Vitamins You’re Able to Take While Trying to Conceive

Where Vitamins Should Come From

In most cases, the vitamins you’re able to take while trying to conceive are best when obtained from food sources rather than pill form. Research shows that a healthy and varied diet will actually supply all the vitamins you need for conception and all that you and your baby need for a healthy pregnancy. Learn more about specific Women Vitamin Requirements here.

If eating your vitamins instead of popping vitamin pills sound nice to you, you can discuss a healthy diet plan with your health care provider or a nutrition specialist. Your health care provider can also tell you more about foods to improve fertility.

Benefits of obtaining your vitamins from food versus a pill include:

1. You’re taking charge of your health for life by learning to eat healthfully.
2. Vitamins sometimes make women sick both before and after conception – by eating your vitamins, you’ll avoid this.
3. Learning to eat balanced and healthy foods before you conceive will help you to control pregnancy weight gain once you do conceive.

Why Take Vitamins While Trying to Conceive

If you can get all your vitamins from food, why would you take vitamins in pill or liquid form?

Some women don’t naturally follow a healthy diet plan. Even with proper nutrition discussions with a health care provider, some women fall short on their diet goals. You really need to be able to balance all the food groups smartly to obtain the best vitamins and nutrients needed for a healthy conception.

Other reasons you might want to consider vitamins in pill form include:

1. Extra assurance for a healthy conception and pregnancy: You shouldn’t over-do certain vitamins, but you won’t over-do any by simply eating healthy and taking a multi-vitamin.
2. Stress: If you’re feeling stressed over conception, it’s tough to be as healthy as you can.
3. Your health care provider recommends vitamins: Your health care provider might suggest vitamins you’re able to take while trying to conceive and you may choose to follow her advice.

The Vitamins You’re Able to Take While Trying to Conceive

There are plenty of vitamins you can safely take while trying to conceive and some you absolutely need to take. Following is information about these vitamins, although you need to discuss vitamin amounts with your health care provider as it can vary by woman and situation. Your health care provider may even prescribe chewable prenatal vitamins or basic prenatal vitamins while you’re trying to conceive as these contain all the important vitamins and minerals you need.

Folic acid: Folic acid is the most important vitamin you need while trying to conceive. Even if you’re eating super healthy, this is a vitamin supplement you should consider. A lack of folic acid can cause major birth defects of your baby’s brain and spine. The most pressing issue about these birth defects is that they occur very early on in a pregnancy, usually in the first week before you even learn that you’ve conceived. Most research notes that folic acid is so important that all women of child bearing age should simply take folic acid as a rule. Learn how to get enough folic acid and take the folic acid quiz to make sure you know everything about this important supplement.

Calcium supplements: Calcium is essential for healthy bone and teeth development. Because your baby’s teeth form early in pregnancy, it’s smart to take the proper amounts of calcium while you’re trying to conceive.

Iron: Iron is another very important supplement. Iron is responsible for red blood cell formation and without it your baby won’t get enough oxygen and you’ll be extremely tired. If you eat very healthfully while trying to conceive, you’ll store iron reserves in your liver, which will carry through your pregnancy. If you’re lacking iron, your health care provider will prescribe you pills. If you have an easily-upset stomach, it’s smart to try to eat lots of iron rich foods while you’re trying to conceive because iron pills make many women sick to their stomach during pregnancy.

To learn more, read the Mayo Clinic’s preconception planning guide, which recommends prenatal vitamins for some women who are trying to conceive.