I have difficulty swallowing anything too big, such as vitamins. I manage iron pills just fine, as well as the folic acid pills as well. I was told I tense too much in the throat area.
I am looking forward to getting pregnant within the next year, and to start preparing my body, I would like to start with a good prenatal vitamin that will help. I maintain a healthy diet, and at 114 pounds (5'4) I am told to gain 5 - 10 pounds in the process. I do have a low metabolism, so I don't always feel hungry. I am a slow eater as well.
I just want some opinions on the vitamins - I read that as far as chewable prenatals, everyone mentions Flinstones. I did some comparison and noticed that Centrum Chwables, have the same, and sometimes double the amount of vitamins and minerals that of the Flinstones. Just curious, why doesn't anyone recommend Centrum? I think Flinstones might have added (and unnecessary) sugar. Thoughts?
Thanks for responding everyone. So I take it no-one is/was recommended to take Centrum chewables? I will ask my OB/GYN, but I would have liked to begin the process until then. I have taken Centrum for a few years now, and throught to maybe upgrade my intake to two - one in the morning, one at night, in addition to the iron/folic acid. But I'll consider the Flinstones as I read by many the come highly recommended.
Oh, I forgot to ask, does anyone take iron and folic acid pills together, at once? I don't know if I should do that, but I don't see it too harmful...am I wrong? Thanks again!
GUMMY VITAMINS!!!!! you don't have to swallow them whole. :) A wonderful creation from the people at One A Day
T.,
Synthetic vitamins like Flintstones and Centrum contain fillers, some of which are harmful.
I would recommend that you try ShakleeKids MegaVites and Mighty Smart. Shaklee is the number one seller of natural supplements. Let me know if you are interested in getting more info.
Victoria
Just had this conversation with my OBGYN yesterday! I actually found "generic" prenatal vitamins that contain the folic acid and DHA at my local grocery store. They are "tablets", but much smaller than you would think. I have a hard time swallowing "horse pills" too and was fine with these.
Before getting pregnant with my son, I took the Centrum and (maybe TMI) found that I had a hard time um... digesting them. Too much Iron (which I didn't need b/c I had enough in my diet), so just be careful that you don't OD on Iron while trying to boost others!
Once you are preggers, your doctor will likely prescribe something, so call their office and ask the nurse on duty. She will likely have some recommendations as well!
I am using Vitafusion Prenatal Gummy Vitamins.
They are just like gummy bears (except they shape them in cubes- not bear shaped). They work great for me.
My problems with regular prenatal vitamins related to morning sickness and indigestion. It wasn't too bad in my first pregnancy, but I got hit HARD with this one, and literally every day I could not keep the dang vitamins down! Well that does no good for you!
If you can, get an actual prenatal vitamin... whether it is chewable, gummy, or "horse pill". Prenatals have things in them that are specifically designed for pregnancy, such as added DHA.
My vitamins can be bought here: http://www.amazon.com/Vitafusion-Prenatal-Gummy-Vitamins-...
The only thing they DONT have is iron... so taking an iron supplement is probably a good idea... take it opposite of when you take your vitamins (so if you take them in the morning, take iron at night) and take iron with a small glass of orange juice to help with absorption.
Of course- check with the your OB/GYN first!
Good Luck
-M.
Not sure about those, but my midwife told me the best prenatal vitamin on the market is Buried Treasure Prenatal Plus - it's a liquid and is supposed to be completely absorbed by the body. Many pill vitamins get flushed out as waste so you aren't getting their complete benefits. I had my ObGyn double check the Buried Treasure to make sure it was ok and he was happy with it. It has 800mg of folic acid, and they may want you to take 1000 for a first pregnancy. My first pregnancy didn't have any neural defects so they were fine with me taking the 800 for my current (second).
It tastes awful though - it's recommended to mix it into a little juice. A 1/4 of a cup of juice and you can't taste the 2 tablespoons, which for me is better because I have trouble gagging on pills too.
I too have issues with swallowing pills so my obgyn recommended Flintstones. Only 5 months later did I discover that's what was causing my everyday bouts with diahrrea. I switched to the Nature Made prenatals since I couldn't find any other prenatal chewables. The only trick was that I HAD to take it with OJ to mask the taste. Worked for me. My baby is totally healthy.
Hi T.,
Not all vitamins are the same. Some are actually dangerous...you mentioned two. The cheap vitamins that are manufactured as a "side" business by Phizer and Bayer do not absorb properly and actually create free radical activity. If you're not familiar with the term, free radicals create disease, antioxidants protect against free radicals. The prenatal I would recommend actually has a chewable child's version that has an adult dosage. I'm sure the only think missing would be the iron and the extra folate. If you're interested let me know and I can send you some info on why they absorb and how they compare to others. These are the same vitamins Bobbi McCaughey used when she delivered her seven healthy babies, the first in medical history.
God bless!
M.
I take liquid vitamins from the health food store. Some are pricey but they really do get the job done. You may want to scrap the pills all together. I was happy I did.
