The most important vitamins during pregnancy

A healthy diet during pregnancy is good – but you should supplement these vitamins.

The right vitamins during pregnancy help your body prepare for the baby. Eating a healthy diet and taking certain supplements not only helps your baby grow and develop, but also supports your body to stay healthy and strong. Carrying out and growing human life requires superhuman effort – it is a superpower!

Ogaenics has a strong selection for vitamins in pregnancy. All supplements are pure plant-based, premium organic quality, vegan and additive-free, making them ideal for you and the growing baby inside you. They optimally support your well-being and the development of your baby, because your body recognizes them like a normal food and can utilize them optimally.

Here is a list of vitamins in pregnancy and key minerals that science considers essential for a healthy pregnancy:

Essential vitamins during pregnancy

The main thing is that you eat a variety of healthy, natural and unprocessed foods during pregnancy.

Protein foods are important, from beans and legumes to fish, eggs, nuts, meat and dairy. You need these during pregnancy for your baby’s growth.

Eat your fill of fruits and vegetables (especially leafy green vegetables). Because these naturally contain a variety of vitamins and minerals that are beneficial to you and also prevent constipation – whether you’re pregnant or not.

However, there are some vitamins in pregnancy and also a few minerals that you may not be able to cover in sufficient amounts through your healthy diet. These include vitamin D and folate, as well as the minerals calcium, iodine and iron.(1)

Vitamin D in pregnancy

Vitamin D in pregnancy is important because it keeps bones, muscles and teeth healthy while supporting the body’s ability to regulate calcium and phosphate. Thus, a good vitamin D balance during pregnancy is important to adequately meet the calcium needs of the growing embryo for bone mineral formation. Vitamin D in pregnancy is also important because a deficiency of this vitamin is associated with an increased risk of preeclampsia, preterm birth and gestational diabetes. So you should make sure to always be well supplied here. (3, 4)

Important food sources of vitamin D are fatty fish (e.g. salmon) and egg yolk. However, these cover only about 10% of the demand. The rest must be formed through the skin with the help of sunlight and supplied by dietary supplementation.

The daily intake recommendation by the German Nutrition Society (DGE) for vitamin D during pregnancy is 800 I.U. (20 micrograms) per day. If you get a little more vitamin D during pregnancy, this is usually okay, as long as it is below the so-called “Tolerable Upper Intake Level” (UL) for vitamin D. This is for adults at 100 micrograms (µg) per day: This is 100 micrograms (µg) / day for adults. (5)

Folic acid or folate in pregnancy

Folate is a natural B vitamin that belongs to the circle of important vitamins in pregnancy. Unfortunately, the synthetic version folic acid is better known than folate, but unfortunately less effective than the natural version. Folate in pregnancy is important because a deficiency of this vitamin leads to impaired brain development in the fetus. A good supply of folate during pregnancy may also help prevent neural tube defects in the baby, including spina bifida.(3)

Important dietary sources of folate during pregnancy are chickpeas, lentils and green leafy vegetables. But it is difficult to get the right dose from food alone. Therefore, health organizations recommend taking folate during pregnancy as a dietary supplement. The German Nutrition Society recommends 550 micrograms (µg) daily. At Ogaenics, we use only natural folate, extracted from organic lemon peel, to ensure optimal effectiveness.

You can find this nutrient in Feed Your Blood Blood Building Complex suitable for pregnant women or embedded in Mrs. Do It All 18+ Organic Multivitamin for women for before and during pregnancy.

Iron during pregnancy

Iron during pregnancy is important because it helps your body produce extra blood for you and your baby. The increased need for iron is caused by the growth of the child, the uterus and the placenta.

People who take in too little iron are usually tired, fatigued, pale and unfocused. More serious can be the consequences of iron deficiency during pregnancy for the growing baby. Iron deficiency leads to premature births or miscarriages more frequently and the birth weight is often reduced. (6)

The German Nutrition Society recommends 30 milligrams (mg) per day of iron from foods during pregnancy. However, many pregnant women do not achieve this. Almost 20 percent of all pregnant women in Europe even develop iron deficiency anemia (source: WHO).

