Your body activates hormones and immune responses that help it maintain balanced equilibrium upon exposure to stressors. Inadequate vitamins and nutrients may negatively affect your child's stress response. The American Heart Association recommends eating a variety of foods in moderation instead of taking supplements. Make sure your child eats a balanced diet with a wide variety of foods from every food group to get all the nutrients needed to keep stress responses under control.
Vitamin C
Children with chronic diseases and those who experience environmental stress from heat, cold or radiation may need more than the daily recommended dose of vitamin C. Children under stress may also require more than the recommended daily allowance of this vitamin. Fruits and vegetables are dietary sources of vitamin C. Oranges, lemons, grapefruit and limes are good sources of vitamin C. Your body needs vitamin C for healthy tissue growth and repair throughout your body. Collagen formation relies of vitamin C, and forms your skin, scar tissue, tendons, ligaments and blood vessels. Your body needs this vitamin to heal wounds and maintain your bones.
Vitamin B12
Vitamin B12 deficiencies may contribute to higher stress levels in children. Vitamin B12 is a water-soluble vitamin. This vitamin supports a healthy digestive system. Your body uses this vitamin to form red blood cells and maintain healthy functioning in your nervous system. Eggs, meat, poultry, shellfish, milk and dairy products are dietary sources of vitamin B12. The daily recommended dose of vitamin B12 for children between ages 1 and 3 is 0.9 mcg per day. Children between ages 4 and 8 should get 1.2 mcg each day, and 1.8 mcg between ages 9 and 13.
B Complex
A vitamin B complex includes vitamins B1, B2, B3, folic acid and inositol. Deficiencies in any of these vitamins can lead to higher stress levels in children. According to Holistic Online, these deficiencies may produce symptoms that increase stress levels, such as anxiety, irritability, hyper-irritability, insomnia and restlessness. The Mayo Clinic also recommends B vitamins as alternative medicine to manage and prevent anxiety that can elevate stress levels. You can get multiple B vitamins from foods like leavy green vegetables, beans and peas. Fish, poultry, eggs and dairy also have B vitamins.
Vitamin E
Vitamin E may help reduce oxidative stress in your child's body. Your body needs vitamin E to maintain a healthy immune system and fight off infections from bacteria and viruses. Environmental toxins, such as secondhand cigarette smoke, air pollution and ultraviolet radiation from the sun, produce oxidative stress in the body. Vitamin E is an antioxidant vitamin that may help reduce oxidative stress in the body. Vitamin E improves circulation by widening blood vessels to protect you from forming blood clots, and your body uses vitamin E for cellular communication. Vitamin E is particularly vital for the developing nervous system in children, who are especially vulnerable to deficiency. Children with severe vitamin E deficiencies from birth rapidly develop neurological symptoms.
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