Pregnancy is one of the most incredible times of a woman’s life, but it’s also one of the most challenging. It isn’t just difficult emotionally and physically, it’s demanding down to the very nutrition that the body needs. While healthy women have almost everything they need to create another life, the huge impact a pregnancy has on a woman’s body calls for some additional help.
To make sure that you and your baby get everything necessary for healthy living and development, most doctors recommend a specific multivitamin during pregnancy to provide the nutrients important to your health and the health of your baby. For this reason, a prenatal vitamin should be on your pregnancy shopping list. Below is a list of ten of the best prenatal vitamins with reviews to help determine which one is best for you.
- What to Look for in a Prenatal Vitamin
- Top 10 Best Prenatal Vitamins 2023
- 1. Best Overall Prenatal Vitamin: New Chapter Prenatal Multivitamin
- 2. Best Prenatal Vitamin for Nausea: Megafood Baby & Me 2
- 3. Best Premium Prenatal Vitamin: TheraNatal One Prenatal Vitamin
- 4. Best Budget Prenatal Vitamin: NATURELO Prenatal Multivitamin
- 5. Best Prenatal Vitamin With DHA: Nature Made Prenatal Multi + DHA
- 6. Best Organic Prenatal Vitamin: Actif Organic Prenatal Vitamin
- 7. Best Vegetarian Prenatal Vitamin: Best Nest Wellness Mama Bird Prenatal Multi+
- 8. Best Prenatal Multivitamin: One A Day Women’s Prenatal 1 Multivitamin
- 9. Best Superfood Prenatal Vitamin: Rainbow Light Complete Prenatal System
- 10. Best Allergen-Free Multivitamin: SmartyPants Prenatal Formula Multivitamin
- The Complete Guide to Prenatal Vitamins
- Wrapping Up
What to Look for in a Prenatal Vitamin
Each woman’s body is unique and therefore each woman’s pregnancy will be best suited to a different prenatal multivitamin. Along with the guidance of your doctor, the following guidelines can help to vet each product you consider.
Does It Provide You With What You Need?
A prenatal vitamin must fill in the gaps your body has when it comes to:
- Maintaining your own health during pregnancy
- Providing vital nutrients and vitamins necessary for your baby’s development
A range of vitamins and minerals can help with this:
- Folic acid
- Iron
- Calcium
- Vitamin A, B6, B12, C and D
- Omega 3 fatty acids, containing DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) and EPA which can help with your infant’s brain development
While a visit to a doctor’s office and a blood test can help you decide exactly what you most need to supplement, the more nutrients and vitamins, the better. Other multivitamins may contain variations of these most-common nutrients, but most will have a relatively standard mix.
Type of Prenatal Vitamin
Prenatal vitamins typically come in the form of a capsule, pill, or gummy. What works best for you?
- Pill
- Capsule
- Gummy
The last two options are more popular among pregnant women because they tend to cause less nausea, but note that gummies usually don’t have any iron. You may have to take a few supplements to get the ideal dosage of all necessary minerals.
Does It Match Your Lifestyle?
For a multivitamin to work, the supplement company’s usage recommendations must be followed. This doesn’t only refer to taking them regularly, but to taking the right amounts at the right time and avoiding foods and activities that might upset your system.
If there’s a supplement you take once a week but it upsets your stomach, you probably won’t take it. If you have to take a supplement every two hours but it works with your schedule, you and your baby are more likely to get the necessary nutrients. Within this, watch out for:
- Schedule (typically once, twice, or three times a day)
- Side effects
- Difficulty of ingestion (taking a pill versus eating a gummy)
Now that you know what to look for, let’s get into our picks for the best prenatal vitamins for every mother and baby.
Top 10 Best Prenatal Vitamins 2023
1. Best Overall Prenatal Vitamin: New Chapter Prenatal Multivitamin
Editor’s Rating:
This NewChapter product’s development is based on the belief that goodness comes from fermenting the right products. Nutrients and herbs are therefore fermented along with good bacteria & whole foods. These cultured vitamins are both healthy and easier on the stomach than other products.
Ingredients
You get your necessary supplements from all-natural ingredients:
- Gum acacia
- Sunflower oil
- Carnauba wax
- Silica
- Lac resin
These give you:
- Folate
- Iron
- Vitamin D3
How It Helps Your Baby and Body
The supplements contained here give your body what it needs during pregnancy and helps your baby develop. After the birth it keeps on working, so don’t stop taking it. It can help you produce more breastmilk.
Possible Side Effects
The product warnings include that the pills contain fermented soy. Some people may be sensitive to this.
Since it contains iron it’s possible that overdose can occur, especially in children, if too many pills are consumed.
Dosage
You can purchase bottles with 270 capsules. You have to take three tablets each day, so a bottle contains enough for three months.
