February 13th, 2017
Prenatal Multivitamins: A Comprehensive Comparison
Before we get into the nitty gritty, it’s important to know that you need more than just a prenatal multivitamin to support a healthy pregnancy. You can download your complete guide to prenatal supplements here.
If you are pregnant or thinking about getting pregnant, then you will know that you need to be taking a prenatal multivitamin. You should start taking one if you’re even thinking of becoming pregnant so that you can build up your folate stores, and continue taking it until you are finished breast feeding or better yet, finished having kids.
Choosing a prenatal multivitamin can be overwhelming. There are so many options, and so many opinions as to which product to choose. There is one thing however, that we can all agree on. We want the best for our health, especially when it comes to carrying another human life inside of us. This is the beginning of providing for you baby. You want the very best for them to get a great start in life.
So lets dig right in and take a look at some popular prenatal multivitamins and what is actually in them. You see, not all vitamins and minerals were created equally. This is why there is huge price difference between supplements you will get from the drug store and supplements you get at the health food store. Quality of ingredients is the reason for this price difference. Here are 10 of the most popular prenatal multivitamins and their nutritional breakdowns so that you can make the best decision for YOU, regardless of what any doctor or nutritionist recommends.
First, just a general list of things to look for and things to avoid when purchasing a multivitamin:
Avoid: sugar, sucrose, lactose, maltose, fructose, glucose, dextrose, levulose, honey, corn syrup, molasses, fruit juice concentrates, artificial sweeteners, hydrogenated oils, time-release tablets, propylene glycol, sodium lauryl sulphate , sodium larueth sulphate, sodium benzoate, BHT/BHA, tartrazine, peanut oil, titanium dioxide, polysorbate 80, red dye no. 33, and 40 (any food dyes for that matter), sorbic acid, fractioned coconut oil, corn starch.
Look for good quality vitamins and minerals and learn how to identify for better quality & absorption (generally the more pricey ones that you will find at a health food store.. no shopping for supplements at a DRUG mart!)
Also, look for these added nutrients that are super health promoting:
- vitamins like choline, inositol, PABA
- bioflavonoids like quercetin and rutin
- antioxidants like mixed carotenes and glutathione
- lipotropin factors like cysteine and methionine
- whole food ingredients for further health promotion and support for you and your growing baby
PregVit
This is a doctor recommended prenatal multivitamin. Let’s check out what’s in it.
Let’s first take a look at the “nonmedicinal ingredients” that are not necessary for your health. On the contrary, many of these are actually quite harmful to your health:
Pregvit® pink (a.m.) tablet contains:
microcrystalline cellulose, pregelatinized starch, croscarmellose sodium, polyvinyl alcohol, fish gelatin, mono and diglycerides, titanium dioxide, macrogol/PEG 3350, alginate, hydroxypropyl methyl cellulose, calcium silicate, sodium lauryl sulfate, magnesium stearate, talc, acacia gum, pea starch, silicon dioxide, FD&C Red #40 Aluminum Lake, carnauba wax, FD&C Blue #1 Aluminum Lake, FD&C Yellow #6 Aluminum Lake, ammonium hydroxide, n-butyl alcohol, D&C Red #27 Aluminum Lake, FD&C Blue #2 Aluminum Lake, isopropyl alcohol, propylene glycol, shellac glaze, and simethicone.
Pregvit® blue (p.m.) tablet contains:
pregelatinized corn starch, croscarmellose sodium, polyvinyl alcohol, titanium dioxide, macrogol/PEG 3350, talc, acacia gum, sucrose, magnesium stearate, sodium lauryl sulfate, modified starch, triglycerides, FD&C Blue #2 Aluminum Lake, carnauba wax, trisodium citrate, citric acid, dl-alpha- tocopherol, silicon dioxide, ammonium hydroxide, n-butyl alcohol, D&C Red #27 Aluminum Lake, isopropyl alcohol, propylene glycol, shellac glaze and simethicone.
