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Prenatal
Supplement
What is a prenatal supplement?
It's a multivitamin a pregnant woman (and a woman who's trying to
conceive) takes to increase her nutritional intake of necessary vitamins
and minerals.
As a general rule, most prenatal supplements contain a greater amount
of folic acid, iron,
and calcium than you'll find in a
standard multivitamin. Pregnant women need more of these nutrients than
the average woman, especially folic acid, which reduces a baby's risk of
neural tube birth defects such as spina bifida.
Depending on your needs (if you're expecting multiple babies, for
example, or if you have given birth before to a baby with neural tube
defects), you may be prescribed a supplement with even greater amounts of
certain nutrients.
Do I need to take one? Why?
A balanced diet will supply all the vitamins a woman needs to see her
through her pregnancy. But most healthcare providers will recommend that
you take a supplement, both from the time you decide to start trying to
get pregnant through your pregnancy.
Why? It's almost impossible to meet your pregnant body's increased
needs for nutrients through diet alone. Your body is making so much extra
blood that you need about 30 to 60 mg of iron
every day (15 to 45 mg more than the RDA of 15 mg), and you need extra
folic acid (up to 800 mcg) starting even before you get pregnant.
What vitamins will be in my supplement?
Besides iron and folic acid, a good prenatal supplement should contain:
Prenatal vitamins usually also contain a stool softener, such as
docusate sodium, since large amounts of iron may cause constipation).
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