Calcium is necessary for a developing baby to build a strong skeleton and organs. Calcium can be found in dairy products and some fish and vegetables, but most women don't get enough through food to support the developing baby. While a prenatal vitamin typically supplies some calcium, many pregnant women don't realize that it might not be supplying enough.
Importance
Calcium helps build more than just developing bones. It also aids in the development of the growing baby's nervous system, muscles and heart. A lack of calcium during pregnancy can hurt the mother, too. If the mother is deficient, her body will pull calcium from her bones to give to the fetus, which could put her at risk for osteoporosis later in life.
Amount
The recommended daily allowance of calcium for pregnant women who are 24 and older is 1,200 mg every day to ensure proper fetal development and their own health. Pregnant women under 24 should get between 1,200 and 1,500 mg per day. Keep your total intake of all forms of calcium below 2,500 mg a day, including all the calcium you get from supplements, your daily prenatal, food sources and calcium in bottled or tap water. More than this can cause constipation and might make the absorption of other minerals, such as zinc and iron, less efficient.
Supplements
Most prenatal vitamins contain 150 to 200 mg of calcium. Because calcium is a large molecule and prenatal vitamins need to contain many other nutrients, adding the full recommended amount would make prenatals too large for most moms-to-be to handle. Instead, pregnant women should look for separate calcium supplements to take in addition to prenatal vitamins. Look for calcium supplements with 500 mg of calcium or less per pill, which is all the body can absorb at one time.
Options
Calcium citrate and calcium carbonate are the two most common forms of calcium in supplements. Both of these are calcium salts, so the calcium is bound to another element. The body absorbs calcium citrate better and it can be taken with or without food. Calcium carbonate contains more calcium but needs to be taken with a meal or it won't be properly digested.
Considerations
Supplements with "USP" on the label are approved by U.S. Pharmacopeia, which means that they have been tested to ensure that they dissolve in the intestines and contain sufficient calcium. Avoid supplements containing bone meal, dolomite or coral because these sometimes contain small amounts of lead that can be dangerous for a developing baby. In addition to calcium, you might want to consider taking supplemental vitamin D, which aids in calcium absorption.
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