Lets pull out just a couple of the most harmful ingredients here:
Any corn ingredient fillers in a multivitamin are GMO which can cause damage to your intestinal lining.
There are many dyes in these pills which can disrupt the hormones…
Now onto the ingredients that are meant to improve your health:
- Beta-Carotene 1.6mg
- Vitamin B1(thiamine mononitrate) 3mg
- Vitamin B2 (riboflavin) 3.4mg
- Niacinamide 20mg
- Pantothenic Acid (calcium pantothenate) 5mg
- Vitamin B6 (pyridoxine HCl) 10mg
- Vitamin C (ascorbic acid) 120mg
- Vitamin E (alpha tocopherol acetate) 13.8mg
- Copper (cupric acid) 2mg
- Iodine (potassium iodide) 0.15mg
- Iron (ferrous fumarate) 35mg
- Magnesium (magnesium oxide) 50mg
- Zinc (zinc oxide) 15mg
Night tablet contains:
- Folic Acid 1.1mg
- Vitamin B12 (cyanocobalamin) 12 mcg
- Vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol) 600 IU
- Calcium (calcium carbonate) 300mg
You will recall that I noted the price difference is often due to quality of ingredients. Most of these are vitamins in the synthetic form, as opposed to the natural, activated counterparts. This means that your body is not absorbing and utilizing them in the same way that they would with the natural activated form of vitamins.
The crazy thing is that this is one of the most common “doctor recommended” prenatal multivitamins. This is because this multivitamin is made by Rexall. Maybe something in it for the doctors?
Also, going to a doctor for nutritional information is like going to a nutritionist for prescription drugs. Doctors are NOT trained in nutrition and supplementation, so don’t expect them to know everything.
Centrum Prenatal
This information was not readily available on their website which was a little unnerving, but I was able to call a toll free number and request the full ingredient list – I was informed that it is also on the box.
Centrum is made by Pfizer (hint: don’t buy supplements made by a pharmaceutical company)
Non-Medicinal ingredients: Acacia, BHT, calcium stearate, carmine, citric acid, corn starch, crospovidone, gelatine, glucose syrup, hydroxypropylmethyl-cellulose, soy lecithin, macrogol 3350, magnesium stearate, maltodextrin, medium chain triglycerides, microcrystalline cellulose, modified food starch, polyvinyl alcohol, silicon dioxide, sodium ascorbate, sodium lauryl sulphate, stearic acid, sucrose, talc, titanium dioxide, trisodium citrate.
This is a chemical soup of carcinogens and gut destroying ingredients (including genetically modified corn and soy). The big ones are all the sugars derived from GMO corn (corn starch, glucose syrup, maltodextrin, modified food starch). These will all have a negative effect on gut health for you and your growing baby. Corn is genetically modified not only to resist heavy chemical spray (roundup ready), but also to create an explosion in the stomachs of any bugs who take a bit out of the corn (think about what that’s doing inside our gut at a microscopic level).
Also, known carcinogens like BHT and talc. Big sigh… Why do we have these inside a vitamin for someone who is literally creating new life???
The actual vitamins and minerals are similar to those of PregVit. Low quality synthetic ingredients. This allows them to charge less. You really do get what you pay for when it comes to supplements.
