# Pre-natal vitamins **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 25, 2002, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pre-natal-vitamins/120820 "2002-07-25T20:09:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2002, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pre-natal-vitamins/120820/1 "2002-07-25T20:09:09Z")
So one of my cow-orkers is knocked up and she’s taking vitamins packaged as “prenatal,” which I beleiev are by prescription. I looked at the label and it looks to me like they’re just a regular old multi-vitamin, and not a very complete one at that (they don’t supply RDA of some vitamins, many minerals are entirely absent). Now we’re wondering, what distinguishes “prenatal” vitamins from run-of-the-mill one a day vitamins available at much lower prices? Is this a racket on the part of the vitamin industry to jack up preggos? ---
**Author:** ![WV\_Woman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e95f7d/32.png) [@WV\_Woman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WV_Woman)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2002, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pre-natal-vitamins/120820/2 "2002-07-25T22:16:34Z")
Prenatal vitamins have more of certain vitamins and minerals that plain ole regular multivitamins don’t. The folic acid is increased in prenatals, for example. I imagine calcium is as well, but don’t quote me. ---
**Author:** ![kspharm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ebca7d/32.png) [@kspharm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kspharm)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2002, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pre-natal-vitamins/120820/3 "2002-07-25T23:46:34Z")
Most have higher levels of folic acid, iron, zinc, and sometimes calcium. There are some that also contain higher levels of vitamin B6 as an anti-nausea agent. ---
**Author:** ![WV\_Woman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e95f7d/32.png) [@WV\_Woman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WV_Woman)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2002, 3:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pre-natal-vitamins/120820/4 "2002-07-26T03:12:33Z")
Didn’t know that about the B-6 but it makes sense. Not only are pregnant women nauseous anyway, but sometimes the prenatal vitamins themselves cause nausea. ---
**Author:** ![LisaRx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/77aa72/32.png) [@LisaRx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LisaRx)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2002, 4:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pre-natal-vitamins/120820/5 "2002-07-26T04:09:37Z")
My recommendation is to take a good, well-balanced multi-vitamin with minerals and supplement folic acid to 1mg. The cost of this combo would be approx $10/100 days as opposed to $30-$40/100 days that some prescription prenatals cost. Also, all women should supplement calcium. (Tums or generic equivalent works as well as anything). Any vitamin + mineral combination has a potential for causing nausea. Taking the vitamin after dinner/before I went to bed worked best for me. ---
**Author:** ![kspharm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ebca7d/32.png) [@kspharm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kspharm)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2002, 5:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pre-natal-vitamins/120820/6 "2002-07-26T05:43:37Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by LisaRx \* > \*\* > Also, all women should supplement calcium. (Tums or generic equivalent works as well as anything). > > \*\* Have to nitpick. Tums doesn’t work as well, I was taught, than regular calcium supplements because you need an acidic environment to absorb calcium. That is why it is recommended you take your calcium with a tall cool glass of OJ. ---
**Author:** ![Glamour\_Girl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Glamour\_Girl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Glamour_Girl)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2002, 12:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pre-natal-vitamins/120820/7 "2002-07-26T12:17:08Z")
I recently went to the doctors and told her I’d be starting to try to get pregnant soon and asked if I needed any particular supplements. She just recommended multi-vitamins with a good amount of folic acid in them. I asked if I would need prescription vitamins, and she said that they were basically the same. ---
**Author:** ![QueenAl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/d26b3c/32.png) [@QueenAl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QueenAl)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2002, 12:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pre-natal-vitamins/120820/8 "2002-07-26T12:38:09Z")
The important difference between pre-natal and regular vitamins is that prenatal vits don’t have vitamin a (though they may have betacarotene, a safe form of vitamin a). Straight vitamin a can harm the developing foetus, so ordinary multivitamins are best avoided. ---
**Author:** ![Morgainelf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@Morgainelf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgainelf)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2002, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pre-natal-vitamins/120820/9 "2002-07-26T12:43:44Z")
Yes, though vitamin A from food sources is safe, supplemental vitamin A is too easy to OD on for the fetus. I miss my prenatal vitamins. While taking them, my hair, nails, and skin never looked better. I can’t seem to duplicate the effect with over the counter multi vitamins. And it wasn’t the pregnancy - I started taking the vitamins three months before conceiving, and saw the change very quickly. ---
**Author:** ![MsRobyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/90ced4/32.png) [@MsRobyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsRobyn)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2002, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pre-natal-vitamins/120820/10 "2002-07-26T13:39:59Z")
Looking at my bottle of OTC prenatal vitamins… Mine does have vitamins A, C, D, E, Thiamin, Riboflavin, Niacin, B6, Folate, and B12, in mostly appropriate amounts. It’s also got calcium (a smallish amount), iron, and zinc. I may have to switch once I start nursing, although my diet’s pretty good. Robin ---
**Author:** ![QueenAl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/d26b3c/32.png) [@QueenAl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QueenAl)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2002, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pre-natal-vitamins/120820/11 "2002-07-26T14:00:16Z")
MsRobyn - you’ll probably find the vitamin a in your pills is betacarotene, a naturally-occuring form of vitamin a. According to [this](http://www.healthywomen.com/health/nutrition.html)site: > [@](#): > > Too much vitamin A can cause damage to your baby’s brain and nervous system Which I’ve also read many times elsewhere. ---
**Author:** ![CrankyAsAnOldMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crankyasanoldman/32/11670_2.png) [@CrankyAsAnOldMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CrankyAsAnOldMan)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2002, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pre-natal-vitamins/120820/12 "2002-07-26T17:40:23Z")
You can get prenatal vitamins OTC that are dirt cheap, so not everyone is out to tip off pregnant people byu making them think it’s a “special formula.” I don’t know how they differ from presciption vitamins, excep that (a) they might fall under insurance coverage and (b) some people might take them more regularly because a prescription makes them seem like “serious medicine.” I used the OTC kind, and started to take them four months before I got pregnant. I think I got a prescription for some extra folate once I got knocked up, but that was it. My doc was fine with the OTC kind as long as they had enough of the right stuff. I also continued to take them while nursing, Robyn. ---
**Author:** ![Morgainelf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@Morgainelf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgainelf)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2002, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pre-natal-vitamins/120820/13 "2002-07-26T20:43:28Z")
Robyn, I continued taking the vitamins while nursing, at the advice of my doctor. Because I have a really good prescription drug plan ($5 for 3 refills) it was WAY cheaper to buy prescription rather than OTC. I understand that not everyone is as fortunate, but it happened to work that way for me. ---
**Author:** ![WV\_Woman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e95f7d/32.png) [@WV\_Woman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WV_Woman)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2002, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pre-natal-vitamins/120820/14 "2002-07-26T23:43:15Z")
I took Wal-Mart prenatals the entire time I was pregnant. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2010, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pre-natal-vitamins/120820/15 "2010-06-23T14:51:33Z")
Zombie alert - 8 year old thread. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2010, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pre-natal-vitamins/120820/16 "2010-06-23T15:07:28Z")
Zombie raised by a spammer. Closed and spam post removed.