Iron-rich foods include beef and chicken liver, kidney beans, lima beans, lentils, oysters, raisins, and soybeans.

If you want to take iron during pregnancy as a supplement to your diet, make sure the iron comes from organic plants and is in combination with vitamin C. It is also important that it is dosed high enough for your increased needs during pregnancy. You should also make sure to add other blood-building nutrients to it, because science shows that it is more effective. In addition to iron, the most important blood-forming nutrients during pregnancy are vitamin B12 and folate/folic acid.

Calcium during pregnancy

Calcium does not belong to the genus of vitamins in pregnancy, but it is one of the most important minerals for mother and child. It is an important building block for bones and teeth. Expectant moms therefore need it just as much as their babies, so that their bones remain strong thanks to calcium during pregnancy. Calcium and/or vitamin D deficiency in pregnancy has been shown to lead to porous, weak bones and rickets.

Important dietary sources of calcium are dairy products. For those who follow a vegan and plant-based diet and thus do not consume calcium from dairy products, algae are the best source. Poppy seeds, sesame seeds and almonds also contain calcium. However, since these are not foods that are usually consumed in large quantities, it is rather difficult to take in the required amount of calcium during pregnancy on a purely plant-based diet. Here, a nutritional supplement can support.

A Cochrane study also found that calcium in pregnancy reduces the risk of preeclampsia and other hypertensive disorders, especially in low calcium diets, such as vegan diets.(2)

Iodine during pregnancy

The trace element iodine is often forgotten because only tiny amounts in the microgram range are needed. But iodine is essential for life and very rarely found in our diet. It supports all growth processes, the development of the nervous system and brain, and regulates thyroid hormones.

Important food sources of iodine are algae and fish. In Germany, however, about 30 percent of the population do not reach their daily intake. Your iodine needs during pregnancy are increased because thyroid hormone (T4) production increases by 50% during this time. During pregnancy, there is also an increased loss of iodine in the urine. (3)

Supplementing iodine during pregnancy can therefore be crucial for your baby’s development. The recommended daily intake on the part of the DGE for pregnant women is 200 micrograms (µg) per day.

Conclusion

Ultimately, it’s your choice what you eat and how you feed your body enough vitamins during pregnancy. Be aware of the facts and recommendations and then make your own judgment about whether you need extra vitamins during pregnancy via supplements.

The most important thing is that you don’t become deficient in the essential nutrients vitamin D and folate, as well as the minerals calcium, iodine and iron during pregnancy due to your increased needs. If you are unsure about anything, always ask your doctor for advice.

When choosing your dietary supplement, as with the rest of your food, you should always pay attention to naturalness and give preference to organic products. Also, your vitamins should not contain additives during pregnancy. We wish you a healthy and happy pregnancy!

References

1 Nils Milman, Tomasz Paszkowski, Irene Cetin & Dr Camil Castelo-Branco. (2016) Supplementation during pregnancy: beliefs and science, Gynecological Endocrinology, 32:7, 509-516,

2 Hofmeyr, G Justus et al. “Calcium supplementation during pregnancy for preventing hypertensive disorders and related problems.” The Cochrane database of systematic reviews,6 CD001059. 24 Jun. 2014,

3 Lowensohn, Richard I et al. “Current Concepts of Maternal Nutrition.” Obstetrical & gynecological survey vol. 71,7 (2016): 413-26.

4 Agarwal, Shreya et al. “Vitamin D and its impact on maternal-fetal outcomes in pregnancy: a critical review.” Critical reviews in food science and nutrition vol. 58,5 (2018): 755-769.

5 https://www.bfr.bund.de/cm/343/hoechstmengenvorschlaege-fuer-vitamin-d-in-lebensmitteln-inklusive-nahrungsergaenzungsmitteln.pdf

6 Sun D, McLeod A, Gandhi S, Malinowski AK, Shehata N. Anemia in Pregnancy: A Pragmatic Approach. Obstet Gynecol Surv. 2017 Dec;72