Jameson Prenatal
As you can see, there are still low quality forms of vitamins being used:
Vitamins:
Vitamin A (Acetate) 300 mcg RAE/1,000 IU
Beta-carotene 1,080 mcg
Vitamin B1 (Thiamine mononitrate ) 3 mg
Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin) 3.75 mg
Vitamin B6 (Pyridoxine HCI) 10 mg
Vitamin B12 (Cyanocobalamin) 10 mcg
Vitamin C (Ascorbic acid) 150 mg
Vitamin D3 (Cholecalciferol) 10 mcg/400 IU
Vitamin E (d-alpha tocopheryl succinate) 20 mg AT/30 IU
Biotin 30 mcg
Folate (Folic acid) 1 mg
Niacinamide 22 mg
Pantothenic acid (Calcium d-pantothenate) 10 mg
Minerals:
Calcium (HVP* chelate, Carbonate) 200 mg
Chromium (HVP* chelate) 25 mcg
Copper (HVP* chelate) 1 mg
Iodine (Kelp) 150 mcg
Iron (HVP* chelate, Ferrous fumarate) 28 mg
Magnesium (HVP* chelate, Oxide) 100 mg
Manganese (HVP* chelate) 5 mg
Zinc (HVP* chelate) 20 mg
Supporting Nutrients:
Acerola cherry, rose hips, lemon bioflavonoids.
*HVP (Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein)
Non medicinal ingredients include:
Cellulose, modified cellulose gum, vegetable stearic acid, vegetable magnesium stearate, silica, natural peppermint flavour, water-soluble cellulose, hydroxypropyl cellulose, Brazilian palm tree wax.
A shorter list than Pregvit and Centrum, but still some fillers that the pregnant body does not need or want!
Okay enough with the bad news. Let’s start looking at some better options for you and your little bean 🙂
From here on out you’ll notice that the non-medicinal lists are very short and consist of only the vegetable based capsule shell used. This is what you want to see.
NFH Prenatal SAP
This multivitamin has a mix of synthetic and activated forms of vitamins and minerals, but is one of the highly recommended brands amongst naturopaths. These formulas are put together to consider therapeutic doses to support you during pregnancy.
3 capsules contain:
- Vitamin C as Ascorbic Acid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175 mg
- Vitamin D as Vitamin D3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1000 IU
- Vitamin E as Tocopherol Acetate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50 IU
- Vitamin K as Phylloquinone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .100 mcg
- Vitamin B1 as Thiamine HCl . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100 mg
- Vitamin B2 as Riboflavin 5-Phosphate. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50 mg
- Vitamin B3 as Niacinamide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50 mg
- Vitamin B5 as Calcium Pantothenate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100 mg
- Vitamin B6 as Pyridoxal 5-Phosphate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50 mg
- Vitamin B12 as Methylcobalamin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 mg
- Folic acid as Folate. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 mg
- Biotin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 300 mcg
- Calcium Citrate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175 mg
- Magnesium Citrate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75 mg
- Iron Glycinate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .30 mg
- Zinc Citrate. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25 mg
- Selenomethionine. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50 mcg
- Copper Citrate. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 mg
- Manganese Citrate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 mg
- Chromium Polynicotinate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100 mcg
- Molybdenum Citrate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50 mcg
- Potassium Citrate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75 mg
- Boron Citrate. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 700 mcg
- Iodine as Potassium Iodide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .150 mcg
Progressive Prenatal Formula
There is a long list of vitamins and minerals (high quality versions), and now for the first time, we’re seeing some extra food ingredients for even more support, which is fantastic!
