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Vitamins for Pregnancy
Getting Your Daily Dose of Prenatal Vitamins
By Crystal Patriarche
Vitamin A is essential for vision, integrity of the immune system and normal cellular differentiation. It is also important in the fetus for bone growth, tooth structure and in regulating organ development in the fetus. During lactation, vitamin A is needed to replace losses in breast milk, according to the International Vitamin A Consultancy Group (IVACG) in Washington, D.C.
Researchers recommend that pregnant women either limit their vitamin A consumption to 4,000 to 8,000 IU daily or, alternatively, take beta-carotene. High doses of vitamin A can be toxic in pregnancy, and research has shown links between too much vitamin A and birth defects, according to the IVACG.
You'll need about 70 milligrams a day of vitamin C when pregnant. It is important for the formation of connective tissue and collagen, according to Bloom. Vitamin C also helps absorb iron from vegetables, and many pregnant women do not get enough iron.
When reading food labels to evaluate vitamin content, it's important to know what you are looking at – or what you shouldn't look at. "If you are looking at labels for folate, you might not see it," Bloom says. "It's not required on a label. Iron, calcium, vitamins A and C are required and are listed as a percentage of daily value." So if the label reads 4 percent of iron in one serving, remember it means 4 percent of iron you need all day, but for a non-pregnant person. In the case of iron, your need doubles during pregnancy, so you need to double that value, Bloom says.
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