Sambucol feedback thread - non-testers: What do you do to support your DCs immunity? £100 hamper prize draw! NOW CLOSED

[MichelleMumsnet]

This thread is for the 100 Mumsnetters who tested out Sambucol Kids Teddies to leave their feedback.

Here's what Sambucol say, "Sambucol is a great tasting food supplement packed with thousands of Black Elderberries. Black elderberries contain naturally occurring flavonoids. Sambucol also contains Vitamin C, which is well known for its ability to support the immune system. Sambucol is made from Black Elderberries which have twice the natural antioxidant capacity of blueberries and more than 50% the overall antioxidant capability of cranberries. Antioxidants strengthen the immune system by helping neutralise the harmful effect of free radicals."

Non-testers: How many episodes of colds and sniffles do you have to deal with in an average year with each of your children? What do you do to help support your DCs immunity?

All non testers who add a comments to this thread will be entered into a prize draw to win a £100 hamper of Skin Doctor cosmetics.

Testers: Below are some questions we'd like you to answer but feel free to add any other thoughts you have.

Q1. How old was the child who tried the Teddies? What did they think overall of Sambucol Teddies? Did they like the taste or not?
Q2. What was your overall impression of the product? Did you like it? If so, why? If not, why not?
Q3. Would you recommend Sambucol Teddies to friends/family if it came up in conversation or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
Q4. Sambucol Teddies' RRP is £12.99 for 60 teddies, do you think you'd be likely to buy it again or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
Q5. Any other comments?

All testers who add their feedback to the thread will be entered into a prize draw to win a hamper of Skin Doctor cosmetics worth £250.

Thanks and good luck,

MNHQ

1. DD is 4 and loved the bottle - she wants it to play with in the bath once the teddies are finished. She likes the taste and she's not a lover of sweets.
2. I liked the bottle but the tablets looked almost old fashioned
3. I would recommend them yes as being a good multi vitamin that would be easy for children to take
4. If I thought DD needed a multivitamin yes I would buy them.
5. A good product test !

1. my dc, ages 10 & 14. Both liked the shape of the bottle. Dd said it was a cute teddy shape. Both liked the taste and I didn't have to remind them to take the daily dose.
2. I liked the product, I thought it was child centered and appealing to children.
3. I would recommend this product to my friends.
4. I would buy this product.

Q1. How old was the child who tried the Teddies? What did they think overall of Sambucol Teddies? Did they like the taste or not?

DS1 is 5 years old, DS2 is 3 years old. The both loved the bottle, the little teddie tablets and the taste. A winner overall with them!

Q2. What was your overall impression of the product? Did you like it? If so, why? If not, why not?

I give my DC a multivitamin daily anyway so personally it's something I believe in and do. The product was really cute, the little teddies even cuter and the taste did taste a lot like sweets - there's a definite valid reason for the childproof lid alone there! Personally I'm abit baffled as to why the bottle is so big compared to the contents (when unopened it was only 3/4 full)

Q3. Would you recommend Sambucol Teddies to friends/family if it came up in conversation or not? If so, why? If not, why not?

If I had friends/family who were really struggling to encourage to give their children vitamins then yes I'd strongly recommend Sambucol Teddies as they really are very appealing to children.

Q4. Sambucol Teddies' RRP is £12.99 for 60 teddies, do you think you'd be likely to buy it again or not? If so, why? If not, why not?

Ooof not at that price sorry! Far too expensive especially when you start multiplying costs with multiple DC over the space of a year. That's a real shame they're that expensive especially as it's only Vitamin C - the multivitamins I currently give my DC includes Omega 3 and I got the equivalent sized bottle for a third of the price!

Q5. Any other comments?

Good idea, well executed, the only draw backs being the price (major factor) and the sized bottle (unnecessarily too big/environmentally unfriendly).

Q1. My children are 11 and 4. The 11 year old liked them , the 4 year old didn't like the taste.

Q2. I liked the lool of the product. Both boys, especially the youngest, were drawn to the packaging. I liked thw fact that the bottle is clear and the contents can be seen.

Q3. Yes i would. They are easy to take and taste ok

Q4. They are too expensive for our budget. I can get vitamins at much cheaper price that my children will take.

