What to look for in your prenatal vitamin
Folks ask me ALL the time, “what brands of prenatal vitamins do you recommend?”
The answer is…it’s complicated!
The best prenatal vitamin for YOU will vary based on your needs and preferences! On top of that, brands are constantly changing their formulas. It’s hard to keep up with, and I want to make sure that I feel confident in what I’m recommending to you!
For our 1:1 patients here at Feed Your Zest, we provide individualized supplement recommendations, but below I wanted to share some of my top tips for choosing a prenatal vitamin so that you know exactly what to look for when searching for options.
Don’t want to weed through every brand in the Target aisle? We also have a DIY Prenatal Vitamin Guide that helps you put together the supplement regimen that’s right for YOU from TTC all the way through postpartum, complete with an up-to-date list of current recommended prenatal vitamins. Some of the tips below are are included in this guide!
Third party testing
Unfortunately, the supplement industry isn’t regulated by the FDA (it really should be!!) That means that in order to ensure that your prenatal vitamin is safe and effective, you need to look for one that is 3rd party tested. USP, NSF, and Consumer Labs are really great organizations that test for supplement quality and safety, and these labels will be clearly listed on a prenatal vitamin. Labdoor.com is also a website that does third-party testing, and you can always look at the supplement’s website to see if they’re 3rd party testing in a different way. If you do nothing else, this is the most important factor in choosing a prenatal.
Choose a form that works for you
Pills are a classic way to take a supplement, but 1 pill per day may be too large for some people to swallow, while other brands may tout high nutrition content of their product but the dosage is 8 pills per day. If pills aren’t your thing, powder and gummy vitamins exist too! Remember you have options, and you can try different methods to make sure you’re able to take your prenatal vitamins daily.
Looking for the right nutrients
This can be the overwhelming part of choosing the right prenatal. Know that as long as your supplement is 3rd party tested, it’s better to take SOMETHING instead of nothing. While a well rounded eating pattern is really important for fertility and pregnancy, a prenatal vitamin is your micronutrient insurance policy while you work on adding foods in and navigate issues like nausea and food aversions that may limit your diet. This is also the most individualized aspect of choosing a prenatal supplement regimen! Depending on your eating pattern, lifestyle, medical history, and lab work, you may need more of certain nutrients. Regardless, the following nutrients are ones that I think EVERY pregnant person should be sure to look for in their prenatal vitamin, as they play such a vital role in fetal development:
methyl-folate (the active form of folate, but folic acid is the synthetic form and is effective for most people, too)
iron (iron bisglycinate will be less likely to cause GI upset and constipation)
iodine
vitamin D
choline
magnesium
vitamin K2
selenium
DHA (often taken separately, which is ok too!)
Want more?
Want to know when you might need extra omega-3s, vitamin D, choline, or iron?
Want an expert-curated list of high quality prenatal vitamins?
Purchase our instant download, The Ultimate Prenatal Vitamin Guide today to get all the info you need to choose the right supplements for your pregnancy.
Ultimately, there’s so much more to fertility and prenatal nutrition than simply taking the right supplements! Having a healthy relationship with food and body, and consuming nutrient dense foods as part of a joyful, balanced eating pattern is vital to your physical and mental well-being as your conceive and grow a healthy baby.
Nutrition counseling with a registered dietitian can be a GAMECHANGER in improving your fertility, prenatal health, and postpartum healing. We help our patients not only choose the right prenatal vitamin and additional supplements for their bodies, but help them build an intuitive relationship with food and movement, and ADD foods for their perinatal wellbeing. Click here to read more and get started with 1:1 nutrition coaching with our expert perinatal dietitians today.