Choosing a Prenatal Vitamin

Choosing what prenatal vitamin is right for you, can be a confusing and overwhelming decision.

But I’m here to help.

It’s essential that everyone be on a high-quality multi-vitamin, especially during pregnancy when important minerals like folate, zinc, vitamin D and iodine are needed at much higher levels.

Although you were meant to get the nutrients your body needs from what you eat, it’s nearly impossible to do so today—even if you eat a diet of whole foods with lots of organic fruits and vegetables. That’s because, over the last 50 years, the soil has been depleted of nutrients—especially minerals—due to overfarming, chemical fertilization, and other practices. As a result, the nutritional value of many foods has declined. Furthermore, vegetables are rarely eaten straight from the garden. Instead, they’re picked, shipped, and stored—losing nutrients along the way.

In addition to a well-balanced diet of whole foods during pregnancy, supplementation needs to be part of the equation, so your body and baby receive optimal levels of vitamins and minerals. However, many prenatals only reach sub-optimal levels of vitamins and minerals. You want to go with one that will help you reach optimal levels.

Make sure the potency of the supplements is guaranteed. That is, that they are manufactured according to pharmaceutical GMP (Good Manufacturing Practices) and the product provides the necessary nutrients in the right amounts to support your pregnancy and your baby. This is not true for most prenatals in the market, which are only manufactured to food-grade standards. This manufacturing process is far less stringent and doesn’t have to guarantee that what they print on the label is actually in the bottle.

Many times, prescriptions are written so that the cost of the prenatal vitamins will be picked up by insurance companies, without considering the quality of the product. What is more important are the ingredients in the vitamins and how well they absorb into your body. A prescription doesn’t ensure a high-quality product.

Take a look at my previous posts for all the minerals that you need during pregnancy, which can be found in a prenatal vitamin and which you might need to be tested for.

Also, check out this link for the supplement that I recommend to all my fertility and pregnancy clientele.

Have more questions about your prenatal vitamin?

Feel free to email me or schedule a complimentary call. I would love to hear from you.