You may have heard that prenatal vitamins can benefit you even if you're not pregnant--that, for instance, they'll improve your hair and nails, help you lose weight, or balance your hormones and treat hot flashes. Unfortunately, attractive as these rumors are, there's no scientific evidence to support any of them.
Prenatal Vitamins
Prenatal vitamins are multivitamin and mineral supplements that meet the increased nutrient needs of pregnant women. They're very similar to regular women's multivitamins; they contain many of the same vitamins and minerals in the same quantities. Prenatal vitamins, however, contain larger quantities of folic acid and iron, which are nutrients that pregnant women need in higher doses than non-pregnant women, explain Drs. Michael Roizen and Mehmet Oz in their book "You: Having A Baby."
Hot Flashes
Hot flashes are an uncomfortable symptom that result from falling or fluctuating hormone levels. While they're classically associated with menopause, you can also experience them if you go off hormone supplements or in the postpartum period during which your pregnancy hormone levels fall off precipitously. During hot flashes, you not only feel warm, you react physiologically as though the temperature were much higher than it actually is--you sweat, for instance, and can experience prickly heat.
Vitamins for Hot Flashes
While prenatal vitamins are incredibly beneficial to you and your developing fetus if you're pregnant--and can even benefit you if you're breastfeeding or trying to conceive--they won't do anything for you that regular multivitamin supplements can't if you're not pregnant. They can't balance your hormones, for instance, and there's no evidence to suggest that they do anything for hot flashes. They won't hurt you, however, even if you're not pregnant, explains dietitian Katherine Zeratsky for MayoClinic.com.
Treating Hot Flashes
If you're experiencing hot flashes as a result of menopause, talk to your doctor. While menopause is a normal part of life and you shouldn't feel it's a "disease" that you need to treat, your doctor may be able to recommend medications or lifestyle measures that will help you handle your hot flashes. If you're postpartum, rest assured that your hot flashes, while uncomfortable, will soon disappear--typically within about two weeks after you gave birth.
References
- "You: Having A Baby"; Michael Roizen, M.D. and Mehmet Oz, M.D.; 2009
- "What to Expect When You're Expecting"; Heidi Murkoff and Sharon Mazel; 2008
- MayoClinic.com: Prenatal vitamins: OK for women who aren't pregnant?
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