Tester

Q1. I have two kids- girls five & eight who both have tried the teddies. They liked the taste of the teddies as they are fans of anything "berry" like and don't like citrus (eg orange or lemon). The younger one likes that they stain her lips as though she's wearing lipstick!
Overall they loved the Teddies- they said they had never seen anything like them before, only as sweets, and were quite excited when I showed them the jar. There was a bit of a fight over who was going to get the jar afterwards. They are reminding me in the mornings, to give them their "special teddies" when its usually the other way around when I have bought vitamins for them. They are definitely impressed with the novelty factor of the teddy jar & vitamin shape.

Q2. Overall I liked the product. Thought it quite a unique idea to have the teddy shaped jar, not just vitamins. This definitely catches the kids attention and makes them want to taste the vitamins. I like that the vitamins are straightforwards- not loads of other additives.

Q3. I would recommend this product to family/friends if it came up in conversation. Its easy to get kids to take these vitamins compared to others. They appear to be good quality & its a well-respected brand.

Q4. I would be unlikely to buy this product as at this price it is far too expensive. I am used to paying in the region of £3 to £4 for a 30 day supply of kids vitamins. I don't think the health benefits of this product significantly exceed those of the similar ones on the market to justify the cost. Even as a multivitamin I would not pay this amount; there would have to be a special offer eg BOGOF. I can see pester-power may have some influence in the shop though if kids were with me and saw the jar.

Q5. Thanks for supplying them for the trial.

Q1. How old was the child who tried the Teddies? What did they think overall of Sambucol Teddies? Did they like the taste or not?

My daughters are 5 and 7 years old. They both liked the teddies. The younger one especially liked the bottle and the cotton wool - which quickly disappeared! They both liked the taste - which I didn't think they would as they are very fussy and more so when it comes to vitamins we have tried in the past. DD2 is also not keen on sweets but she ate these vitamins happily.

Q2. What was your overall impression of the product? Did you like it? If so, why? If not, why not?

I liked the product. The bottle was cute although I was not sure why it was so large and, therefore filled up with cotton wool. It made me think either the bottle should be smaller or else you should get more tablets. I didn't taste the vitamins.

Q3. Would you recommend Sambucol Teddies to friends/family if it came up in conversation or not? If so, why? If not, why not?

If people had the option to try them then I would recommend they do so but I am not sure that these vitamins had any impact on my DDs' health. We do not regularly give them vitamins so they liked the novelty but they have been no more or less healthy than usual - they have not had colds (yet) this winter and have not picked up any of the bugs that are going around, but then, they usually don't.

Q4. Sambucol Teddies' RRP is £12.99 for 60 teddies, do you think you'd be likely to buy it again or not? If so, why? If not, why not?

I don't think we could justify paying this amount of money for vitamin C. Even if it was a multivitamin I do not know if we could find that amount of money for each child (and there is a DS too who is too young for them at the moment but would want them when he could have them!) I imagine if my daughters saw this product in the shop, they would want me to buy it though. If this was a multivitamin or I could see some positive impact on my daughters' health I would probably try to buy it sometimes if they wanted it but it would be a treat rather than a normal part of our lives.

Q5. Any other comments?

Thank you for letting us try the product.

Tester here.

Q1. How old was the child who tried the Teddies? What did they think overall of Sambucol Teddies? Did they like the taste or not?
My two (6 and 8) love the packaging and the taste.

Q2. What was your overall impression of the product? Did you like it? If so, why? If not, why not?
I quite liked it, but it's hard to tell how effective it's been after such a short period.

Q3. Would you recommend Sambucol Teddies to friends/family if it came up in conversation or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
I don't think so - they are very expensive, and I don't know how effective they are.

Q4. Sambucol Teddies' RRP is £12.99 for 60 teddies, do you think you'd be likely to buy it again or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
No- they may well have properties that the multivitamin with omega 3 we give them doesn't have, but they don't have the range of vitamins etc that their regular tablet has. I don't plan to give the kids more than one tablet per day, especially at that price.

Q5. Any other comments?
Thank you for including us in the trial.

Q1. How old was the child who tried the Teddies? What did they think overall of Sambucol Teddies? Did they like the taste or not?
DS is 11 and I had to bribe him to try these as he thought they looked like something that was for babies, he found the packaging was for "little children", and didn't really wanted to take them after that, although he admitted the taste was not bad.

