Pregnant women -- the same group of people who take prenatal vitamins -- typically have lovely, glowing skin. Because of this, you might wonder whether you could take prenatal vitamins to help reduce your acne and improve your skin even if you're not pregnant. Unfortunately, however, there's no evidence to support this.
Acne
There are many reasons you might have acne as an adult. If you're in your 20s, it's likely that your hormone levels are still high, particularly right before your period. This can sometimes lead to breakouts. Also, younger skin tends to be oilier, which clogs pores, leading to blackheads. If bacteria become trapped in the clogged pores, whiteheads can result. Even more mature women still have breakouts from time to time, often in response to changing hormones or stress.
Misconceptions
The "glow" of a pregnant woman is enviable. Not only does her skin typically look clear and acne-free, it also tends to look plumped up and wrinkle-free, rosy and healthy. It's easy to start to think this must be a result of the high levels of vitamins she's on, but in reality, it's an effect of hormones. Pregnancy hormones increase blood flow to the skin, which helps prevent breakouts and results in the characteristic glow.
Prenatal Vitamins
Though you might think that prenatal vitamins have many powerful and exotic ingredients in them -- they're usually given by prescription, after all -- in reality, they're nothing more than regular nutrient supplements and are quite similar to what you'd buy in a multivitamin for yourself. The only significant difference between a prenatal and a regular multivitamin is that the prenatals have much higher quantities of iron and folic acid, two critical nutrients for pregnancy.
General Guidelines
While vitamins and minerals are essential to healthy function and cellular wellness, contrary to popular belief, you can't "supercharge" cellular or organ function by taking especially large quantities of them. As such, since you don't need the extra nutrients in prenatal vitamins, they won't do you any good. Further, most people find the amount of iron in prenatal vitamins upsetting to the gastrointestinal tract -- you can become nauseated or constipated on prenatal vitamins.
References
- "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
- "You: Having A Baby"; Michael Roizen, M.D. and Mehmet Oz, M.D.; 2009
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