Category: Supplements

What’s in a Prenatal Vitamin?

by Jasmine L. Chiang, MD, posted in Diet, Fertility, fertility planning, Food and Diet, General Health, Herbs and Supplements, Lifestyle, Personal Care Products, Pregnancy, Supplements

What?

  • FOLATE aka FOLIC ACID (most important)
  • Iodine
  • +/- Iron (this can also be supplemented separately as needed, such as for anemia)

Why?

  • Folate reduces risk of neural tube defects (birth defects), such as spina bifida
  • Iodine optimizes thyroid health and fetal brain development

When?

  • Optimal to start about 3 months prior to conception
  • Take 1 serving (number varies by vitamin) daily

How much?

  • At least 400 mcg folate per day, but individual needs may be higher
  • 150 mcg per day of iodine

Where?

  • Any pharmacy or grocery store, or available online

Other ingredients?

  • Limited evidence for other ingredients, but they are usually not harmful.
  • It is important to avoid excessive quantities, such as for Vitamin A or B vitamins.

Which are legitimate products?

  • Prenatal vitamins can be given as a prescription from your doctor
  • Prescription brands are FDA-regulated
  • Direct-to-consumer (aka over-the-counter, or OTC) brands are not as strictly regulated
  • If you buy it OTC, check for the following certification standards:
    • Look for NSF (National Sanitation Foundation) certified
    • Or look for USP (United States Pharmacopeia) verified

Iodine deficiency may reduce pregnancy chances

by Natalia Grob, MD, posted in Dietary, Food and Diet, Supplements, Uncategorized

A common question asked in a new fertility evaluation is: “Which prenatal vitamin is best?” We have previously tried to provide some guidance in choosing the best vitamin.  The ingredient list in your prenatal vitamin needs to be considered.

In particular, iodine is an often-overlooked but extremely important component that should be considered in a prenatal vitamin. Iodine is a mineral used by the body to regulate metabolism; it is also very important for brain development in children. It is often found in seafood, iodized salt, dairy, and some fruits and vegetables.

A new study shows that women who have low iodine levels take longer to get pregnant than women who have normal iodine levels.

Take home points:

  • Iodine is important in pregnancy and when you are trying to conceive
  • Boost your fertility naturally with iodine
  • Make sure you are on a good prenatal vitamin
  • Talk to your doctor about what levels of iodine are best for you

Reduce your risk of autism with a vitamin!

by Natalia Grob, MD, posted in Autism, Dietary, Food and Diet, General Health, Herbs and Supplements, Supplements, Uncategorized

My goal as a REI is to help provide patients with the information they need to not only boost their natural fertility, but also to help them have a healthy pregnancy and to, ultimately, bring home a happy healthy kiddo. Those of you who know a family affected by autism, know how terrifying the condition can be. Autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by impaired social interaction, impaired verbal and non-verbal communication, and restricted and repetitive behavior.

Autism is thought to develop during pregnancy. Many neurodevelopmental disorders, like problems with the baby’s spinal cord, are known to be impacted by maternal nutrition during pregnancy. New research suggests that what mom eats during her pregnancy may alter the risk of her child developing autism.

In this large study of over 270,000 mother-child pairs, women were screened for vitamin use and their children were followed to see if they developed autism throughout childhood. Maternal multivitamin use with or without additional iron or folic acid, or both was associated with lower odds of having an autistic child with intellectual disability in the child compared with mothers who did not use multivitamins, iron, and folic acid (odds ratio 0.69).  This study suggests that maternal multivitamin supplementation during pregnancy may be something women can do to decrease their risk of having a child with autism.

 

What you can do:

  • Take a prenatal vitamin when you are trying to conceive and throughout your pregnancy

Could unexplained infertility be explained by your diet?

by Natalia Grob, MD, posted in Diet, Dietary, Food and Diet, Herbs and Supplements, Supplements

unexplained-infertility

Unexplained infertility is a frustrating diagnosis and 15% of couples are affected by unexplained infertility. It means that despite undergoing all the costly evaluations, we don’t know why you are having trouble getting pregnant. Many cases of unexplained infertility are probably caused by the presence of multiple subtle factors, each of which on their own do not significantly reduce fertility, but reduce the pregnancy rate when combined.

 

Research is now suggesting that your nutrition could be a potential reason for unexplained infertility. A recent study compared women who had the diagnosis of unexplained infertility to women who conceived naturally. They found that women with unexplained infertility had significant abnormalities in their dietary habits. These differences ranged from minor imbalances in micronutrients to severe combined macronutrient and micronutrient imbalances. This study suggests that paying attention to your diet could potentially cure cases of unexplained infertility, improve IVF treatment, and even restore natural fertility.

 

What you can do:

  • Take a daily prenatal vitamin to help your micronutrient balance
  • Eat a well-balanced meal when trying to conceive
    • Consider talking to a nutritionist for formal recommendations about your diet if you are concerned you may have an imbalance in your macronutrients

Prenatal vitamin resource

by Natalia Grob, MD, posted in Diet, Dietary, Food and Diet, Supplements

Good morning! I wanted to start of the week with a great resource.