| Vitamins: | ||
| Beta-Carotene | 2,500 IU 1,500 mcg |
7,500 IU 4,500 mcg |
| Vitamin A (Palmitate) | 1,666.7 IU 500 mcg |
5,000 IU 1,500 mcg |
| Vitamin D (Cholecalciferol) | 133.3 IU 3.33 mcg |
400 IU 10 mcg |
| Vitamin E (d-Alpha Tocopheryl Acid Succinate) | 33.3 IU 22.33 mg |
100 IU 67 mg |
| Vitamin K1 (Phylloquinone) | 33.3 mcg | 100 mcg |
| Vitamin C (Calcium Ascorbate) | 83.3 mg | 250 mg |
| Vitamin B1 (Thiamine Mononitrate) | 16.7 mg | 50 mg |
| Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin) | 10 mg | 30 mg |
| Niacin | 3.3 mg | 10 mg |
| Niacinamide | 8.3 mg | 25 mg |
| Vitamin B6 (Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Pyridoxal-5’-Phosphate) | 11.7 mg | 35 mg |
| Vitamin B12 (Cyanocobalamin) | 133.3 mcg | 400 mcg |
| Folic acid | 0.3 mg | 0.9 mg |
| Biotin | 33.3 mcg | 100 mcg |
| D-Pantothenic Acid (Pathothenic Acid, Calcium D-Pantothenate) | 16.7 mg | 50 mg |
| Choline Bitartrate | 25 mg | 75 mg |
| Inositol | 10 mg | 30 mg |
| L-Methionine | 21.7 mg | 65 mg |
| Minerals: | ||
| Calcium (Citrate Tetrahydrate, Carbonate) | 100 mg | 300 mg |
| Magnesium (Citrate, Oxide) | 50 mg | 150 mg |
| Iron (Ferrous Citrate) | 6 mg | 18 mg |
| Zinc (Citrate) | 5 mg | 15 mg |
| Potassium (Citrate) | 5 mg | 15 mg |
| Manganese (Citrate) | 1.67 mg | 5 mg |
| Copper (HVP Chelate) | 0.33 mg | 1 mg |
| Iodine (Potassium Iodide) | 73.33 mcg | 220 mcg |
| Chromium (Citrate) | 33.3 mcg | 100 mcg |
| Selenium (HVP Chelate) | 33.3 mcg | 100 mcg |
| Molybdenum (Citrate) | 8.3 mcg | 25 mcg |
| Fish Oil: | ||
| Molecularly Distilled Tuna Oil (Thunnus thynnus, Whole) (7% DHA) | 50 mg | 150 mg |
| Botanicals: | ||
| Chicory Root (Cichorium intybus, Root) | 25 mg | 75 mg |
| Dandelion Leaf (Taraxacum officianale) | 20 mg | 60 mg |
| Cranberry (Vaccinium macrocarpon, Fruit) | 15 mg | 45 mg |
| Ginger (Zingiber officianle, Rhizome) | 10 mg | 30 mg |
| Acerola (Malpighia glabra, Fruit) | 5 mg | 15 mg |
| Flax Seed (Linum usitatissinum) | 5 mg | 15 mg |
| Kelp (Ascophyllum nodosum, Whole) | 3.33 mg | 10 mg |
| Spinach (Spinacia oleracea, Leaf) | 3.33 mg | 10 mg |
| Blueberry (Vaccinium angustifolium, Fruit) | 1.67 mg | 5 mg |
| Carrot (Daucus carota, Root) | 1.67 mg | 5 mg |
| Beetroot (Beet vulgaris) | 1 mg | 3 mg |
| Rice Bran (Oryza sativa, Seed Coat) | 1 mg | 3 mg |
| *HVP – Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein (Rice) | ||
| Non-medicinal Ingredients: Capsule Shell: Hypermellose, Purified Water), Microcystalline Cellulose, Silica, Magnesium Stearate (vegetable). | ||
| Suggested Use: Take 1 capsule with breakfast lunch and dinner for a total of 3 capsules per day. | ||
Mega Food Baby & Me
As the title suggests, this is another food based multivitamin. It has a great herbal and fruit blend on top of the necessary nutrients for extra support.
This is an excellent prenatal multi with a nice herbal blend to help you through your pregnancy to nurture your body and your growing baby.
Garden of Life Vitamin Code Raw Prenatal
If you have been following me for a while, you’ll know that I’m addicted to Garden of Life’s chocolate protein powder. This multivitamin has many of those ingredients and is formulated perfectly for a pregnant woman!
This multivitamin outnumbers all the others when it comes to whole food ingredients. They are in an easy to digest capsule form which is also ideal (as opposed to tablet form)
If you have any other questions, come and post them in the glowing mamas facebook community or message me on instagram!
If you need more guidance on prenatal exercise and nutrition, check out Glowing Mama To Be: Your complete guide to a fit and healthy pregnancy. A weekly health and fitness guide from 6 weeks to birth!