Pregnancy is a time when we women need to be especially careful of what we put into our bodies, as everything we ingest will also be passed to our little growing baby as well.
This month at Simple Organic our themes are nesting/nurturing, preparing a garden and natural pregnancy. Back in January when I asked what you, the readers, were interested in learning about, a couple of readers mentioned pregnancy, and more specifically, the question came up about supplements.
Now, I’m not a health professional of any kind, so my recommendations are simply from experience; consider that we’re just chatting about this over a cup of coffee as old friends.
Here are a few things that I think are important to consider when talking about pregnancy supplements.
Photo by Shutterstock
Made From Whole Foods
When it comes to vitamins, they are either derived from food sources or synthesized in a laboratory. Here’s a quick rundown at a few differences between the two from Dr. Ben Kim:
- The majority of commercial vitamin supplements are made up of synthetic vitamins
- Synthetic vitamins do not perform the same functions in your body as vitamins found naturally in whole food
- Many synthetic vitamins deplete your body of other nutrients and tax your kidneys before being excreted through your urine
As with the food we eat, I’m learning to prefer things that are closer to the state in which they started and I love the idea of supplements coming strictly from whole foods. These multivitamins are much easier to digest, and therefore more friendly to a woman with morning sickness. They can also be taken at any time, as opposed to the requirement of being taken with food, which is helpful for someone like me, who normally forgets about them until late at night, right before bed.
Whole-food prenatals definitely cost more than their conventional counterparts, but I feel that it’s a worthwhile investment in the health of my baby (and me).
Probiotics
We’ve talked before about the benefits of probiotics here (for example, in the context of foods we should all be eating, and in natural remedies for yeast infections). Essentially they are the good bacteria which help keep our guts healthy and in balance.
In pregnancy, I find that ingesting probiotics regularly makes a big difference in my digestion (especially in preventing constipation), so I take them both by eating yogurt (with lots of live and active cultures) often and in supplement form.
Photo by Nick Saltmarsh
Important Necessary Nutrients
I’m sure we all could argue that generations ago, our female ancestors got along fine in pregnancy without supplements, but I think it’s one of those ways that research and technology has benefitted us in the modern era.
While we can get all of our required nutrients through food, in pregnancy we want to be absolutely sure that we are doing everything we possibly can to promote a healthy environment for our helpless little babe (at least that’s how I feel). Supplements like prenatal multivitamins are like a little nutrient insurance plan that helps fill the gaps in our nutrient intake.
Some of the most important nutrients that we need to make sure we are getting during pregnancy are folate/folic acid, calcium, protein and iron, which can be found in foods like spinach, meat and dairy products.
I haven’t read it yet, but if you’re looking for some guidelines on food while pregnant, I’ve heard great things about Modern Alternative Mama‘s Healthy Pregnancy Super Foods eBook.
Last Thoughts
Organic or not? Just like food, sticking to organic supplements will insure a few things about your vitamins. They will be dye-free, made from food without hormones/antibiotics, and will probably contain less ingredients (and more natural ones, at that) than their conventional counterparts. Again, you’ll have to weigh the cost and benefits here for yourself, just like you do with food and other products.
I’ve been using a brand called New Chapter Organics Perfect Prenatal during this pregnancy, and I’ve really liked it. These came by recommendation by a friend of mine. They are made from cultured, whole foods, and therefore also have probiotics in them. I’ve never had a problem taking them on an empty stomach either.
Do you use prenatal supplements in pregnancy? What features or ingredients do you look for?
About Nicole
With trying to conceive for 2.5 years, I had plenty of time to try different prenatal vitamins prior to it directly going to my unborn. I continue to love miessence’s InLiven (yes, I’m a rep – my disclaimer) for it’s probiotic, predisted whole food power. This would probably be plenty but I just couldn’t/can’t get passed the price to use it daily and not knowing EXACTLY what I’m getting. So, I use it at the very least once a week. DH takes it daily as his only supplement. After much trial and error, I have come to love Garden of Life’s RAW Prenatal. Every time I would try something different, I would revert back to it. It also includes beneficial herbs and probiotics.
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Oh wow! this came at the PERFECT timing!! I just discovered that my Rainbow Light prenatal which I THOUGHT was all-natural is actually mostly synthetic. I am currently on a search for a good prenatal and also a good multi-vitamin for my husband and my son. Anyone have any suggestions for good men’s or children’s supplements?
We had a great conversation a few weeks ago on our facebook page about children’s, you might scroll down through the old posts to find that.
As for men’s, my husband (irregularly) uses a conventional multivitamin, but I may look into a whole-foods-version for him, too.
p.s. does anyone know if Super Mom vitamins are free of synthetic ingredients?
Thanks for the post! I have been thinking about quality pre-natals and this post is exactly what I was looking for. Thanks again.
So glad!
Gosh, so bookmarking this for the next pregnancy. Loving the baby-themed post, Nicole!
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I have used New Chapter vitamins for both of my pregnancies and they have been great! They are now called Multi for 2 in Canada. I recommend them to all my friends. I think it might alleviate morning sickness in some women as I know that some of the vitamins can be hard on your stomach. These are not. As for men’s vitamins, my husband is taking the New Chapter Every Man vitamins.
I took those vitamins during both my pregnancies and loved them! I also took Nature’s Plus Source of Life Prenatal Liquid during part of my second one. Boy did I feel good when I took it, but it is pretty expensive too.
I am so thankful you posted this article and for the suggestions in the comments! My husband and I will be trying to conceive shortly and I have been taking Rainbow Light Prenatal One for a few months which says food-based, but now I am not certain if it is really a good vitamin. I will be looking into the other suggestions- thanks again!
Thank you so much for this information. I’ll be looking for the New Chapter at my co-op this afternoon! We’re getting ready to “pull the goalie” as a friend says (stop using protection and try to get pregnant) this spring/summer and I’m gearing up to nutrify our bodies in preparation. This was just what I needed. And thanks Michelle for the info about the Garden of Life RAW – if I can’t find New Chapter, maybe I can find Garden of Life.
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Just posted about this:
http://www.eco-novice.com/2011/03/prenatal-vitamins.html
I am interested in an organic, whole food prenatal vitamin, but can’t find any independent testing (which I describe in my post) of New Chapter Organics. Do you know of any?
Betsy (Eco-novice)´s latest post: Prenatal Vitamins
I’m surprised that no one mentioned the importance of asking your doctor or other healhcare helper. Either way make sure you get plenty of opinions.
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Also Vitamin D is good for you which can be obtain, excluding a food source, from the Sun. Anyway take care
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Mineral supplements are good for the body and it is a good step to maintaining a good health and lifestyle.Thanks for sharing.Nice blog on Organic multi vitamins .
Mineral supplements are good for the body and it is a good step to maintaining a good health and lifestyle.Thanks for sharing.Nice blog on Organic multi vitamins .
nice to share my love is also wonderful to tell you that Healthy green provides the best Organic vitamins, herbal remedies and organic supplements.
They use all natural ingredients to create our organic products.
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Traditional tradition prefer on herbal supplements for their pregnancy.They do on fresh and healthy foods and vitamins.
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Taylor
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