There are hundreds of prenatal vitamins available. As we have previously discussed in the blog, it’s important to know exactly what is in your prenatal vitamin. For those of you who are still on the hunt for the best fit, consider checking out this website for detailed comparisons of the commercially available prenatal vitamins.

Wishing you a great week!

Vitamin D: why you need more of it

by Natalia Grob, MD, posted in Diet, Dietary, Food and Diet, Herbs and Supplements, ovarian reserve, PCOS, Supplements, Vitamin D

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We are learning more and more about the important role that Vitamin D plays in terms of our fertility. We have previously discussed the role of vitamin D and your sleep/wake cycle in terms of optimizing your health. Recent studies have added to this to demonstrate just how important Vitamin D is when trying to conceive.

Vitamin D may improve your ovarian reserve, a marker of how many eggs women have compared to others their age. Vitamin D may help support your ovarian function.

Similarly, women with higher vitamin D levels, are more likely to conceive than women with low vitamin D levels.

Vitamin D may also be important for treating hormone imbalances, particularly if you have polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS). If you are undergoing fertility treatments like IVF, Vitamin D may even help decrease your risk of ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS) and prevent dangerous complications from OHSS.

Why not consider taking a vitamin D supplement to boost your fertility naturally?

 

What you can do:

  • Ask for your vitamin D level to be checked annually when you are trying to conceive
  • Consider starting a supplement of at least 2000 IU of vitamin D to help support ovarian function
  • Target a serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D level of >50 nmol/L to enhance your fertility

Your standard prenatal vitamin might not be enough

by Natalia Grob, MD, posted in Diet, Dietary, Fertility, Food and Diet, Herbs and Supplements, Lifestyle, Personal, Pregnancy, Supplements, Uncategorized

 I still remember feeling completely overwhelmed the first time I shopped for prenatal vitamins when I was ready to try to conceive. I’m sure I was putting too much thought into it, but like many others, I was going to take my fertility seriously and I wanted the BEST option. So why did my drugstore have over 5 different types of prenatal vitamins, all with a different concoction of what they claimed was “best?” Some of my friends reported using “prescription prenatal vitamins” and swore they were worth the cost.

I ultimately ended up buying prenatal vitamins that contained docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) since they were advertised as “supporting neurodevelopment” and who wouldn’t want a smarter baby? DHA is an omega-3- fatty acid that is important for brain development.  It has been recommended to eat foods which are high in omega-3 fatty acids for women who want to become pregnant or when nursing.  Although vegetarian sources are now available, fish and fish oil are often utilized for DHA supplementation. For months, I endured gross fishy tastes in my mouth and a fishy odor to my breath; all in the sake of helping my baby’s brain develop. Was it worth it?

The sale of prenatal supplements with DHA continues to increase, despite limited evidence that it actually helps brain development. A recent study suggests that DHA may not be all that it was chalked up to be. This group evaluated pregnant women who took DHA supplements and compared them to women who didn’t. There was no difference in cognitive, language, or motor development in the children from moms who took DHA compared to those that didn’t at 18 months, and 7 years- DHA doesn’t seem to result in smarter kids.  This data is strong enough for me to recommend that you can skip the DHA supplement in your prenatal vitamin, especially if you are having undesirable side effects like gross fish burps.

So what does a good prenatal vitamin need, anyway?

  • Folic acid- at least 400 micrograms; some patients require higher doses of folic acid
  • Iodine

Although a prenatal vitamin will help supplement your diet with extra amounts of vitamins and minerals, your diet should be the primary source. Iron, calcium, and vitamin D are particularly important in pregnancy.

My advice to anxious patients (like myself a few years ago) is simple: eat a well-balanced diet, stay healthy, and find an inexpensive prenatal vitamin that you like so that you remember to take every day.

Resveratrol (supplement from red wine) could reduce the hormonal effects of Polycystic Ovary Syndrome

by Robert Greene, M.D., posted in Diet, Herbs and Supplements, Insulin Resistance, PCOS, Supplements, Uncategorized

Here’s another fascinating study for women with PCOS; 1500 mg of the potent antioxidant from red wine can reduce testosterone levels by nearly 25%. This can not only improve egg quality and pregnancy rates but also reduce other symptoms of PCOS as well!

http://press.endocrine.org/doi/10.1210/jc.2016-1858

Iodine Supplements Before, During, and After Pregnancy; critical problem with a simple solution

by Robert Greene, M.D., posted in Diet, Dietary, Female Fertility Tests, Fertility, fertility planning, Food and Diet, Supplements, Thyroid, Uncategorized

The problem of iodine insufficiency during pregnancy has troubled me for years. So much so that I spoke at length about this in pregnancy book that I wrote as well as the fertility book. Now there is a very brief video made by Dr. Michael Greger that explains this problem more articulately than I ever did with simple recommendations—check your prenatal vitamin! Only about half contain this nutrient that is so important for your baby to build a healthy brain.     http://nutritionfacts.org/video/iodine-supplements-before-during-and-after-pregnancy/?utm_source=NutritionFacts.org&utm_campaign=94b0f568b9-RSS_VIDEO_WEEKLY&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_40f9e497d1-94b0f568b9-23307533