Staying healthy is vital during pregnancy. Vitamin C is touted as one of the keys to good health because of its immune-boosting reputation. While some vitamin C is essential to a healthy pregnancy, too much may lead to problems in both you and your baby, especially in early pregnancy. Unless your doctor tells you otherwise, you should get all of the vitamin C you need from a healthy, well-balanced diet and your prenatal vitamin, not from vitamin C supplements.
Safe Dosage
Safe dosage recommendations vary. The American Pregnancy Association recommends 80 to 85 mg daily, while the National Institutes of Health's Medline Plus suggests that pregnant women consume around 120 mg daily. The negative effects of vitamin C likely occur at dosages above the 2,000 mg upper recommended intake level. Manage your intake by eating plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables for their vitamin C content, rather than taking supplements to meet your nutritional needs.
Newborn Scurvy
Too much vitamin C during pregnancy can cause your baby to be born with a vitamin C deficiency, also called scurvy, according to the American Pregnancy Association. When you ingest too much vitamin C, your baby can develop an intolerance or resistance. Your own kidneys contribute by increasing the amount of vitamin C they excrete, even after you stop taking high doses.
Pre-eclampsia Cure?
Pregnant women used to turn to vitamin C as a natural way to manage pre-eclampsia, or pregnancy-induced high blood pressure. The National Institutes of Health issued a statement in April 2010 indicating that, according to its research, vitamin C supplements, usually taken in combination with vitamin E supplements, do not reduce your risk of pre-eclampsia or minimize its negative effects on you and your baby. Pre-eclampsia can cause growth restriction in your baby and may lead to stroke or heart attack for you. The condition must be closely monitored by your health-care provider.
Miscarriage
High doses of vitamin C may cause miscarriages, which prompts some women to use the vitamin as a home remedy for abortion. "This remedy has been passed around the feminist community since the '70's" says a holistic health practitioner who goes by the name of Sister Zeus. She draws from the personal accounts of women she's worked with as a holistic healer and from articles published in underground and grassroots feminist publications. Her conclusion is that taking anywhere from 2,000 to 10,000 mg of vitamin C in the first few weeks after a missed period can end a pregnancy. "These remedies have less than a 50 percent chance of being successful, even in the best of circumstances and when everything is done 'right'," she says. High doses of vitamin C have uncomfortable or serious side effects, such as diarrhea, nausea, headache and altered kidney function.
References
- MayoClinic.com: Vitamin C
- National Institutes of Health; Vitamin C and E Supplements Do Not Reduce Risk for Blood Pressure Disorders of Pregnancy; April 2010
- American Pregnancy Association: Essential Nutrients & Vitamins for Pregnancy
- American Pregnancy Association: Symptoms of Overdose
- Medline Plus: Vitamin C
- Sister Zeus: Vitamin C: Home Abortion Remedy?
