But taking them can give your body — and your baby — an added boost of vitamins and minerals. Some health care providers recommend taking a folic acid supplement in addition to a prenatal vitamin.
Talk to your doctor about your daily folic acid intake. He or she might recommend a prescription supplement, an over-the-counter brand, or both. Also talk to your doctor if you've already had a pregnancy that was affected by a neural tube defect or if you or your partner were affected by one yourselves. The doctor may recommend that you take a higher dose of folic acid even before getting pregnant.
Reviewed by: Armando Fuentes, MD. Larger text size Large text size Regular text size. Pregnancy, Birth and Baby is not responsible for the content and advertising on the external website you are now entering. Video call. This information is for your general information and use only and is not intended to be used as medical advice and should not be used to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any medical condition, nor should it be used for therapeutic purposes.
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Send to: is required Error: This is required Error: Not a valid value. You need 10 micrograms of vitamin D each day and should consider taking a supplement containing this amount between September and March. Vitamin D regulates the amount of calcium and phosphate in the body, which are needed to keep bones, teeth and muscles healthy. It's not known exactly how much time is needed in the sun to make enough vitamin D to meet the body's needs, but if you're in the sun take care to cover up or protect your skin with sunscreen before you start to turn red or burn.
Vitamin D is added to some breakfast cereals, fat spreads and non-dairy milk alternatives. The amounts added to these products can vary and might only be small. Because vitamin D is only found in a small number of foods, whether naturally or added, it is difficult to get enough from foods alone.
Do not take more than micrograms 4, IU of vitamin D a day as it could be harmful. You can get vitamin supplements containing vitamin D free of charge if you're pregnant or breastfeeding and qualify for the Healthy Start scheme.
If you're still spending more time indoors than usual this spring and summer, you should take 10 micrograms IU of vitamin D a day to keep your bones and muscles healthy. But there is currently not enough evidence to support taking vitamin D solely to prevent or treat coronavirus. You may need to consider taking a daily supplement of vitamin D all year.
Talk to a midwife or doctor for advice. If you do not have enough iron, you'll probably get very tired and may suffer from anaemia. If you'd like to eat peanuts or foods that contain peanuts such as peanut butter during pregnancy, you can do so as part of a healthy, balanced diet unless you're allergic to them or your health professional advises you not to.
Many breakfast cereals have iron added to them. Folic acid is the man-made form of folate, a B vitamin. Folate is found naturally in certain fruits, vegetables, and nuts. Folic acid is found in vitamins and fortified foods. Folic acid and folate help the body make healthy new red blood cells. Red blood cells carry oxygen to all the parts of your body. If your body does not make enough red blood cells, you can develop anemia. Anemia happens when your blood cannot carry enough oxygen to your body, which makes you pale, tired, or weak.
Also, if you do not get enough folic acid, you could develop a type of anemia called folate-deficiency anemia.
All women need micrograms of folic acid every day. Women who can get pregnant should get to micrograms of folic acid from a vitamin or from food that has added folic acid, such as breakfast cereal. Some women may need more folic acid each day. See the chart to find out how much folic acid you need. Yes, certain groups of women do not get enough folic acid each day. Not getting enough folic acid can cause health problems, including folate-deficiency anemia , and problems during pregnancy for you and your unborn baby.
If you do not get enough folic acid before and during pregnancy, your baby is at higher risk for neural tube defects.
Neural tube defects are serious birth defects that affect the spine, spinal cord, or brain and may cause death. These include:. All women who can get pregnant need to take to micrograms of folic acid every day, even if you're not planning to get pregnant. Since , the Food and Drug Administration FDA has required food manufacturers to add folic acid to processed breads, cereals, flours, cornmeal, pastas, rice, and other grains.
The label will also tell you how much folic acid is in each serving. Sometimes, the label will say "folate" instead of folic acid. You can get enough folic acid from food alone. If you are at risk for not getting enough folic acid , your doctor or nurse may recommend that you take a vitamin with folic acid every day.
Most U. Check the label on the bottle to be sure. You can also take a pill that contains only folic acid. These "seals of approval" mean the pills are made properly and have the amounts of vitamins it says on the label.
Also, make sure the pills have not expired. If the bottle has no expiration date, do not buy it. Ask your pharmacist for help with selecting a vitamin or folic acid-only pill. If you are pregnant and already take a daily prenatal vitamin, you probably get all the folic acid you need.
Check the label to be sure. Check the "Supplement Facts" label to be sure you are getting to micrograms mcg of folic acid. Yes, many people get enough folic acid from food alone.
Some foods have high amounts of folic acid. Some women, especially women who could get pregnant, may not get enough folic acid from food. African-American women and Mexican Americans are also at higher risk for not getting enough folic acid each day.
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