Prenatal Vitamins??

Updated on August 09, 2007
P.L. asks from Santa Fe, TX
21 answers

I found out yesterday that I am pregnant with #2. I'm very happy and excited, but at the same time nervous and scared. With my first, I was sick for the first four months. I don't want that to happen again. I started taking prenatal vitamins last night, but as I recall, they seem to only serve to make the nausea worse. What's the difference between prenatals and a regular daily vitamin? Also, they say to eat lots of grains and fruits. Obviously I know what fruit means, but what about grains? Does that mean like whole wheat toast? Do tortillas count? Oatmeal? What should I be eating? I REALLY want to avoid the morning sickness as much as possible, but I just don't know what I'm doing.

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L.R.

answers from Portland on

Someone mentioned Ezekiel Bread. I love that stuff! And I get it at HEB! Most all of them have it, just look in the frozen bread section (right next to the frozen garlic bread).

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A.O.

answers from Sherman on

Congrats!!! I couldn't take prenatals with either of my pregnancies. My OB suggested I take flinstone chewables and that worked out great for me.

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M.L.

answers from Houston on

Talk to your doctor about taking 2 flinstones chewable vitamins (yes the children's ones) instead of a prenatal vitamin. My sister-in-law who is a OBGYN recommended that to me during my first trimester because the prenatals made me feel really sick. I checked with my doctor and she said that was fine. The 2 flinstones give you enough vitamins for the first trimester and are much gentler on your stomach.
I switched back to the Citracal prenatal vitamins in my second trimester and felt great.
I hope you find something that works for.

-M.

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A.G.

answers from Houston on

I used some prenatals that are made to help you with the morning sickness they are called PREMESIS RX, I used with both of my pregnancies and they were perfect ask your doctor sometimes they have samples that you can try before you buy the prescription.

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J.J.

answers from Houston on

Congrats, my morning sickness was minor but my girl-friend who is 14 weeks still has it. Her doctors figured out some weird morning sickness. It is called hyperemesis gravidarum (HG). Here is the website to figure out if this is what you had/have, I hope not. It involves weight loss, check it out. I don't know what medicine she takes but it takes 30 minutes to start working, so you have to know when it is coming.

http://www.helpher.org/mothers/hyperemesis-or-morning-sic...

Good Luck P.

S.C.

answers from Kansas City on

Congratulations. I had morning sickness with my first for a few weeks, but hardly anything with my second, so don't worry. You will have to take your vitamins later in the day with a meal. Don't take it in the morning.You can read on the labels the difference between regular and prenatal. I know getting folic acid is very important.
Whole Grains are foods like brown rice, yes, whole wheat breads--all foods that contain whole grains have to say it. Nowadays manufacturers are proud to claim it anyway, so it is usually very visible. Just think about whole foods, the way they grow in nature. Processed foods tend to have less fiber and nutrients and added chemicals. There are so many ways to eat well nowadays, just take note as you shop. The less the ingredients in something the better, ya know?
I have been vegetarian for over 10 years and I am very aware of what is in food products. You just have to read the labels. Stay away from additives like sodium nitrites, etc. in processed meats (Farmland makes a bacon that has none though, so just look around). There are deli meats that have no preservatives or additives. MSG is still everywhere, you will be amazed.
I think too, I would avoid beef and dairy that is not organic. You don't want any of those growth hormones that is given to the standard population of cattle. I buy organic produce when I can. Sometimes it isn't as "pretty" as the other produce but it is still good, you will just have to experiment. There are lots of organic foods now, that are in with the mainstream foods, like canned vegetables, spaghetti sauces, etc.
You can try the whole wheat tortillas, but just look at the nutrient values on the other ones, sometimes there is just as much fiber, iron, calcium, etc. in the "white" ones. Breads are especially getting good at this. Oatmeal is a wonderful source of soluable fiber. I would have a protein with any high carb food though. Proteins are animal products, cheese, peanut or other nut butters, beans, legumes..or maybe you want to try a protein fruit smoothie made with a protein powder. I haven't had any luck with the taste on those myself. I found a peanut flour that is very high in protein. So just be sure not to eat a high carb breakfast without some protein so your blood sugar will be more even.
I found a good book for when my kids were babies and toddlers. It's called SuperBaby Food and it has lots of ideas on how to feed your little ones well too.
Best wishes.

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T.S.

answers from Longview on

Hi
Congrats!

When I had my first I was sick every day from about 2-5 months. I threw up a lot. Nothing worked. I finally got some meds from my Dr that helped. The second baby it was not so bad. The third baby I was nasueated, but did not throw up all the time.

I found that eating often and avoiding things were my best bet. Also being busy helped a lot too.

