7 Immune Vitamins For Parents With School-Aged Children
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We’re editors (and moms!) who have taken and given clean vitamins to our kids for years. These are our picks for boosting your family’s immunity using natural ingredients that are free from unnecessary sugar, dyes, and additives.
Fall is on its way so we’re starting to think about how to best prepare our school-aged children’s immune systems — and our own — for back to school just as much as we’re getting school supplies and rearranging our schedules. These clean vitamins are a great way to supplement and boost our kids’ immune systems as we head into this season. They offer ease and protection as we send our kiddos off to school, assuring us that our kids will be ready to fight whatever germs they might encounter.
What makes vitamins and supplements safe for kids?
The immune vitamins and supplements in this guide are specifically created for children. The dosage and ingredients are formulated for kids, third-party tested to ensure quality, and made from clean ingredients without added sugars, preservatives, or other filler ingredients.
What should you look for in an immune-boosting supplement?
When choosing an immune-boosting supplement, you want to look for ingredients including elderberry, Vitamin C, Beta Glucans, zinc, pre- and probiotics, and selenium. These ingredients help support their immune systems’ natural functions, which helps fight infections, sickness, and germs. Some of the supplements in this guide have all of these ingredients, others focus on just one or two. All of the ingredients help support their immune systems, so ultimately it’s up to you what you decide. We recommend discussing with your child’s pediatrician to see what they feel is best for your specific child’s needs.
In terms of dosing, it varies from supplement to supplement, but be sure to read the recommended dosage for your child’s age, as it usually varies. Some of these supplements are also able to be used by adults, so be sure to check the specific dosing of children versus adults as well. There are also sometimes specific dosages for adults who are pregnant or breastfeeding, too — and sometimes certain supplements cannot be taken when breastfeeding or pregnant, so check the supplements’ recommendations and consult your doc.
Our criteria:
Our team has tested and researched dozens of supplements for kids and scoured thousands of customer reviews to find the best clean, immune-boosting vitamins for children that are dye-free, formulated without any added or unnatural sugar, and are easy to take. We’ve prioritized options that can flex for both parents and kids to keep the whole family healthy. We regularly update this list with emerging options that meet the following criteria:
- CLEAN INGREDIENTS | Each of these options is made with natural and organic ingredients — and is free of additives, dyes, synthetics, and allergens making them safe and beneficial for your kiddos.
- LOW OR NO SUGAR | The last thing we want is for our kids’ vitamins to be loaded with sugar. We’ve ensured each of these multivitamins contains no or very low amounts of sugar.
- TASTES GOOD & EASY TO SWALLOW | Vitamins that taste good and are easy to swallow help our children get their daily dose of nutrients without any fuss. We’ve researched and can confirm each of these multivitamins tastes great. 👍
If you’re looking for more support this season, check out the best kids multivitamins and our immunity support guide for adults.
1. Needed
Best For | Kids and adults
Active Ingredients | Elderberry, arabinogalactan fiber, prebiotic, postbiotic, zinc
Daily Dose | Kids 2-3 take ½ scoop daily; Kids 4-8 take 1 scoop daily; Older kids, adults, and pregnant and nursing moms take 2 scoops daily
Prices Starting At | $54
Julie Sawaya and Ryan Woodbury, the founders of Needed, are moms and nutritionists working to better women’s health. They spent over three years developing their supplements, and they continue to innovate new health solutions for women through Needed Labs and its ongoing clinical research. Needed’s Immune Support for the whole family is a powder that can go in smoothies, water, yogurt, or other favorite drinks or snacks. The formula, with active ingredients elderberry, zinc, fiber, and pre- and postbiotics, was developed by a team of perinatal and pediatric practitioners and is third-party tested. It’s safe and effective for kids, adults, pregnancy, and nursing. Beyond creating supplements for the whole family, Needed is focused on bettering the earth for generations to come; they are certified as a B Corp, 1% for the Planet, and Climate Neutral.
Customer Review | “I absolutely love this product. My son is 5 years old and went throughout an entire school year without getting sick. This really was a game changer in our household.” – Amber K. (Read more reviews.)
