In an ideal world, getting all the nutrients we need to be healthy and happy would come from our everyday diet.
But be it an aversion to certain foods, lack of time or needing a top-up of particularly beneficial vitamins and minerals to tackle a specific issue, that isn’t always the case. This can be true even more so when it comes to teenagers, who may be more partial to fast food than fresh juices and are faced with wildly fluctuating hormones while still physically growing and cognitively developing.
This is where supplements specially formulated with teenagers in mind can offer benefits that will bolster body, skin and well-being during these often turbulent years. “Supplements specifically aimed at teenagers use the appropriate dose of nutrients for growing bodies, as they require different levels of vitamins and minerals to adults,” advises Maz Packham, registered nutritionist and founder of Nourishful Nutrition. “Although they can’t replace a healthy diet, supplements can help fill the nutrient gaps if your teen isn’t getting enough through their food. For example, if you have a teenager who won’t eat oily fish, an omega 3 supplement can aid brain development and concentration, which is still happening during that period, so potentially helps with learning, focus and overall better cognition.”
Optimum energy for enjoying sports, boosting brain power for exam time, keeping skin clear and healthy, plus aiming for restful and restorative sleep are all priorities for teenagers that can be aided with a carefully-selected, daily supplement. “A vitamin or mineral supplement may help improve nutrient status to support things like energy levels, immunity and concentration, which can be challenging during teenage years,” explains Packham. “They can also help prevent deficiencies of key nutrients like vitamin D, which plays an important role in calcium absorption and healthy bones at a time critical for bone development. Some other key nutrients to look for are vitamin A for immune support, B vitamins for energy production, including B12 plus folate for production of red blood cells and iron to carry oxygen around the body. A balanced diet should be the primary source of vitamins and minerals for teenagers but if this isn’t possible, a multivitamin can be useful”.
Another advantage for parents using supplements to help top up nutrient levels for their teenagers is the alternative formats to traditional tablets and capsules now on offer. From sprays and liquids to gummies, this can help make all-important compliance easier to stick to. “Teenagers are likely to favour formats like gummies which are often sweet and easy to eat, compared to tablets that have to be swallowed,” adds Packham. “But always look at the ingredients to avoid those with fillers and artificial sweeteners.”
Here’s our pick of best-in-class supplements for teenagers…
Nourished Kids Brainiac
The concept behind the clever once-a-day ‘stacks’ by Nourished is that you build your own individually wrapped, seven-layer jelly supplements and have them delivered every month. But they also have a ready-made range including for kids, formulated for ages four to 17.
This brain-boosting option, created to help with cognitive function and improve focus, contains eleven well-chosen nutrients including vitamin A to support healthy eyes, maca powder for better concentration and iron for cognitive development. Vitamin B12 will contribute to steady energy levels, while vitamin D3 plays a similar role in mood regulation. Just like a soft sweet dusted in sugar-free pineapple powder, they are delicious enough that your teenager will be asking for another.
Buy now £19.99, Nourished
Symprove Daily Essential
While keeping our gut’s microbiome healthy is a hot topic for adults wanting to feed ‘good’ bacteria and improve overall health and wellbeing, it’s not automatically front-of-mind for teenagers. But growing research shows that looking after the gut benefits all life stages and can be helpful for digestion and skin health, while reducing brain fog – issues that often blight teens. Enter Symprove, a water-based supplement that contains billions of live and active bacteria, so is considered a probiotic.
As it’s water, these bacteria can survive better in the gut than those in dry, tablet form, allowing them to thrive and multiply while they work. An adult dose is 70ml, taken ten minutes before breakfast, a bit like a morning shot; for those younger, the recommended dose is 1ml for every 1kg of body weight. Each 500ml bottle lasts ten days in the fridge and comes with a handy measuring up, whilst there are several flavours to choose from, including Strawberry & Raspberry which is refreshing and tart rather than syrupy or sugary.
Buy now £39.99, Symprove
Wild Nutrition Food-Grown Daily Multi Nutrient for Teen Boys
Founded by nutritionist and author Henrietta Norton, who has worked for some of Europe’s biggest supplement brands, Wild Nutrition takes the approach of creating formulas from naturally grown, raw food, meaning your body recognises and absorbs nutrients as if they were fruits or vegetables. This blend for teenage boys focuses on hormone balance, fighting fatigue and aiding healthy bone development.
Two capsules, taken with or without food, supply crucial vitamins, minerals and supportive botanical ingredients including zinc for testosterone production and a bolstered immune system, calcium and magnesium to aid healthy bones and teeth, plus B vitamins to help with concentration, learning and memory. Cleverly, the capsules can also be broken open and added to a hot or cold drink, ensuring they are as easy to take as possible.
Buy now £28.00, Wild Nutrition
Advanced Nutrition Programme Skin Accumax
This award-winning, doctor-backed supplement programme could be thought of as a course of treatment that starts from the inside when teenage complexions develop acne or severe breakouts. Due to its potent blend, the formula is only recommended from the age of 16, with two capsules taken twice daily for 14 weeks, before dropping to two per day if skin improves.
