We’re frequently asked in our comment section about: what are the best natural prenatal vitamins. Hopefully by the end of this article you’ll have no doubts about this subject.
When Should I Start Taking A Prenatal Vitamin?
A baby’s neural tube, which will develop into both the brain and spinal cord, develops during the first month of pregnancy. That could happen before you even realize you’re pregnant. Pricing guide Most of these vitamins are packaged to contain 30 servings — about a month’s worth.
The Right Picks To Take You Through Your Pregnancy Journey
You can learn more about our review process here. We may receive commissions on purchases made from our chosen links. It is important to make sure prenatal supplements have been tested by third-party labs and offer maximum transparency to consumers.
A prenatal vitamin is a multivitamin that is designed with pregnancy and breastfeeding in mind. In addition to purity tests and transparency, it is important to consider the amounts of key prenatal nutrients—such as calcium, vitamin d, iron, folate, and choline—that the supplement contains in each dose.
Finding The Best Prenatal Vitamins
No judgment here).
Unfortunately, many prenatal vitamins on the market include ingredients that upset already sensitive stomachs, or they aren’t tailored to specific kinds of lifestyles (think vegan, vegetarian, or gluten-free diets). To learn more about why prenatal vitamins matter and what to look out for, we suggest reading this resource from the Mayo Clinic. And to choose the best option for you, we recommend talking to your OBGYN or healthcare provider.
Best Prenatal Vitamins 2022
“Fetal development is rapid and requires a lot of metabolism—it’s dependent on the proper amount of amino acids and nutrients,” says James Grifo, M.D., the program director at NYU Langone Fertility Center in New York City and chief executive physician at Inception Fertility. Acog recommends pregnant people consume certain amounts of calcium to help build strong bones and teeth, iron to help red blood cells deliver oxygen to the fetus, iodine and choline to aid in brain development, and folic acid to help prevent birth defects. While much of these nutrients can be obtained through a healthy diet, a prenatal vitamin provides the extra assurance your daily nutrition needs are met, no matter what’s on the menu.
Getting the recommended amount of certain nutrients—especially folic acid—can be hard to do, even if you eat a healthy diet. For example, ACOG recommends pregnant people consume 600 micrograms of folic acid daily during pregnancy to help prevent brain and spinal birth defects.