Iodine and vitamin B12 have one thing in common. The main sources of both are dairy, fish and eggs. That's why they share a post. If your family eats dairy-free or vegan, both are worth a closer look.
Where to get iodine
The Finnish nutrition recommendations list fish, dairy, iodine-fortified plant drinks, eggs and iodised salt as good sources of iodine. Finnish soil has little iodine, so iodised salt matters a lot here.
This is how much iodine there is on average in 100 grams:
| Food | Iodine / 100 g |
|---|---|
| Milk, buttermilk | 15 µg |
| Cheese | 20 µg |
| Fish | 30 µg |
| Egg | 40 µg |
Iodised table salt has 25 µg of iodine per gram. Source: Syödään yhdessä, food recommendations for families with children (Fineli 2015).
How much iodine does a child's day bring?
An example preschooler's day:
- 4 dl milk or buttermilk: about 60 µg
- 1 slice of cheese (about 10 g): about 2 µg
- 1 egg (about 50 g): about 20 µg
- Total: about 82 µg
On a fish day, a 50-gram portion of fish adds about 15 µg. Bread that the bakery made with iodised salt adds more. The pack tells you. Children need only a little salt, but when you do use salt at home, choose iodised.
For ages 1–10, the adequate intake of iodine is 100 µg a day.
Good to know: Organic milk has as much iodine as regular milk. Soy and grain-based drinks have no iodine unless it's added, so check the pack. Seaweed and seaweed products can have too much iodine.
How much iodine does a child need?
| Age | Adequate intake | Safe upper limit |
|---|---|---|
| 1–3 y | 100 µg | 200 µg |
| 4–6 y | 100 µg | 250 µg |
| 7–10 y | 100 µg | 300 µg |
| Girls 11–14 y | 120 µg | 450 µg |
| Boys 11–14 y | 130 µg | 450 µg |
| Girls 15–17 y | 120 µg | 500 µg |
| Boys 15–17 y | 140 µg | 500 µg |
| Adults | 150 µg | 600 µg |
| Pregnant and breastfeeding women | 200 µg | 600 µg |
Source: Finland's national nutrition recommendations 2024 (Kestävää terveyttä ruoasta), appendices 10 d and 12.
Where to get vitamin B12
Vitamin B12 occurs naturally only in animal foods. According to the Finnish nutrition recommendations, the main sources are meat, eggs, dairy and fish.
In a child's ordinary day, B12 comes from the same foods as iodine: the morning milk or yogurt, the cheese on bread, an egg, and a meat or fish meal.
Plant foods have no vitamin B12 of their own. It's added to some plant drinks, for example. The pack tells you whether a drink is fortified.
How much vitamin B12 does a child need?
| Age | Adequate intake a day |
|---|---|
| 1–3 y | 1.5 µg |
| 4–6 y | 1.7 µg |
| 7–10 y | 2.5 µg |
| Girls 11–14 y | 3.5 µg |
| Boys 11–14 y | 3 µg |
| 15–17 y | 4 µg |
| Adults | 4 µg |
| Pregnant women | 4.5 µg |
| Breastfeeding women | 5.5 µg |
Source: Finland's national nutrition recommendations 2024 (Kestävää terveyttä ruoasta), appendix 10 b.
The B12 recommendation went up in 2024. Adults used to be recommended 2 µg a day, now 4 µg.
Checklist for dairy-free and vegan families
The 2024 Finnish nutrition recommendations name vegans as a group that may need both iodine and vitamin B12 as a supplement. People who use very little or no dairy, fortified plant drinks and fish may also need iodine as a supplement.
- Choose a plant drink with added iodine and vitamin B12.
- Use iodised salt at home.
- Avoid seaweed products whose iodine content you don't know.
- Ask the child health clinic or the school nurse whether your child needs an iodine or B12 supplement.
What does iodine do?
"Iodine contributes to the normal growth of children."
"Iodine contributes to normal cognitive function."
One Ayaka multivitamin chewable tablet, the daily dose, has 50 µg of iodine, which is 33 %, and 1.4 µg of vitamin B12, which is 56 % of the EU nutrient reference value.
In short
- Iodine and vitamin B12 come from dairy, fish and eggs, and B12 from meat too.
- A preschooler's 4 dl of milk brings about 60 µg of iodine, against an adequate intake of 100 µg.
- Use iodised salt at home.
- In dairy-free and vegan families, check that the plant drink is fortified and ask the child health clinic.
Keep reading: Which vitamins in winter?
Why Ayaka?
With Ayaka, your child decorates their own reusable jar with stickers. The jar becomes their thing. The idea is that the vitamin becomes a routine your child owns, not something parents have to remind them about. Ayaka has 12 vitamins and minerals. A refill comes through the letterbox once a month. See Ayaka multivitamin