Q2. What was your overall impression of the product? Did you like it? If so, why? If not, why not?
I thought it looked nice and quite innovative having the shaped bottle, but possibly for a younger market...I tried it and liked the shape/colour/taste. I like the immune system boosting claims.

Q3. Would you recommend Sambucol Teddies to friends/family if it came up in conversation or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
I probably might mention it, but followed by the sentence: BUT it's very expensive...

Q4. Sambucol Teddies' RRP is £12.99 for 60 teddies, do you think you'd be likely to buy it again or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
No, sorry, DD din't like it enough, they are quite expensive and his health is really quite good (i did breastfeed him for two endless blissful years!)

Q5. Any other comments?
Thanks for this opportunity, I was hoping to find something he might like as he's a very picky eater and I am constantly worrying he doesn't get enough nutrients to sustain a healthy immune system...

Non-Tester...

My eldest is 8 years old and gets at the most 2 colds a year and maybe one sickness bug.
My youngest who is 3 years old has in the past year had 6colds. 3 bouts of tonsillitis and 2 chest infections.

My youngest does have a low immune system though and we have been told she will catch everything as it builds up.

My youngest daughter i give multivitanins and vitamin c too. the reason for this though is whilst she is ill she will refuse to eat and often goes 7-10 days without food.

My eldest i dont give any extra vitamins to.

Both children eat fruit and veg daily and have a varied diet.

Q1. How old was the child who tried the Teddies? What did they think overall of Sambucol Teddies? Did they like the taste or not?
DS is 5. He liked it at first, then decided it was too chewy.
Q2. What was your overall impression of the product? Did you like it? If so, why? If not, why not?
Thought product looked great. Teddies are a great way to entice kids to eat vitamins. Maybe expand into trains/cars/rockets for older children?
Q3. Would you recommend Sambucol Teddies to friends/family if it came up in conversation or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
Yes, I would, although the price would put many people off.
Q4. Sambucol Teddies' RRP is £12.99 for 60 teddies, do you think you'd be likely to buy it again or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
No, unfortunately £13 is too expensive for me.
Q5. Any other comments?
Price is just too high.

Q1. How old was the child who tried the Teddies? What did they think overall of Sambucol Teddies? Did they like the taste or not? DS2 tried them, he is 7 and loves the taste.

Q2. What was your overall impression of the product? Did you like it? If so, why? If not, why not? I thought it was overpackaged and gimicky, the appeal will be limited to a very small age group because of the teddy shape.

Q3. Would you recommend Sambucol Teddies to friends/family if it came up in conversation or not? If so, why? If not, why not? No, because they are far too expensive.

Q4. Sambucol Teddies' RRP is £12.99 for 60 teddies, do you think you'd be likely to buy it again or not? If so, why? If not, why not? No, because I can get 3 bottles of his usual Haliborange for £12 full price and they are often on a 3 for 2 deal

Q5. Any other comments? DS has said he thinks the packaging is a bit 'girly'.

Q1. How old was the child who tried the Teddies? What did they think overall of Sambucol Teddies? Did they like the taste or not? 4 years old. He loves them and takes them without hesitation and his little brother (3) is very jealous he can't take the teddy sweets
Q2. What was your overall impression of the product? Did you like it? If so, why? If not, why not? Loved the presentation in the bottle and they smell lovely. Shame its only the vitamin C though
Q3. Would you recommend Sambucol Teddies to friends/family if it came up in conversation or not? If so, why? If not, why not? I would as they have been a hit in our house
Q4. Sambucol Teddies' RRP is £12.99 for 60 teddies, do you think you'd be likely to buy it again or not? If so, why? If not, why not? Ouch - thats a lot of money when I still have to buy another supplement for the other vitamins/minerals - a real shame they are so expensive
Q5. Any other comments? Lovely product but too expensive for our family to buy regularly

Q1. How old was the child who tried the Teddies? What did they think overall of Sambucol Teddies? Did they like the taste or not?
Both my children, aged 4 and 8, tested the Teddies. They really loved them. Especially the younger one, who nagged for 'just one more' without ceasing. They both thought the bottle was cute, and they loved the flavour.

