Prenatal Vitamins

What can be found in a prenatal vitamin and why are they important?

Prenatal Vitamins
Aside from eating a well-balanced diet, women should be taking prenatal vitamins daily if they are trying to conceive, are already pregnant or if they are breastfeeding. Prenatal vitamins ensure that you are getting enough of the right kinds of vitamins and nutrients to support a growing or nursing baby. You can purchase prental vitamins over the counter or you can get a prescription from your healthcare provider.

You may already be getting most of the vitamins and nutrients that you need from eating healthy meals. However, there are two crucial nutrients that most pregnant and lactating women do not get enough of from food alone.

Folic Acid
The only way to make sure you're getting the amount of folic acid you need each day is to take a supplement. All medical authorities recommend a daily dose of 400 micrograms (mcg) starting at least a month before you begin trying to get pregnant and at least 600 mcg a day once you know you're pregnant. (And that's in addition to the folic acid you get from food, which is actually not as easy for your body to absorb as the synthetic kind in a supplement.) Research has shown that doing this can reduce the risk of neural tube defects in your baby by up to 70 percent. Most prenatal vitamins contain between 600 and 1,000 mcg of folic acid. If you don't take one, make sure you still take a separate folic acid supplement. If you've previously had a baby with a neural tube defect, you'll need to take 4,000 mcg, or 4 milligrams, of this vitamin every day, starting at least a month before conception. See your practitioner about getting a prescription for pills that provide this larger dose.

Iron
Most women don't get enough iron in their diet to meet their body's increased needs during pregnancy. It is important to take a vitamin to ensure that you are getting enough iron on a daily basis. That's because your body makes a lot more blood when you're pregnant to support your growing baby, and as a result, the iron stores in your blood can get spread pretty thin. To avoid developing anemia during pregnancy, most women need to take a supplement. The amount recommended when you're pregnant is 27 milligrams (mg) of iron per day, 50 percent more than you need when you're not pregnant. The Centers for Disease Control recommends that all pregnant women start taking a low-dose iron supplement of 30 mg at the first prenatal visit, either as an individual supplement or in a prenatal vitamin. Most prenatal vitamins contain between 27 and 60 mg of iron. (Be sure to keep your pills out of reach of children; supplemental iron can be fatal to them.) Some women need to take even more during pregnancy. After reviewing your prenatal blood work, your health care provider will let you know if you need to increase your iron intake. Women with iron-deficiency anemia are usually advised to take between 60 and 120 mg of iron each day in addition to a prenatal vitamin that contains iron. If you're not yet pregnant but already know you're anemic, your caregiver may suggest that you start taking an iron supplement now.

Because the Food and Drug Administration does not yet regulate what goes into vitamin and mineral supplements, no standards have been set for what should be in them. It is up to you and your health care provider to make sure you choose one that's safe and appropriate for you. Your health care provider will most likely recommend that you take a prenatal vitamin at your first prenatal visit or preconception visit. He or she will either prescribe one for you or recommend an over the counter brand. Do not take any additional vitamins or mineral supplements with your prenatal vitamin, unless your caregiver recommends doing so.

At your first prenatal checkup or at a preconception visit, your practitioner will probably recommend that you start taking a prenatal vitamin. She may prescribe one for you or she may recommend an over-the-counter brand. Make sure you don't take any other vitamin or mineral supplement while you're taking a prenatal supplement unless your practitioner recommends it. Taking twice the recommended amount of a prenatal vitamin inone day won't harm you or your baby. However, doing that more often can be harmful, so it's important not to make a habit of doubling up on your prenatal supplements. If for some reason your caregiver has told you that you need more of a certain nutrient (iron or calcium, for example) than is in your prenatal vitamin, take the extra amount as a separate supplement. Multivitamins are designed to give you what you need daily, and getting an extra dose of everything in them is definitely not better.

Prenatal vitamin and mineral supplements are pretty big, and some women find them hard to swallow, especially when they're dealing with nausea. If this is a problem for you, your health care provider may be able to prescribe a smaller pill or one with a slick coating that makes it easier to get down. (Pills that don't contain calcium tend to be smaller, and you can get your calcium in other ways.) Chewable vitamins are also available, although many women say they do not taste very good. If your doctor has recommended a vitamin with a high level of iron, it may upset your stomach. (Supplements that contain no more than the recommended amount of 30 mg probably won't cause you any problems.) Taking a lot of iron can lead to constipation, which is already a problem for many pregnant women. Some women find that prenatal vitamins can also cause nausea or, more rarely, diarrhea. If you think iron is distressing your stomach, talk to your practitioner about it. If you're not anemic, it may make sense for you to switch to a prenatal vitamin with a lower dose of iron. If that's not an option for you, try drinking prune juice to help you stay regular or take your supplement at bedtime to avoid queasiness. Your practitioner may also recommend taking the pill after a meal because you're likely to tolerate it better with a full stomach.

Comments: Prenatal Vitamins

Comments 1 to 22 of about 22.
1

lolligirl - 29 days ago.
Do anyone here take flintstone gummies for pregnancy? Are they just as good as the regular flintstone vitamins?

