Vitamins and Pregnancy - Should You Take Prenatal Vitamins

Every woman should consult her physician before taking vitamins before and after becoming pregnant.

While it is true that developing embryos need proper nutrients in order to develope into a healthy baby, not all supplements are recommended. Just as certain, too much of certain vitamins can cause problems.

There are recommended prenatal nutrients which all pregnant woman should pay close attention to, but each woman's body can be, and is, different. By all means, get advice from your doctor.

Preferably, you eat a well-balanced, nutritious diet every day that includes plenty of fruits, all colors of vegetables, whole grains and water, and few (or no) processed foods. Even still, your doctor may recommend a specially formulated prenatal vitamin supplement to take daily.

Follow your doctor's advice. If he suggest or prescribes a vitamin supplement, use what he tells you. It is typically best to take a daily supplement (multi-vitamin) specially formulated for new mothers. These will include a higher amount of folate (folic acid), calcium, and iron than a regular daily vitamin.

It is not advisable to take a regular multi-vitamin and add to that an additional pill for the folate, calcium and iron. You can get too much of these nutrients when taken this way, that may adversely affect you and/or your baby.

Every pregnant mother-to-be should ask her physician about prenatal vitamins and follow his recommendations accordingly.

Some recommended prenatal vitamin/mineral formula's include:

• Olympian Labs Prenatal Formulation 120Tabs -
  100% vegetarian formula for pregnant and lactating women.
• Prenatal Complete 180 caps
  
  
• Metagenics Fem Prenatal® 30Pkts -
  Fem Prenatal is a comprehensive, vegetarian multivitamin and mineral supplement for pregnant women.