No, prenatal vitamins don't address all nutritional needs during pregnancy.
There, I said it.
There’s a big misconception that prenatal vitamins contain all of the nutrients you need to support yourself during pregnancy. And unfortunately, many docs say that’s all you should beware of when updating your routine (remember, most get just a few hours of nutrition training, if any).
The truth is that most:
⇴Supplements are not regulated by the FD@
⇴Nutrients provided are at bare minimum levels for survival
⇴Contain poor forms of nutrients (companies gotta make $)
⇴Don’t take into account nutrient interactions (hello, iron and calcium aren’t the only ones that compete for absorption)
⇴Miss key nutrients
In fact, “Despite the vitamin supplementation, a high percent of vitamin A, B6, niacin. thiamine and B12 hypovitaminemia was noted during pregnancy trimesters.” (Baker et al)
And take choline for example. It’s been shown to prevent neural tube defects (see my previous post about this), but I would guess that it’s missing in 99% of prenatals I’ve seen on the market.
What’s also true?
Nature is pretty dang smart. Nutrients work synergistically and not in isolation. Mother nature provides nutrients in the groups and ratios intended. For this reason, nutrients from food will always be superior to and cannot be replaced by nutrients from supplements, especially synthetic soups.
The word “supplement” is defined as “a thing that is added to something else to improve or complete it.” Notice that it doesn’t say “replace it.”
That said, there’s always a time and a place for supplements, which can be a great tool. Even though I’m extremely picky about supplements, I still take them.
What I’m trying to get at here is that instead of focusing on finding the perfect prenatal, what’s more important is probably going to be the food that we’re putting in our mouth. Some real food for thought!
I will be talking about this and more in our upcoming preconception course. Sign up via the link in my bio to get updates.
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Absolutely not medical advice. Always consult your healthcare provider.
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This is not medical advice. Always consult your healthcare professional before pursuing any changes to your personal healthcare regime.
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References
Lexico. Supplement. Retrieved from: https://www.lexico.com/en/definition/supplement.
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