The Best Supplements for Teenage Girls

Your daughter should get the nutrients she needs through her diet, but in some cases your teenager might not get all of the nutrients that her growing body needs. She may be a picky eater or follow a vegetarian diet, which may not include all necessary nutrients. You may need to add supplements to her diet for her body to be healthy. However, check with your daughter's physician before adding any supplements to her diet.

Iron

Teenage girls are 10 times as likely as boys to develop anemia. The National Anemia Action Council attributes this risk to rapid growth and menstruation. Anemia occurs when iron is deficient in your body. Low iron levels can make you feel tired, weak, cause your skin to be pale and decrease your appetite. Risk factors include poor performance in school, decreased verbal learning and diminished memory.

Your teenage daughter needs to consume 15mg of iron each day. Serve her foods high in iron such as green, leafy vegetables and dried beans. You can also serve her breakfast cereals that are fortified with iron to increase her intake. You may need to supplement her diet if she is not consuming enough iron through her food. Give her a multivitamin that includes iron or give her a separate iron supplement.

Calcium and Vitamin D

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Your teenage daughter needs to consume 1,300mg of calcium each day according to GirlsHealth.gov. She needs 30 percent more calcium than adults. Calcium is important for strong bones, which grow rapidly during her teen years. Serve her low-fat milk, cheese, yogurt and cottage cheese to help her get the calcium she needs. Vitamin D works side-by-side with calcium and aids absorption. Not only does she need to consume vitamin D through her diet, she needs to spend time outside in the sun also. Give your daughter milk fortified with vitamin D to ensure she gets what she needs. In some cases, your teenager may not consume enough calcium or vitamin D. You may need to give her calcium and vitamin D supplements to support her growth spurt.

Folate

Women of childbearing age need to consume folate to avoid neural tube defects in a growing fetus. Folate is also important for your body to make red blood cells. Teenage girls need to consume 400mcg of folate each day, according to website TeensHealth 1. Ensure that she is consuming folate-rich foods such as green, leafy vegetables, legumes and cereals fortified with folate. In addition to this, give her a multivitamin that has folate. Nutrition labels may also list folate as vitamin B9 or folic acid.