JoleneHarrison - 63 days ago.
I am 19 weeks. i am taking prental pills and they make me soo sick.today after i took one i was actually sick. i dont know if maybe its them or something else? pls help im scared and worried

Chazoos - 67 days ago.
Oh trust me.. I hate taking the folate & iron tablets.. they drive me crazy! I have to have at least 3 glasses of water after I take one just to stomach it!

Elliott-James-mummy - 174 days ago.
OK so Elliott is now 9months 2 weeks. I came off my pill a month ago as we would like to try for another baby once Elliott is one. We are still using condoms as we don't want to get pregnant before our wedding in October. Do you think I should start taking my pregnacare vitamins now?

sokistar - 175 days ago.
Heck, somebody's gotta invent a chewable/gummy prenatal vitamin-- designed for the pregnant mommy. The flinstone chewables are more tolerable than gagging down the regular. but the gummy ones don't have the folic acid. I don't know how everyone else can swallow those big pills!

mrsoakes - 331 days ago.
okay so this time around I was sick from day one and still find myself quite sick. My adorable dr. took me off the prenatals when I was like 16 weeks along b/c of me getting sick so often. I'm finding myself more and more freaked out that something will be wrong with her since I'm not taking them. Another thing is he's got me taking pain meds and a nerve pill because my lupus and kidney functions keep going down. I feel so guilty if anyone has any suggestions PLEASE help. I've had ultrasounds and they say shes healthy but I still have that in my head.

vero-prego209 - 356 days ago.
I'm really bad with taking pills, i haven't been good at taking my prenatal vitamins at all. I go weeks with out taking them. Could there be serious problems with my baby cause of me not taking them?.....

aimeemoulin - 357 days ago.
they have prenatal vits in liquid form! you can add it to your drink or just swallow it.

babybloo232 - 357 days ago.
3sacharm08..my friend just gave birth about a month ago to a healthy baby boy and she never once took a vitamin

babybloo232 - 357 days ago.
i can't swallow any pills so i, as well, take the flinstone chewables enriched with iron..although my doc told me that i should only take one because too much iron can be bad too...so i would talk to your doc before you take 2

gamama31791 - 357 days ago.
jessie- yes, yes yes to answer your question. My dr actually told me that i could take the 2 flintstones or 2 gummy bears and they equal out the same. b/c the same as you I couldnt swallow them either. so he gave me the go ahead and said its just the same. hope this helps

jessij1982 - 357 days ago.
Does anyone know for sure if the chewable Flinstones are a good switch from pre nats? I can't swallow big pills of any kind....pls help!!!

nikongirl24 - 357 days ago.
I take 2 flintstones vitamins every morning. I tried the gummy ones, but they made me sick. I have been taking the chewable ones every day and I'm now at 1 weeks. My iron was REALLY low when I first conceived, so I took an iron supplement for a few weeks, now I'm just on the flintstones. As long as you are taking them (folic acid and iron especially) you should be good. Hope that helps! I couldn't swallow those horse pills! :)

saramomofthree - 419 days ago.
i take 2 flinstone's and a folic acid. i can't swallow pills. i tried finding chewable prenats, they have them but are hard to find.

kennedysmommie - 420 days ago.
3s..try the gummy flistones..they taste liek gummybears..not the chalky ones yuck..

3sacharm08 - 420 days ago.
I stopped taking the vitamins at 6 or 7 weeks because they were making me so sick. I am now almost 10 weeks I just bought the chewable flintstones and they make me sick too. Should I be worried? I'm a bit worried now about the growing fetus and birth/neural defects. Has anyone given birth to a healthy baby that didn't take the vitamins?

krista09 - 420 days ago.
Is anyone taking flinstones vitamins instead of the prenatals? The prenatals were making me sick so I switched. I am not sure if I should be taking one or two flinstones per day. One doctor said one and the other said two.

mountainmama - 424 days ago.
dailyfood baby & me never ever gave me an upset stomach--they are pricey though & the label says you can take on an empty stomach--they're concentrated food sources.....right now i drink a liquid one--source of life, which if i don't eat before i take it will leave me wanting to puke.

jbtplusone - 424 days ago.
some people have supplemented taking two flinstones chewable vitamins daily. I would ask your doc.. or you could try what I did and take them at night before you go to bed.

25AndPrego - 424 days ago.
My prenatal viatmins are making me sick to the point of throwing up at times. I've tried taking them with and without food, but it gets to the point that I don't take them because I know what they're going to do with my stomach. Is there any such thing as stomach friendly vitamins?

peasquack - 456 days ago.
yes it is important to take prenatal vitamins while breast/pump feeding. Your body needs all the vitamins during that time. My prenatal actually says for pregnant and lactating women on the label. And it wouldnt hurt to take them forever. I used to take a womens one a day vitamin. I may stick to my Vitamin world prenatal since they dont make me nauseous.

Brodys Mommy - 457 days ago.
After I have my baby I'm still going to take prenatal vitamins and I HAVE to take iron pills bc I'm anemic. I dont want to actually breastfeed but I do plan to pump. Is it okay to take prenatal vitamins and iron pills while breastfeedng? Will it hurt my baby?