The Benefits Of Prenatal Vitamins Before Pregnancy

The Benefits Of Prenatal Vitamins Before Pregnancy
Written by: Co-Founder Maria Davi
Medically Reviewed by Dr. Nicole Palmer, DO

In This Article:

★ WHEN SHOULD YOU START TAKING PRENATAL VITAMINS? AND WHY? 

★ DO PRENATAL VITAMINS MAKE YOU FERTILE?

★ REASONS WHY YOU SHOULD TAKE PRENATAL VITAMINS BEFORE TRYING TO CONCEIVE 

★ BEST PRENATAL VITAMINS BEFORE PREGNANCY

Congratulations, you are thinking about getting pregnant! Pregnancy is one of the most exciting times of your life, and you may be wonder, do prenatal vitamins help you get pregnant? However, the short answer is no; they help prevent pregnancy complications, such as low birth weight and premature birth. Ultimately helping you experience a healthy pregnancy and childbirth.

Prenatal multivitamins may not help your chances of getting pregnant, but they reduce your chances of birth defects. Their use significantly helps reduce the likelihood of neural tube defects, spina bifida and is associates with a lower risk of miscarriage. Think of them as an extra insurance policy with essential nutrients that help fill the nutritional gap of your daily food intake.

We recommend you add a prenatal multivitamin before getting pregnant. While doing this may not make you pregnant, it may help prepare your body to nourish your eggs and aid your uterus to be in optimal condition for implantation. Here are the benefits of taking prenatal vitamins before pregnancy.

★ WHEN SHOULD YOU START TAKING PRENATAL VITAMINS? AND WHY?

When many think of prenatal vitamins, they think of a prescription prenatal being taken during pregnancy, not before pregnancy. However, as the word PRENATAL suggests, think of taking prenatal multivitamins before pregnancy. It's a good idea to start taking prenatal vitamins at least three months before trying to conceive. It takes 90 days for an egg to develop before they are released fully. A well-nurtured egg is ideal before conception.

Before an egg reaches its full maturation, it takes a 90-day adventure, changing and preparing for ovulation. During this time, the egg is impacted by both healthy and unhealthy influences. Some factors affecting healthy eggs and ovaries are nutritional intake, stress, hormonal balance, and oxygen-rich blood flow.

As many have heard before, you are what you eat! Your nutritional intake can have a positive or negative impact on the health of your eggs and ovaries. The lack of nutrients like folic acid, selenium, and omega-3 fatty acids can negatively affect your reproductive system. Check out our, Feel Good Food For A Healthy Pregnancy Recipe Book for nutrient-rich recipes & nutrition guidelines to help with nutritional intake.

Stress can overall affect your health, including harming your developing egg. When you are continuously under stress, your body produces cortisol and other stress hormones, interfering with or preventing regular ovulation. Reducing your stress levels can help improve your egg health.

A women’s hormonal balance is critical for proper egg health. Factors like stress and food intake can cause hormonal imbalance, leading to a disruption in your fertility cycle and your egg health. Having a nourished endocrine system significantly influences a healthy egg’s hormonal balance and fertility cycle.

Ovaries thrive on oxygen-rich blood flow for healthy egg development. Research suggests that embryos have the highest implantation potential from oxygenated well-vascularized eggs and ovaries. Some ways to increase oxygen-rich blood flow to the ovaries are to drink at least 64 oz of water every day and exercise.

★ DO PRENATAL VITAMINS MAKE YOU FERTILE?

The short answer is no. Even though prenatal vitamins don’t make you fertile, prepping your body with prenatal vitamins to get pregnant is one of the best things you can do for yourself and your growing family. If you're planning on getting pregnant, you should start taking a prenatal vitamin three months before conception. A developing baby strives off a well nourished body. 

Here are more advantages of taking prenatal vitamins before pregnancy.

★ REASONS WHY YOU SHOULD TAKE PRENATAL VITAMINS BEFORE TRYING TO CONCEIVE 

  • As we mentioned before, healthy eggs are a vital fundamental to a healthy pregnancy. It is essential to nourish your body at least 90 days before your egg is fully developed and released from your ovary.
  • Let’s be honest, eating all your recommended daily nutrients is extremely hard. That’s where a prenatal vitamin comes to save the day; it’s like a safety net to optimize your daily intake for pre-pregnancy nutrients.
  • The nourishment you receive from taking prenatals before pregnancy may potentially prevent the risk of preterm birth.Research suggests women who take vitamins before conception reduced the risk of preterm birth by one-half!
  • Prior to conception, taking prenatal vitamins has been clinically proven to reduce birth irregularities. These birth defects are neural tube defects, heart defects, limb deformities, and cleft palate.
  • From the moment of conception, folate is crucial for fetal development. Within the first month of pregnancy, the baby’s neural tube develops and is one of the most critical stages of fetal development. Having adequate consumption of folate will help your developing baby thrive. We use MTHR folate in our prenatal vitamins, which is the natural form of folate. Unlike the synthetic form, folic acid.
  • Like folate, choline is vital for fetal development. Choline also helps prevent neural tube defects during early pregnancy. This building blocks nutrient helps your baby’s brain and spinal cord properly develop and helps form neurotransmitters in the brain.
  • Vitamin D is significant during pregnancy. Some women, especially during the winter, don't get enough to support their baby and themselves. Vitamin D is needed to keep your bones strong and to grow your baby’s bones. It is also linked to a lower risk of first trimester miscarriages.
  • DHA is a type of omega-3 fatty acid that’s in many prenatal vitamins. Omega-3 fatty acids help improve egg quality, helps support an ideal level of reproductive hormones, and improve cervical mucus quality needed for the sperm to reach the egg. 
  • Did you know that pregnant women need twice the amount of iron? Iron in prenatal vitamins helps your body produce hemoglobin, the protein in red blood cells that carries oxygen to your body’s organs and tissues.

Best Prenatal Vitamin Before Pregnancy

★ BEST PRENATAL VITAMINS BEFORE PREGNANCY

We highly recommend you add a prenatal vitamin before pregnancy and each week of pregnancy. One of the best over-the-counter prenatal vitamins before pregnancy is Feed Mom & Me Complete Prenatal with DHA.

This prenatal is formulated by an OBGYN & Registered Dietitian, containing all the nutrients needed to conceive and during pregnancy. Each small and easy-to-swallow pill is packed with 22 key natural nutrients to provide nutritional support for you and your growing baby. It contains Folate (methylfolate form), DHA, Iron, Calcium, Choline, Biotin, Zinc, Magnesium, and Selenium.

The vegetarian formula is free of artificial colors or flavors, chemicals, preservatives, non-GMO, dairy, soy, or gluten-free. Each of their capsules contains B6, Organic Ginger, and Peppermint Powder, which can help alleviate morning sickness and nausea.

Adding to that, it is a women-owned company. Who better than a female would understand pregnancy!

Click here for more info on Feed Mom & Me Complete Prenatal with DHA, a great pre-pregnancy pill!