So I ate simple meals like spaghetti that I could stir and walk away from (smells are hard) for a few minutes. I avoided steak, seafood, and anything 'finer' as the spices just made things worse. My suggestion is to eat more often in small amounts and eat simple. A milkshake, 2 hours later a sandwich, 2 hr later a snack of fruit, etc. But make it small amounts and very plain. Don't try to sit at the table for a meal so much as just graze. That goes against what we commonly do, but it works! ;-)

As for whole grain- read the labels. Grains are your oatmeal, wheat, etc. Anything made from that would be a grain, but whole grains are how they are processed. In other words a tortilla is flour, but usually ground very fine so some of the nutrients are lost. They have a high percentage of calorie vs. nutrients. But a slice of whole wheat bread is going to be processed differently so have a higher percentage. Then you have things like oatmeal that is even less processsed. I think you are fine if you just eat some toast, sandwich, cheerios, whatever. ;-)

Vitamens- I did not figure that one out till later in the game, so you are lucky! Like the others said try taking them at night. I know one lady just took two Flintstone childrens vitamens every day. I would read the label to make sure they measure up. See if your Dr would approve you trying that. You need plenty of iron and folic acid. Of course the other things that are obvious like calcium and all the letters-B, C, D.

Good luck,
ts

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D.L.

answers from Houston on

When you go to your OB ask about a prenatal vitamin that is for morning sickness/nausea. I don't remember what they are called, but I was on them for the first trimester and they worked so well. I was advised by my dr to take them right before bed. After about the second day my nausea was gone!

Also, they have some things called prego pops. I found them at the Motherhood Maternity store. They are made with natural things and are in hard candy form and lollipop form. They are good for when you are on the go and the nausea starts.

The other thing you can try is to have saltine crackers by your bed, and before you even lift your body eat 2-4 of them, wait about 5 min and then you shouldn't have as much nausea.

Good Luck!!

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J.

answers from Houston on

Hi P.,
Call Dr. Steve Clouthier ###-###-#### - he is a natural Doctor in Panther Creek (in The Woodlands) - not in place of your OBGYN but he supplies whole food prenatal vitamins and minerals. They are much better for you than the regular store-bought or Rx prenatals because those are synthetic. The whole food vitamins help complete your diet and I didn't feel any morning sickness. Also he works with the pregnant ladies at the Nativity Center up here (the natural childbirth place) not as an OBGYN but he helps provide chiropractic adjustments that make for a more comfortable pregnancy. Good luck. You can always get whole food vitamins at a health food store too. Whole Grains - whole grain bread, (do not buy bread if the first ingredient says "enriched" flour or "bleached" flour. Also: brown rice, whole wheat pasta, multi-grain tortillas. Whole Grain cereals, oatmeal, etc.

Let me know if you need more info or have questions. I have a 3 month old little girl and a 2 year old little boy. Precious!

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M.L.

answers from Houston on

Congrats on baby #2!! I know you will be doing everything you can to help your baby develop perfectly. I have found a great pre-natal that was used by Bobbi McCaughey after she discovered she was expecting septuplets. Bobbi and her doctors recognized the value of Melaleuca's fructose compounding.

Your body can find it hard to absorb minerals. That’s why the Vitality Prenatal and Vitality Mineral Complex is formulated with the proprietary Fructose Compounding mineral delivery system. Fructose Compounding is designed to pre-bind a fructose (or fruit sugar) molecule to a mineral like iron or calcium to help keep the mineral from binding with other nutrients in your digestive tract. Fructose-compounded minerals are designed to be absorbed into your bloodstream and delivered to your cells and ultimately to your tissues, organs, and the rest of your body.

There are lots of other stories of happy moms who have used these vitamins. I would love to get you more details and help you decide if these are right for you. If you want to order them, then I can introduce you to the compay and then you can order direct from Melaleuca. Let me know if you want more info.

Also wanted to pass along some info about the health of your unborn baby and the effects of chemical exposure in the womb. Here is an article I found today about this.

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/05/25/M...

Again, if you want more info on how to make your home and your body safer as I have done, please let me know. I love Melaleuca and the products are incredible.

M. L.
www.TheHealthyHomeTour.com

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B.R.

answers from Houston on

First off congrats on baby #2! I too had bad morning sickness for the first 4 months!!! The only thing that I could suggest which I found out about too late was to switch around your prenas til you found one that works for you. My prenas were a nightmare until I found a better one. My doc also said that they can prescribe you something for your nausea which I think is something that they give cancer patients while they are undergoing treatments. I hope this helps and sorry I dont know much about the whole grain stuff. Good Luck!

