, 1 medium = 675 mcg
- Cashews, ¼ cup = 629 mcg
- Sunflower Seeds, ¼ cup = 615 mcg
- Chickpeas, ½ cup = 289 mcg
- Salmon, 3oz = 273 mcg
- Whole Wheat Pasta, 1 cup cooked = 263 mcg
- Avocado, ½ cup = 219 mcg
Iron
Recommended dietary allowance (RDA): 10 milligrams (10g) per day
Food sources:
- Fortified Breakfast Cereals, 1 cup = 18 mg
- Lentils, ½ cup = 3mg
- Spinach, cooked ½ cup = 3mg
- Chickpeas, ½ cup = 2mg
- Tomatoes, ½ cup = 2 mg
- Potato, 1 medium with skin = 2 mg
- Green Peas, ½ cup = 1 mg
Immunity “Super” Foods (on several of the above lists!)
Spinach
½ cup cooked provides:
- 125% Vitamin A
- 28% Vitamin E
- 36% Vitamin C
- 65% Folic Acid
- 30% Iron
Fortified Breakfast Cereal
1 serving (1 cup) provides:
- 45% Vitamin A
- 56% Zinc
- 13% Vitamin D
- 50% Folic Acid
- 67% Vitamin B6
- 180% Iron
Milk (Dairy or Non-dairy Fortified)
1 cup provides:
- 37% Vitamin A
- 20% Zinc
- 20% Vitamin D
- 108% Vitamin B12
Red Pepper
½ cup provides:
- 29% Vitamin A
- 380% Vitamin C
Chickpeas
½ cup provides:
- 180% Vitamin B6
- 66% Copper
- 20% Iron
Yogurt
5oz or ⅔ cup provides:
- 20% Zinc
- 83% Vitamin B12
Super-Food Recipes
Salmon and Sweet Potato Nuggets
For more on immunity-boosting foods for kids, check out 20 Kid-Approved High Protein Snacks.
Thank you so much for sharing this article! As a mom of two, this information comes in handy and it’s so much easier to understand with your easy guides.
Thank you so much for sharing this article! As a mom of two, this information comes in handy and it’s so much easier to understand with your easy guides.
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