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2. Hiya
Best For | Refillable container
Active Ingredients | Vitamin C, Vitamin E, Zinc, Selenium, Elderberry, Beta-Glucans (from algae), dried yeast fermentate
Daily Dose | Kids 2+ take one tablet daily with or without food
Prices Starting At | $18
Hiya founders Darren Litt and Adam Gillman are two dads who wanted to create vitamins for their kids that weren’t packed with sugar. They created Hiya vitamins with pediatricians, nutritionists, scientists, and parents. They’re not gummies, and they don’t have synthetic dyes or sugar. Hiya’s Kids Daily Immune is a chewable made from clean ingredients that supports kids’ immune system using active ingredients including two kinds of Vitamin C, Vitamin E, Zinc, Selenium, Elderberry, and more. The vitamins don’t have sugar, but the two flavors — citrus and berry — are sweet and taste great to kids. They’re also made with organic sweet potato, apple fruit powder, camu camu, and elderberry. Hiya’s vitamins come in a refillable glass container with stickers, so your kiddo can decorate it and make it their own. And if the bottle for some reason breaks or gets lost (or for any other reason), they’ll replace it — on them. All of Hiya’s vitamins are manufactured in an FDA-registered and GMP-compliant facility, and they’re Clean Label Project Certified, too.
Customer Review | “My son absolutely loves these vitamins and he is extremely picky. Ever since he started taking them I swear his colds are shorter and much more rare. Love Hiya!” – John K. (Read more reviews.)
3. Grüns
Best For | Gummy packs
Active Ingredients | Vitamin C, Zinc, prebiotics, adaptogens, antioxidants, and more vitamins and minerals
Daily Dose | One snack pack (contains 6 gummies for kids vitamins; 8 gummies for adult vitamins) daily
Prices Starting At | $40
What if taking daily vitamins felt like eating a snack pack of green gummy bears? That’s exactly what Grüns is. Founder Chad Janis is a dad who wanted his son to have effective, nutritious, quality, and safe vitamins that were easy to remember to take. Grüns offers daily vitamins for kids and adults, both packed with vitamins and whole-food ingredients that support immunity, growth and development, brain clarity, and gut health. The snack packs are easy to pack, fun to eat, and full of all of the nutrition you and your kids need each day. Grüns gummies come in either a low-sugar or a sugar-free option, which is sweetened with OnoSweet Reb M. Both have a fresh, light strawberry and sweet greens flavor. (The adult gummies also come in a raspberry lemonade flavor option.) Grüns is manufactured in NSF, GMP, and FDA registered facilities in the U.S, and they are third-party tested.
Customer Review | “Feel good knowing your disguising nutrients in a gummy. – Kristine G. (Read more reviews.)
4. Llama Naturals
Best For | HSA/FSA eligible
Active Ingredients | Elderberry, Vitamin C, Zinc
Daily Dose | Kids 2-3 take 1 gummy daily; kids 4+ take 2 gummies daily
Prices Starting At | $23
Founded in Chicago by dads Brad Baum and Kevin Brown, Llama Naturals are real fruit gummies that are free from refined sugar, sweeteners, synthetic vitamins, and tooth harming acids. Instead, they’re made with real ingredients like apples, peaches, and elderberries. Llama Naturals’ Elderberry 3-in-1 Immune Support gummies have elderberry, Vitamin C from organic acerola cherries, and zinc to support kids’ immune system with real ingredients. The elderberry in the gummies is a high-potency formula made from elderberry extract, which means they are 35 times more potent than regular elderberries. Llama Naturals also offers adult Elderberry 3-in-1 Immune Support gummies, and you can bundle and save if you want to get both kids and adults immunity gummies. All of Llama Naturals’ vitamins are made in Germany and bottled in the U.S. They’re also HSA/FSA eligible using TrueMed.
Customer Review | “All 3 of my kids are SUPER picky when it comes to vitamins. Texture and flavor has always been an issue. So happy to finally find a supplement all 3 gladly take and enjoy!” – Kelly U. (Read more reviews.)