It’s based on a patented technology that brings together vitamins A, C and E with phytonutrients. Together they help balance sebum quality and production, an over-production of which can clog pores and lead to breakouts, as well as protect skin from environmental damage and maintain good levels of fresh collagen. Not only will it benefit the face, but these capsules can work on other areas of the body that often develop painful, angry spots in teenagers, such as the chest and back.
Buy now £48.00, Advanced Nutrition Programme
BetterYou Vitamin D 3000 IU Oral Spray
A nutrient that is found in some foods but is delivered in more plentiful supplies from direct sunshine, vitamin D is vital for absorbing calcium and in turn, maintaining healthy bones, teeth and muscles, making it critically important when these parts of the body are still developing during teenage years.
But living in the frequently cloudy UK – especially during winter – topping up with a supplement can be helpful not only for the body but for fighting fatigue, as the vitamin is also believed to help the part of our cells responsible for generating energy. This spray is ideal for teens as it’s portable, an alternative to pills and a single pump to the inner cheek delivers the perfect dose. It’s a great minty mouth freshener too.
Buy now £5.98, Amazon
Vitabiotics Wellteen Him
As young men often have timetables packed with sports and exams, keeping energy levels and mental performance steady is a priority. These tablets are formulated specifically for boys ages 13 to 19, with that in mind.
One per day provides a comprehensive, 24-strong range of the key nutrients needed, including zinc, pantothenic acid and iodine, which help with healthy cognitive function and agility, plus vitamins B6 and 12, as they are critical for normal energy release while also helping fend off fatigue and tiredness. The immune system is boosted as well, thanks to zinc, selenium and vitamin D, making this a fantastic all-rounder for active teens in an affordable formula. There’s a tailored Wellteen Her version for girls too.
Buy now £9.49, Holland & Barrett
Novomins Magnesium Gummies
Suitable for children onwards, teenagers can particularly benefit from a dedicated magnesium supplement (found in teen-averse foods such as leafy green veg) and these contain the most bioavailable amount of the mineral you can buy. As well as bone development, heart function and helping to regulate sleep and energy levels, magnesium also helps with the nervous system and boosts mental clarity, all of which can be affected by fluctuating hormones or stressful periods, such as exam time.
Soft to chew and with a light raspberry taste, teenagers can pop two any time during the day to get their recommended dose. As well as being dairy and gluten-free, these gummies are halal and don’t contain gelatin.
Buy now £13.49, Amazon
Healthspan MultiVit Women’s Gummies
Although they’re labelled as Women’s, these chewy gummies with twelve key vitamins and minerals, are suited to girls from the age of 12, as well as being vegan and vegetarian-friendly. Importantly, they contain 50 per cent of the recommended daily amount of iodine needed for hormone, brain and bone development, a nutrient which government data shows is deficient in about 46 per cent of teenage girls.
Another crucial vitamin is biotin, brilliant for boosting healthy hair, nails and skin. There’s also vitamin D for healthy bone growth, plus protective antioxidants A and E. One or two of these chews per day is enough and the berry taste that includes blueberry, cranberry and cherry extracts tastes juicy without being too sweet.
Buy now £9.95, Healthspan
Skin Diligent Skin & Stress
The complete Skin Diligent line-up of skincare as well as supplements are focused on blemish-prone complexions, using natural ingredients, innovative technology and a holistic approach so what goes into the body is as important as what’s applied to it. Ideally taken with breakfast, three of these particular capsules are a daily dose of potent antioxidants and minerals, selected for their ability to help the body tackle its reaction to stress and the knock-on effect that can have on the skin.
The source of the nutrients is important too as each has been chosen for bioavailability, meaning it's better absorbed by the body. For example, vitamin C is taken from acerola cherry powder, offering antioxidant protection alongside vitamin E and copper, but also combines with zinc and magnesium to help the skin, immune and nervous systems to function at their optimum. Added B6 helps keep hormones in check and prevent stress-related breakouts too.
Buy now £30.00, Onolla
Juice Plus+ Fruit & Vegetable Blend Soft Chewables
If getting teenagers to eat their health and development-boosting greens - think spinach, kale, broccoli, cabbage - as well as other nutrient-rich fruit and vegetables, from tomatoes to apples to dates, is a struggle, then this duo is ideal. Each pouch contains fruit or vegetable soft chewable, with two of each per day recommended for younger teens, then four of each per day from the age of 14.
These power-packed gummies contain a mix of 30 fruits, vegetables and berries as well as a good amount of cell-protecting vitamin E from sunflower seeds, plus vitamin A from natural beta carotene to help maintain healthy skin and the immune system alongside vitamin C, which also plays a part in collagen formation for helping gums, teeth and blood vessels to function properly.
Buy now £31.00, Juice Plus+
Verdict
Freshly made and 3D-printed, Nourished Kids Brainiac is an innovative and smart way to get a carefully tailored selection of nutrients into teenagers at a time when they require all the brain-boosting help they can get. While improving mental focus, concentration and cognitive development are the main aim, these supplements have thoughtfully rounded out the benefits by including vitamins and minerals that will protect the delicate immune and nervous systems that are easily affected by stress and fatigue during teen years. Promoting eye health with added vitamin A could also help reassure parents concerned about all that screen time too.
