Many obstetricians recommend that their pregnant patients use prenatal vitamins to help ensure adequate nutrition both for the mother and the growing baby. There are several reasons that your obstetrician may have -- or might in the future -- recommend prenatals. Unfortunately, prenatal vitamins also lead to certain side effects, but most of these are mild and relatively easy to work around.
Significance
The purpose of a prenatal vitamin is quite similar to that of a normal daily multivitamin -- it's insurance that, in the midst of her busy lifestyle, a woman will get the nutrition she needs to support her own body and that of her growing baby. Your body needs vitamins and minerals, both of which are ingredients in prenatal vitamins, to grow new cells, make hormones and other chemicals, and process energy. Your baby needs these vitamins and minerals for the same reasons.
Features
Some ingredients in prenatal vitamins occur in concentrations much higher than they would in normal multivitamins, explains Dr. Miriam Stoppard in her book "Conception, Pregnancy and Birth." For example, prenatals have high levels of folic acid, which developing babies need to help produce the neural tube, which goes on to become the spinal cord and column. Pregnant women have much higher iron needs than non-pregnant women, so your prenatal vitamin also probably has high levels of iron.
Function
Aside from specialty ingredients, however, prenatals also include a variety of vitamins and minerals found in everyday multivitamins. This is because if you're pregnant, as much as you might want to eat a balanced diet, you're likely to experience some degree of food aversion or nausea at some point. Explains Dr. Raymond Poliakin in his book "What You Didn't Think To Ask Your Obstetrician," prenatals help to provide insurance for women and their babies when they're not able to eat as well as they might like to.
Considerations
One problem with prenatal vitamins, note Heidi Murkoff and Sharon Mazel in their book "What To Expect When You're Expecting," is that the high levels of iron often lead to digestive complications such as constipation, cramping, and gas. If you're pregnant, your digestive tract slows down as a result of hormones, and you probably have some trouble with constipation and gas even without the added influence of a prenatal. Drinking lots of water and eating fiber-rich food can help.
Expert Insight
Some prenatal vitamins contain both calcium and iron, but Dr. Stoppard notes that this combination doesn't benefit women much, because each of these minerals interferes with the absorption of the other. It's best to take an iron-rich prenatal that has no calcium, and then use a calcium supplement separately later in the day. Also, notes Dr. Stoppard, grapefruit and other citrus helps to increase iron absorption, so you may want to take your prenatal with citrus juice.
References
- "Conception, Pregnancy and Birth"; Miriam Stoppard, M.D.; 2008
- "What to Expect When You're Expecting"; Heidi Murkoff and Sharon Mazel; 2008
- "What You Didn't Think to Ask Your Obstetrician"; Raymond Poliakin, M.D.; 2007
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