To ask how do you get your DC to take fish oil willingly?

[treetomfu]

We're on a manor health kick in our house after a month of colds and flu.

Have bought Vegapa fish oil supplements for the children, but they refuse to take them. I've tried squeezing the fish oil out of the capsule and putting it on on a spoonful of jelly or fruit yoghurt, but still no luck.

Does anyone have any tips or tricks? DC are 6 and 4 so it's not easy to fool them anymore!

DS2 is 2.9 & takes Boots Omega-3 vitamins quite happily off the spoon. They smell fishy to me, but are supposedly orange-flavoured. These are worth a try as one bottle is only £3-£4 & often on 3 for 2, so if it doesn't go, you haven't lost much.

Cook fish instead.

Same as confused Boots liquid and my fussy DS (2 and a half), laps it straight off the spoon. Standard health visitor reccommendation in our district is vits for all over 1's, irrespective of diet. They ask you at the 2 year check if you are making sure they take a vitamin (I was) but I queried with health visitor.

Was advised fish oil to assist certain developmental delays in DS. Seems to be working a treat.

Long Road - just to check , the HV recommended Omega 3 and just that? Or other vitamins as well? There's a whole variety isn't there!

Our 2 year check we weren't advised anything and the only one I've seen recommended is Vit D in winter.

Just eat fish instead

There is no evidence that fish oil st,ops kids getting colds!

Health visitor recommendation was just a good quality multi-vitamin for over 1's.

The fish oil was recommended by a friend to assist with speech delays (she is a medical professional but advice was not given in a professional capacity, more just as 1 friend to another) and I've been extremely pleased with the results so far so will be continuing with this.

My children have a pretty good diet, they refuse oily fish though. I know some organic milk and the eggs you can buy in the pink box contain omega 3 but neither are widely available in our local shops.

LongRoad this is a bit of a personal question, so I understand if you don't want to answer it. But how did the speech improve with taking fish oils? What was your DC like before & what are they like now & how long did it take to see an improvement? Sorry for being nosey, but my DS2 (2.9) also has a pretty severe speech delay & I have seen people recommending fish oil so am trying that, I just wanted to know what to expect. He has been on them for about 2 weeks, but I don't always remember every day We have had a couple of new words & improved concentration, but I'm not sure if this is progress we'd be seeing anyway, iyswim.

This threat brings up memories. I spent my childhood binning one spoonful of cod liver oil every morning but my mother insists to this day that it had an enormous beneficial effect.

He was struggling a lot with pronounciation. Using vowel sounds instead of consonants quite often...for example "twinkle twinkle" was "inngaaa inngaaa" (sometimes even the g was missing). He could say lots but it was all very vowel sounding and I was concerned he was apraxic. After 10 weeks using them we now get "twinkaa twinkaa" Granted, it could be a coincidence but his concentration has improved, frustration has improved, less tantrums, he seems a calmer child. I havent done anything different but finally it now feels like hes catching up and this dramatic change has been since I introduced Omega 3, 10 weeks ago.

Hope that helps. If you visit the Special Needs board on here there are lots of threads about it really helping. Well worth a read.

Treetomfu, vegepa is a vegetarian equivalent to fish oils. They may taste nasty, but they won't taste of fish!

DS2 has ASD and has been taking eyeQ for 10 years. I saw an improvement in his behaviour after 5 or 6 weeks. I stopped them for a trial period, a few months, saw a deterioration, went back on them and again saw an improvement after a few weeks. May have been a coincidence but worth continuing with. Now off to google prostate cancer risk!

Fish oil has no benefit at all in a healthy diet. I wouldn't bother if I was you. Save your money.

DS takes the Boots Omega-3 strawberry flavour fish liquid in the hope it will help with his developmental issues, and wolfs it down happily. He is a keen sardine and anchovy eater anyway though; DD, who doesn't like oily fish much, refused it outright.

I'm not sure it's particularly worthwhile for general health though - you'd be better off trying to get more fish into their everyday diet (salmon fishcakes? smoked mackerel kedgeree?)

dreaming I disagree with that. I have seen an improvement in my son and both children have a varied and healthy, balanced diet. It may not be for everyone but there are lots of threads on the special needs board giving examples of how it has helped their children in areas such as concentration, speech, behaviour.

I've just read my reply back and think I need to clarify cos I aint explained myself very well

I have never given DS1 fish oil. He has a multi vit ans refuses to eat oily fish but for some reason he doesnt seem to need the omega 3. No issues with speech, concentration or behaviour. (so I can see what you are saying there). DS2 evidently needs omega 3 in his diet. He functions more sharply and is more controlled with it. So in that respect, I disagree with you. Both children have the same diet but one needs this extra supplement. There is a brilliant website that explains it, it's to do with the production of vessells in the brain or some such, some children struggle to develop these even with a balanced diet. I will attempt to find a link.