PS i noticed on your "a little about me" that you work from home. How did you get to find a job that you can do from home. I have to go back to work in a couple of months, I was only going to be able to stay with me baby until she turned 1 and that is coming up soon. I was looking for a job that I could do from home, do you know of any? Thanks, it was worth a shot to ask.

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B.L.

answers from Beaumont on

The OTC prenatal vitamins that I tried first also made me sick, and I had a strange metallic taste in my mouth after taking them. My doctor prescribed some for me called PrimaCare One and they worked wonders! They're purple and soft (shaped like a capsule) and they sort of taste like vanilla, so I NEVER had a bad taste with them.
Give them a try! I hope this helps!! Good luck!

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M.B.

answers from Houston on

I know what you mean about the vitamins. I went through a lot of samples until I found one that I could tolerate, but still I hesitated taking them because for some reason, swallowing any kind of pill made me feel queasy. After talking with a midwife friend of mine, she suggested VITAMIST vitamins. Instead of swallowing pills, you just spray them in your mouth, like a breath spray. They are a little more expensive, but it was worth it to me. I took the prenatal, as well as the calcium spray. Although I tried to get my local health food store to order them for me, I ended up just ordering them from their website, www.vitamist.com. I hope this helps.

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B.C.

answers from Houston on

Just one more tip to add to the others....Ezekiel bread is a wonderful whole grain bread--Kroger's carries it in the "Nature's Corner" section of their store and you can also get it at Whole Foods. It is in the freezer section--no preservatives so it must be refrigerated! We keep ours in the freezer and pop slices in the toaster when we're ready to make a sandwich.

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W.C.

answers from Tyler on

Congratulations! Unfortunately, there is not much we can do to control the undesired nausea that comes with pregnancy! Each pregnancy is totally different. I was sick the entire 10 months with my first, 4 months with my second, and never with my third (all boys)! I found that using a prescription called phenygren(not sure of spelling:)) worked wonderfully!
Prenatal vitamins have a larger dose of folic acid than daily vitamins. You could try different brands of prenatals. I had a sinus reaction to the type I was prescribed and found that the target brand worked perfect and were much cheaper!!
Grains are found in your whole wheat breads, whole grain cereals, oatmeal, whole grain crackers, ect.
I used the book "What To Expect While You Are Expecting". It has alot of great information and gives you a daily suggested diet and excercise routine. It also takes you through the weekly stages of growth for your precious little one! Best of wishes and God's blessings to you!!

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D.M.

answers from College Station on

i found out i was allergic to the oyster shells they use to makeup the calcium in prenatals and ended up taking chewables w/o the calcium and tums.

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M.S.

answers from Houston on

Congratulations! I took Pre-natal vitamins at night before bed to help with nausea. Also, try to keep saltine crackers and ginger-ale by your bed and have a little before you get up in the morning. Good Luck!

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R.M.

answers from Houston on

prenatal vitamins have more folic acid than reg one and omega acids which are god for brain and eye development which reg vitamins don't have , also you can try ginger tea for the nauseas, as well as saltines, hope this helps.

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C.G.

answers from Houston on

Hi P.. My name is C.. Unfortunatley, I wish I had good advice for you but I just had my 2nd child, a son in April. Unfortunatley, I was sick all 9 months, up until the day I delivered I had nausea and vomiting for 24 hours a day. UGH! Prenatal vitamins made it worse, and I had the same problem with my daughter, who is now 7. The only thing that finally helped me was having the Dr prescribe me Zofran, it is for nausea and vomiting and it dissolves under your tongue so you don't have to worry about trying to keep it down. It was a lifesaver. The only bad thing is it is expensive, as some insurances do not cover it. It was fortunate and mine did, but you might as your ob - all you can do is try, right? Good Luck!

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A.L.

answers from Beaumont on

I have been there with the Nausea from the vitamins. I found that taking them RIGHT before I crawled into bed at night worked the best. Don't have a full stomach when you go to sleep. I didn't eat after supper unless I was starving and then it seemed that they didn't make me nauseaous. Good luck with this. I know how hard it is to do that. I remember asking my doctor about the difference between them and normal vitmins and he told me something but I don't remember what, anyway it was something enough for me to keep up with the prenatals.

A.

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S.O.

answers from Houston on

Vitamin B's have alot to do with cell and organ formation, lacking this causes us to have the morning sickness. When I was pregnant I had to take a medicine for morning sickness. I noticed it had vitamin b's in it. Also for grains, on the food pyramid we seem to need more servings of it than anything. Flour processed is not a better choice. Whole grains is your best bet, wheat,oaks, rice, ect is better. The other women have already said everything else, good luck

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