5. Nordic Naturals
Best For | Vitamin C gummies
Active Ingredients | Vitamin C, Zinc
Daily Dose | For ages 3+, take 4 vitamin gummies daily (multivitamin); For kids ages 4+, take two gummies daily with food (Vitamin C)
Prices Starting At | $15
Nordic Naturals supplements and vitamins are made in Norway and bottled in California. Founder Joar Opheim founded the company in 1995 looking for a way to offer pure, fresh omega-3 supplements. Since, the company has grown, selling even more research-based supplements and vitamins. Their products are third-party tested and guided by research. For kids’ immune support, they offer a few different products. First, the multivitamin gummies are gelatin-free and include zinc, Vitamin C, and more daily vitamins to boost kids’ immune systems. Nordic Naturals also offers kids Vitamin C gummies that have 250 mg of Vitamin C per serving. They are sweetened but with low sugar — only 2g — so they taste good to kids but aren’t packed with sugar.
Customer Review | “TI purchased the nordic berries for my kids and they love them! Finally a vitamin that doesn’t really taste like a vitamin and that they will actually take. They taste delicious as well, I have tried them myself as a mom. I would highly recommend these for kids as well as adults!” – LMC (Read more reviews.)
6. MaryRuth Organics
Best For | Organic gummies and liquid options
Active Ingredients | Vitamin C, Zinc, Elderberry
Daily Dose | Kids ages 4+ take up to 2 gummies daily (immunity gummies); Kids ages 4+ take up to 0.5 mL daily (liquid elderberry)
Prices Starting At | $18
MaryRuth Organics has lots of options for kids’ immune support (and adults, too!). From multivitamins and probiotics that support the immune system as part of their formula to liquid elderberry and immunity gummies explicitly designed for immune support, they have several choices. The Liquid Elderberry comes as liquid drops that can either be taken alone or mixed into your child’s favorite beverage. The Organic Kids Immunity Gummies have Vitamin c, zinc, and elderberry, which all support your kids’ immune system, in organic, gelatin-free gummies.
Customer Review | “My daughter got sick 2 months in a row. I started her on these immunity gummies, and she hasn’t gotten sick since being back at school for one full month! I’m telling all the parents about this gem I found!” – Naomi G. (Read more reviews.)
7. NOW Foods
Best For | Affordability
Active Ingredients | Vitamin C, Zinc, Elderberry
Daily Dose | Children 4+ take two vitamin tablets daily (for NOW Kid Vits); Children 4+ and adults take 2 teaspoons daily (for Elderberry Liquid)
Prices Starting At | $7
NOW Foods offers multiple immune support supplements for kids. The daily NOW Kid Vits (vitamins) offer immune support with active ingredients Vitamin C and zinc, and the NOW Kids Elderberry Liquid has elderberry and zinc. The daily vitamins come in multiple flavors. The Elderberry Liquid can be taken by both kids and adults. NOW Foods also has several other options of supplements for both kids and adults, if you’re looking to stock up on more than just immune supplements. NOW Foods, a legacy family-owned brand, gives back to the community, too. They’re one of the founding members of Vitamin Angels, a public health nonprofit working to improve health outcomes of mothers, babies, and children around the world.
Customer Review | “My kids are always getting sick in fall, so we decided to try this liquid elderberry. It has helped so much. They don’t mind the flavor and willingly take it, which is hard for my picky kids to do. It has helped so much in them not getting sick!” – Rachelle R. (Read more reviews.)
Featured image is from Needed.
Brianna Schubert is a Contributing Editor at The Good Trade and the Digital Editor at Milwaukee Magazine. She has a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Since 2023, Brianna has combined her expertise and investigative skills to deliver thoughtful reviews of sustainable products and home goods, helping readers make informed, eco-conscious choices. Brianna is also the writer behind The Mood Board, a Substack newsletter for creativity and inspiration. When she’s not writing, you can find her cooking up a new recipe, reading and recommending books, cuddling with her cat, or finding hidden gems at vintage and thrift stores. Say hi on Instagram!
