Prenatal Vitamin Comparison: Comparing the Many Brands of Prenatal Vitamins

Choosing the Best

No matter what we are buying, we always want the best.  This is never more true than when it comes to purchasing a prenatal vitamin.  Comparison between prenatal vitamins can often be difficult, however.  Which prenatal vitamins are really the best for you and your baby?  There are a number of factors to take into consideration.

How to Make a Prenatal Vitamin Comparison

In order to understand how to make a prenatal vitamin comparison, we should first understand what prenatal vitamins do.  The average multivitamin should serve as pretty much a standard multivitamin, with special emphasis placed on folic acid, iron and calcium.  In general an over the counter prenatal vitamin should have 0.4 mg of folic acid, while a prescription will have 1 mg of folic acid.  Otherwise both prescription and no prescription brands are about the same.

It is virtually impossible for you to get all of the calcium you need from a prenatal vitamin.  While having calcium in prenatal vitamins is good, it is very difficult to get a proper dose of calcium.  While making your prenatal vitamin comparison, pay attention to the calcium levels but pretty much plan on taking a separate calcium supplement.

Look at the levels of other vitamins and minerals in the prenatal vitamin, aside from the big three mentioned above.  These should be at about normal levels, although in some cases some brands will inject more.  Some might have hardly any at all.

Prenatal Vitamin Side Effect Comparison

One of the most difficult problems many women have with prenatal vitamins is actually being able to get them down.  This is one of the most difficult parts of a prenatal vitamin comparison, but one you might find important.  During your pregnancy, especially in the earliest stages (when prenatal vitamins are most important) you can find it difficult to take a prenatal vitamin without experiencing side effects such as nausea or vomiting.

When making your prenatal vitamin comparison, then, if you are worried about such side effects you might look for vitamins that are specially designed to be as tasteless or non-invasive as possible.  You might even turn towards liquid or chewable prenatal vitamins (don't worry, these are just as good as tablets).

In the end, however, the ultimate decision is up to you on which are the best prenatal vitamins.  If you are worried about the decision, you might want to consult with your doctor.  If you are at high risk for certain potential problems or complications during pregnancy, your doctor might even need to prescribe you special prenatal vitamins in these cases.