Pregnancy

Prenatal Vitamins

There are many myths and facts surrounding pre-natal vitamins, but it has been proven that these organic micronutrients are essential for the health and well-being of your unborn child from the beginning of your pregnancy if not beforehand, when you are just planning to conceive.

Checking your fertile time is undoubtedly a good starting point, however, adding pre-natal vitamins to your diet is a must for the multiple benefits they may offer to women prior to getting pregnant.

Pre-natal vitamins help prevent common birth defects, nurture the development baby and provide continued protection from nutrition deficiencies during pregnancy and later during breastfeeding. However, it is a myth that you should take pre-natal vitamins regardless of your actual diet.

This is not accurate, because the goal of such vitamins is to supplement a well balanced diet not to replace it or cover other nutrimental deficiencies, or vitamin supplements deficiencies. For example, during pregnancy, women need about 1,200 to 1,500 mg of calcium daily for the adequate growth of their baby, but pre-natal vitamins only have 250 mg on average.

The missing calcium in pre-natal vitamins should come from eating a healthy diet that includes a variety of foods. Planning your pregnancy can help you to determine your particular needs and any modification that you may need to your actual diet. Ask your doctor for help in developing a healthy diet prior to getting pregnant, during pregnancy, and after giving birth.

Although prescription vitamins are no better than non-prescription vitamins, you should pay attention to their ingredients, not to their cost. How well they are absorbed into your body is another fact to consider for eventual change, if needed.

Doctors, health care practitioners and midwives can help you determine which pre-natal vitamin you need. Additionally, make sure your pre-natal vitamins do not have too much vitamin A, because it can cause birth defects if the supplement you are taking exceeds 10,000 IU.

Once you begin taking pre-natal vitamins, stop any other vitamin or mineral supplement unless your practitioner recommends it. If you accidentally take your pre-natal vitamins twice in one day there has been no documented evidence of harm to the mother or her unborn child.

If you have any trouble swallowing the pills because they are pretty big or may cause you nausea, your practitioner may prescribe smaller pills or coating pills, which will make it easier to swallow. Optionally, you can ask for the chewable versions, but be aware that most of the time they do not taste as great as you may expect, and may even give you an upset stomach.

Upset stomach is caused in your gastrointestinal tract by pre-natal vitamins with high levels of iron that may cause nausea and even lead to constipation. Although there are over 50 essential nutrients needed during pregnancy, pre-natal vitamins, basically should include folic acid, protein, calcium, iron, vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin D, potassium, B vitamins and zinc.