Vitamin Vibes: Six Essentials for Every Pregnancy

Vitamin Vibes: Boost Your Pregnancy Energy and Glow while supporting baby's development! 🌟

Heya! 🌼 Let’s talk about something that’s super important for you and your little bean—vitamins! Think of them as your pregnancy power squad, ready to help you shine bright and feel fabulous throughout this amazing journey. Put up your guilt and anxiety shields--getting your baby ready for school starts in the womb--so how you nourish yourself now, shows up in the kindergarten classroom! Don't say "yikes" when saying yes to vitamins is a great way to start!

Why Vitamins Matter

Demands are high! You have to keep your body, your always-expanding uterus, the placenta, and the baby all nourished and hydrated. The right vitamins and supplements can boost your energy, support your immune system, and help your little one develop beautifully. So, let’s dive into the essential vitamins and supplements you’ll want to take daily!

Your Essential Pregnancy Vitamin Squad:

1. Prenatal Vitamins: The ultimate superhero of pregnancy! Packed with folic acid, iron, and other essential nutrients, prenatal vitamins are your daily dose of goodness to support both you and your baby. Some brands have a strong smell, taste, or lingering taste that can be rather repulsive, especially in early pregnancy. Thorne Basic Prenatal tends to go down and stay down.

2. Prenatal DHA/Omegas/Fish oil: These essential omega 3 fatty acids support pregnancy and baby's brain and nervous system development. We recommend taking these daily until 36 weeks of pregnancy.

3. Probiotics: Keep your gut happy! Probiotics help maintain digestive health and can even boost your immune system—essential when you're nurturing a tiny human. You can get them from fermented foods like pickles, kimchi, sauerkraut, or veggies or capsules full. Check the box for Lactobacillus rhamnosus GR-1 and Lactobacillus reuteri RC-14. These strains have been studied in pregnancy and may help reduce urinary tract infections and improve symptoms of bacterial vaginosis and thrush. They may also help reduce vaginal and rectal colonization of GBS. And a little scienc-y PS: They've recently been found in placentas and newborns, suggesting that colonization of healthy bacteria is crucial for the entire prenatal system.

4. Magnesium Citrate: This magical mineral can help ease muscle cramps and promote relaxation. Plus, it’s great for keeping the bowels moving which we can all agree is crucial!

5. Vitamin D: Sunshine in a bottle especially since we live where sunshine is usually liquid and pools in puddles! Vitamin D is crucial for bone health and immune support and most of the body's functions. Pregnancy recommendations are 5,000iu per day.

6. Iron: Of all the elements, this is the one that gets the most used up every single day. The pregnant body and uterus burn about 65 milligrams per day. You should ideally get a lot of that from food (read this amazing post about what kinds of food give us the most chances of absorbing the iron!) That said, your prenatal vitamin likely has around 28-35 milligrams so you'll need to make up the rest with an iron that absorbs well. If you are low or worried your food won't get you there, consider an additional supplement. Your midwife can test your levels and give you the correct amount to take.

Final Thoughts

So there you have it, lovely humans! These vitamins are your best buddies as you navigate feeling your best and growing your baby. Remember this gives you a start and a baseline--chat with your midwife to find the right doses and combinations for your unique needs. Here’s to a healthy, happy pregnancy! 🌈✨

When it comes to vitamins and supplements, quality matters. That's why we created these recommendations for you:

Thorne Clients and Friends page (check your favorite online retailer to compare prices, this link allows us to pass our discount along to you but it is not always the least expensive).

FullScript we've created a bucket of our most recommended for pregnancy and postpartum.

Target (we know so many moms love Olly brand, and shop at Target--our link should be live by mid-August)