Prenatal vs Postnatal Vitamins

What Are Prenatal Vitamins?

Quite simply, prenatal vitamins contain nutrients that are targeted toward the health of the mother’s body and that of the developing fetus. Prenatal vitamins can also be prescribed to women who are not yet pregnant but are trying to become pregnant.

In this sense, prenatal vitamins have a dual role:

• They nourish the bodies of both the expectant mother and her child and…
• They can also enhance the fertility of women who are not yet pregnant but want to optimize their health in order to conceive

Prenatal vitamins can include a wide variety of different nutrients, amino acids, minerals, fatty acids and more. The Cleveland Clinic defines prenatal vitamins and describes why they are important in the following report quote:

Prenatal vitamins contain many different vitamins and minerals that help support a healthy pregnancy. Nutrients like folic acid, calcium and iron are especially important. You should take a prenatal vitamin if you’re trying to conceive or as soon as you find out you’re pregnant. Prenatal vitamins are available at most grocery stores or online.

What Are Postnatal Vitamins?

Postnatal vitamins are given to women after childbirth. The main goal of these kinds of vitamins is to restore the body of the mother and replenish her reserves of nutrients after gestation, childbirth, and during the breastfeeding stages.

In some cases, postnatal vitamins can contain many of the same ingredients as prenatal vitamins. In others, they will contain more specialized nutrients that help the mother meet her nutritional requirements and those of the breastfeeding child.

Just like with prenatal vitamins, the specific nutrients in your postnatal vitamins will depend largely on your individual health status and body composition. The Lancaster General Health staff elucidates the importance of postnatal vitamins in the following study excerpt:

One study indicates that continuing to take a pre or postnatal vitamin with folate, DHA, Vitamin D and iodine can help baby’s brain development, processing skills and visual acuity. Sufficient vitamin D isn’t just important for moms, but their little ones too! Breast milk alone doesn’t give babies enough vitamin D. Because of this, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends supplementing breastfed babies’ diets with 400 IU per day of vitamin D until they begin eating solid foods.

The Difference Between Prenatal and Postnatal Vitamins

If you’ve read this far, then you know that there may not be much difference between prenatal and postnatal vitamins.

The basic difference is that prenatal vitamins are meant to be taken before pregnancy and during gestation while postnatal vitamins are meant to be taken for about 6 months after childbirth (although you may be recommended to take them for a bit longer if you choose to breastfeed).

How Long Should I Take Postnatal Vitamins After Giving Birth?

The answer to this question is best discussed with your healthcare practitioner or medical specialist and will vary depending on the mother. However, it is generally recommended that women take postnatal vitamins for a period of about 3-6 months after giving birth.

The factors that can influence how long you should be taking the best postnatal vitamins include your breastfeeding status, unique risk of nutrient deficiency, and the nature of your pregnancy.

Should You Take a Prenatal or Postnatal While Breastfeeding?

For the most part, women should switch from prenatal vitamins to the best postnatal vitamin right after childbirth. So in most cases, you will be advised to take a postnatal vitamin during the breastfeeding period.

One of the main reasons for this is that breast milk may not contain enough vitamin D to properly nourish a baby’s developing brain. For instance, the Mayo Clinic suggests that newborn, breastfeeding babies get about 400 international units of vitamin D per day.

As a point of contrast, the National Institutes of Health indicates that breast milk typically contains 5-80 international units of vitamin D - far below the recommended daily intake for infants.

From this, you can see just how important it is to take vitamins while breastfeeding. A good nursing postnatal vitamin will ensure the healthy development of your baby’s brain, teeth, bones, nervous system, and more.

When Should You Switch From Prenatal to Postnatal Vitamins?

Again, in most cases, you will be advised to switch to the best postnatal vitamins while breastfeeding right after childbirth. Sometimes, you will notice that your postnatal vitamins have many of the same ingredients as your prenatal ones. This is not uncommon and does not diminish the importance of postnatal vitamins.

Common Nutrients in Prenatal and Postnatal Vitamins

In the following section, we will take a look at some of the most common types of nutrients in prenatal and postnatal vitamins and what they do for either the mother’s body, the baby’s body, or both:

Vitamin D - Vitamin D is often prescribed as a prenatal and postnatal vitamin because it is essential for the development of the baby’s brain. It can also help increase the intestinal absorption of a variety of other important nutrients like magnesium and calcium so taking vitamin D supplements is really about ensuring that your body gets enough of a broad spectrum of nutrients as much as it is the vitamin D itself.

Folate - Folate is a type of B-vitamin that is pivotal to the development of healthy cells. Folate is therefore important to the healthy development of an infant as explained by the Stanford Medicine Children’s Health Department:

The developing baby needs folate to make healthy new cells, and to make DNA and RNA (genetic material). These are cell-building blocks. Folate also is essential to form normal red blood cells and certain amino acids. These are important functions during pregnancy and infancy. This is a time when cells rapidly divide and grow.

Folate is also important for pregnant women as well because it is estimated that up to 1 in 3 women don’t get enough folate in their normal diets.

Read More: Foods High in Folate

Iodine - Iodine is a type of trace element that is most commonly associated with the hormones that the thyroid gland produces. However, it is critical for fetal development as well because it plays a key role in overall growth. The National Institutes of Health states that:

Iodine deficiency during pregnancy is associated with adverse neurocognitive outcomes in children and is the most common preventable cause of intellectual disabilities worldwide.