Q2. What was your overall impression of the product? Did you like it? If so, why? if not, why not?
I'm not convinced of the need for routine supplements, and tbh wasn't quite sure what it was I was giving my children. It would be good to have clearer explanation of what the tablets were and how they boost immunity.

But, if I'm going to give supplements, this is a nice one to give because the children loved it so much.

Q3. Would you recommend Sambucol teddies if it came up in conversation?

I'd recommend on the basis that my children like the taste and the bottle. I have no idea how effective they are compared to other supplements, or no supplements.

Q4. Sambucol Teddies' RRP is £12.99 for 60 teddies, do you think you'd be likely to buy it again or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
At that price, no. That is extraordinarily expensive.

Q5. Any other comments?
We really enjoyed trying this out. Many thanks for letting us take part.

Q1. How old was the child who tried the Teddies? What did they think overall of Sambucol Teddies? Did they like the taste or not?
Child 1= 6 years old. Liked the idea of the teddies and was excited by the packaging. Loved the taste of them
Child 2 = 5 years old. Loved the bottle. Loved the taste
Q2. What was your overall impression of the product? Did you like it? If so, why? If not, why not?
Liked the bottle; very child friendly and more to the pont child proof! Liked the teddy shape of the product.
Q3. Would you recommend Sambucol Teddies to friends/family if it came up in conversation or not? If so, why? If not, why not? I'm not entirely convinced that children need nutritional supplements if they have a healthy diet, so not sure I would recommend them to anyone on that basis.
Q4. Sambucol Teddies' RRP is £12.99 for 60 teddies, do you think you'd be likely to buy it again or not? If so, why? If not, why not? No, they are far too expensive. I have three children; if they had the recommended 2 teddies per day it would cost me around £40 pcm. I think they could get the vitC in Sambucol from far cheaper sources. I could buy much more in fresh fruit and veg for that amount of money which would give themrecommended intake in fresh fruit and veg very day.
Q5. Any other comments?
I'm cynical about any nutritional supplements for children; especially those marketed especially towards the children vs the parents. I think that the manufacturers are either tugging the hearstrings of the parents, or exploiting the pester power of the children. The amount of VitC in the product is readily abvailable from natural sources without the need for supplements. As such I doubt I would buy this product.

Non tester

We get lots of coughs and colds and my eldest is very prone to tonsilitis. I feed My children as much garlic as I can, as well as a decent diet and a multivitamin when I remember! We also get lots of fresh air.

Looked at buying Echinacea to support immunity, but it's no longer licenced for young children - I was offered sambucol as an alternative but thought it too expensive.

ds has been the one reminding me and being the one who asks for his vitamins, that doesn't usually happen so they must taste good!

Q1. Ds is 12, he liked the taste of the teddies. He said he thought the packaging and teddy shapes were different and quite a clever idea. Dd (3 and not testing), likes the teddy bottle and wants to keep it when her brother has had all the teddies.

Q2. I liked the packaging and teddy shapes. My son likes them, he is usually quite reluctant to take things like this. Perhaps the bottles could be smaller as there was a lot of cotton wool stuffed in it!

Q3. I do make sure we have a healthy diet and would promote this ahead of recommending supplements. However I have read positive reviews about Sambucol products and I do like this one. Yes I probably would recommend the product but also mention the price!

Q4. They are expensive which would put me off buying it, especially as there are lots of supplements on the market. Perhaps if I bought them for several months and saw the children rarely getting coughs and colds (awful amount this winter) then the price would be worth it.

Q5. It has been great to take part in this test. I think the product is good and a little bit different to a lot of others out there. I'm sitting on the fence over whether I would buy it again, it is expensive.

Q1. How old was the child who tried the Teddies? What did they think overall of Sambucol Teddies? Did they like the taste or not?
DD is 11. Yes she liked the product, said it has a nice taste & the bottle shape is good. She has taken it every day without me needing to remind her - which means its a real hit with her.

Q2. What was your overall impression of the product? Did you like it? If so, why? If not, why not?
Yes I thought it looked good and would especially appeal to younger children.

Q3. Would you recommend Sambucol Teddies to friends/family if it came up in conversation or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
Yes I would recommend them to friends.

Q4. Sambucol Teddies' RRP is £12.99 for 60 teddies, do you think you'd be likely to buy it again or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
Not likely to buy it regularly, as for that price I would want a more general multi-vitamin tablet. I might consider buying it if DD had a extended period of illness (cold after cold etc) and was a bit run down.

