One of the first things that you should do after learning that you are pregnant (besides freaking out and/or celebrating!) is to go out and get some prenatal vitamins. Prenatal vitamins are specially formulated vitamins for pregnant women. Claim Your 20 Free Pregnancy Tests – Click Here
They add to the health of the mom to be as well as the health of the unborn baby. But, not all prenatal vitamins are created equal. There are some that are better than others, and some that you should not waste your money on at all. Read on for more info and to learn all about the best over the counter prenatal vitamins available.
Prenatal vitamins are important because pregnant women sometimes have diets that are, shall we say, lacking. Whether it be due to food cravings, aversions, morning sickness, or any other reason, pregnant women don’t always eat the best.
Pregnant women also need increased levels of folic acid, iron, and calcium as well. The folic acid can help prevent your baby from having neural tube defects. The calcium can help moms to be prevent bone loss as the fetus takes up valuable calcium for it’s own use. The iron is useful for helping carry oxygen for both mom and baby.
Like we stated before, all prenatal vitamins are not created equally. You can get cheap prenatal vitamins over the counter, or you can get super expensive prescription versions. You can get brand names, or you can get generics. You can get super big pills, tiny pills, gel caps, capsules, all sorts of very different pills. However, the ingredients of the pills are what really matters. When looking for a prenatal vitamin, here are the medical community’s recommendations of what to look for in a prenatal:
• 4,000 and 5,000 IU (international units) of vitamin A
• 800 and 1,000 mcg (1 mg) of folic acid
• 400 IU of vitamin D
• 200 to 300 mg of calcium
• 70 mg of vitamin C
• 1.5 mg of thiamine
• 1.6 mg of riboflavin
• 2.6 mg of pyridoxine
• 17 mg of niacinamide
• 2.2 to 12 mcg of vitamin B-12
• 10 mg of vitamin E
• 15 mg of zinc
• 30 mg of iron
• mg = milligrams
• mcg = micrograms
Keep those guidelines in mind when looking for the right prenatal.
There are also a few things to remember when choosing a prenatal vitamin. Sometimes, prenatal vitamins can cause nausea, so if you have that problem, talk with your doctor. He or she might recommend that you take your vitamin at night to help combat nausea, or they might recommend a chewable version of the vitamin for you.
Also, sometimes a certain brand might be harder to tolerate, so you might have to switch back and forth between brands to find one that works best for you. Make sure to put your prenatal vitamin in a place that you will remember to take it every day, or even set an alarm on your phone to help you remember. Taking a prenatal vitamin every day is one of the best ways to ensure you and your baby are getting all the vitamins and nutrients that you both need.
Comments