Q5. Any other comments?
DD really disliked the name - Sambucol. She thought it should have a more child friendly name to go with the teddy design.
DD also suggested you could have other flavours as well (orange & apple were suggested).

Non-tester

How many episodes of colds and sniffles do you have to deal with in an average year with each of your children?
I have 2 DCs so they often pick things up individually from school/activities and then generously share with each other (and us!). To be fair though, I would say it is very mild, only a couple of coughs and sniffles each every year. They have never been 'properly' ill and neither has been to the doctors since babyhood.

What do you do to help support your DCs immunity?
My mother was absolutely crazily overprotective when I was a child. She would wrap us up in too many clothes, not ever letting us take our coats off outside if it was before May, and would dose us up/ call out the doctor/keep us off school at the merest sniffle. I was ill a lot as a child with tummy bugs and tonsilitis, but I was never given the chance to develop my immunity and just 'get better' on my own. i remember taking lots of antibiotics, that probably didn't help me anyway. I think as a reaction to this I am much more inclined to let my kids get ill, and let them get better by themselves. We maintain good immunity by eating properly every day. Meals are from scratch, processed junk is limited, lots of fresh fruit and veg. They also get plenty of activity, and mix a lot with other children. I did give the DCs a supplement when they were smaller (up to about age 7) but it was mostly Omega 3 I was interested in topping up as they eat a mixed healthy diet.

Non tester.

My DS has probably one cold per season, which I think is normal. He recovers well though.

To boost his immunity I breastfeed him (he's 28 months) and hope to do so for some time yet. I also avoid giving him any cows milk products, restrict refined sugars and oxidated fats, make him green smoothies, give him fish oil supplements and make sure he eats protein at each meal.

Non tester.

My two (3yo and 1yo) catch quite a few colds, maybe three or four over the winter period. They've never had tummy bugs/D&V though.

Apart from a reasonably healthy and varied diet, I don't do anything extra to boost their immune system. Unless letting them eat food off the (clean! ish) floor occasionally counts

Non tester:
we don't take vit tabets in general in this house, but do eat a wide range of food, including loads of fruit, and a reasonable amount of veg.
How are we describing colds? The 2 yr old seems to have a running nose most of winter. The 4 yr old seems to have escaped everything this winter.
I've been laid flat in bed twice this winter with a cold. maybe I should starting taking vits (or more, likely, just stop trying to do everything and rest sometimes)

Q1. How old was the child who tried the Teddies? What did they think overall of Sambucol Teddies? Did they like the taste or not?

My child is 6 and think they are sweets-she loves them.

Q2. What was your overall impression of the product? Did you like it? If so, why? If not, why not?

Yes I did like them. i like the shape and the texture. but they are almost too appealing to children, my dd always asks for more.

Q3. Would you recommend Sambucol Teddies to friends/family if it came up in conversation or not? If so, why? If not, why not?
yes probably, anything that supports immunity is worth recommending.

Q4. Sambucol Teddies' RRP is £12.99 for 60 teddies, do you think you'd be likely to buy it again or not? If so, why? If not, why not?

thats too expensive for me, the evidence they help immunity is purely anecdotal in my expereince so I wouldn't be sure to spend that much. 5.99 maybe.

Q5. Any other comments? The little teddy packaging is too attractive-it's lovely, but as this product needs to be kept out of sight and reach of children there little point in it being in the cutsie teddy.

Q1. Dd is 10, ds is 11. They both liked the taste and that they weren't chalky like some vitamins that they've tried.
Q2. I thought they looked good - so tried one. They are more child-friendly than others that the dc's have tried. The bottle was a nice touch, but agree with other posters that it may make these even more attractive to younger children.
Q3. Yes I would recommend to friends and family, they taste really nice and both of my fussy dc's remembered to ask for them each day! That was a first.
Q4. They are pricey compared to other vitamin supplements. I would buy them occasionally (probably in Winter, to give their immunity a bit of a boost). I would certainly buy them again though.
Q5. I was sceptical about the flavour of these vitamins, but need not have worried as both dc and myself thought that they tasted lovely.

Sniffles about every three to four months here

I support immunity with lots of fruit & veg & I take supplements as I'm bf