It doesn’t matter when the capsules are taken, so you can take them with meals, or take them all at once at an appropriate time during the day. You don’t have to eat something before you digest one of these.
Pros
- Can customize dosage schedule according to your personal preferences
- Vegetarian; gluten free
- Organic and non-GMO
- Natural product is easy on the digestive system
Cons
- Contains folate (not folic acid in natural form)
- Does not contain DHA (although the brand sells products that do)
2. Best Prenatal Vitamin for Nausea: Megafood Baby & Me 2
Editor’s Rating:
A natural solution for pregnancy challenges, Baby & Me is ideal for those with sensitive stomachs. The ingredients come from natural products and are picked for how they can benefit an expecting mother. They’re in pill form, quite large of a light brown color.
Ingredients
With these tablets you get:
- Vitamins A, C, D, E, K
- Vitamin B1, B2, B6, B12
- Calcium
- Iron
- Folate
- Magnesium
- Zinc
The combination of herbs includes components of:
- Raspberry leaf
- Ginger root
- Chamomile
- Dandelion
- Spinach
How It Helps Your Baby and Body
Firstly, this will help you manage your general health better, so you can provide your baby with optimum nourishment during and after the pregnancy.
In addition, the unique blend of herbs will help with pregnancy challenges such as:
- Mood so it’s less emotionally draining
- Balance so you can keep your baby physically safe
- Strength by combating fatigue
- You’ll experience less nausea
Possible Side Effects
Natural products aren’t necessarily tasty and the strong flavors aren’t everybody’s preference. Your stomach may also react to the natural components with some constipation. This could be because of high iron levels.
Dosage
Bottles with 120 tablets are available. This is a month’s stock since you need to take four tablets daily. That’s quite a lot of pills, but luckily you can determine when during the day is best to take them.
Pros
- Can take on empty stomach
- Able to take it at any time during the day
- Gentle on stomachs
- 100% whole food substances
Cons
- Many tablets to drink each day
- Strong taste
Editor’s Rating:
Using a holistic three-a-day formula that includes two tablets and one soft gel per 24-hour cycle, the makers of ThereNatal complete have put special attention into making the multivitamin system as complicated as possible. Sure, you have to take three supplements a day, but rest assured that all of the nutrients you need are there for you and your baby.
Ingredients
With one of the most comprehensive ingredient lists on a recommended three tablets a day, this prenatal option from TheraNatal is one of the complete vitamins available. Trust it to contain the necessary amounts of:
- Iron
- Iodine
- Vitamin D3
- Vitamin B6
- DHA
- Methylated Folate and Choline
- DHA
- A host of other important vitamins and minerals
How It Helps Your Baby and Body
A complete multivitamin helps the bodies of the mother and the baby in many ways. Vitamin B6 reduces nausea. Choline, not seen in some other prenatal multivitamins, supports neural tube development while DHA supports general brain development. Other more typical multivitamin and vitamin ingredients help with multivitamins.
Possible Side Effects
With B6 for nausea to combat the most common side effect of prenatal vitamins, possible side effects are minimal. We’d just be aware that the cow gelatin used yields a non-vegetarian supplement. If you’re looking for a product free of prenatal vitamin, we’d recommend you check out Mama Bird Prenatal Multi+.
Dosage
The biggest pain point with this pill is its frequent dose intervals, but it’s the price a mother has to pay for a truly complete multivitamin. If you’re on the go, though, two tablets plus one oil capsule a day can be a bit much. For something a bit less frequent, think about the Actif Organic Prenatal Vitamin.
Pros
- Keeps pregnant mothers and babies healthy throughout demanding pregnancies
- Truly complete multivitamin
- Choline supports neural tube development
- Minimal side effects
Cons
- Not vegan or vegetarian
- Three doses per day
4. Best Budget Prenatal Vitamin: NATURELO Prenatal Multivitamin
Editor’s Rating:
Most important to note with this supplement is its status as a natural supplement: each vitamin comes from a natural source, meaning they come from plant sources and are not synthesized in a laboratory.
Ingredients
While, as a one-a-day vitamin without fish oil, this isn’t as complete as supplements like the TheraNatal One Prenatal Vitamin, it’s still complete from a vitamins-and-minerals perspective. Among other supplements, it contains:
- Vitamin A
- Vitamin B Complex
- Vitamin C
- Vitamin D3
- Vitamin E
- Vitamin K2
- Essential minerals like Calcium, Magnesium, and Iron
How It Helps Your Baby and Body
This isn’t what’s considered a complete prenatal multivitamin, lacking fish oil. It does, however, contain Vitamin K2, which many consider to help boost energy levels during pregnancy. Other components of this multivitamin help prevent birth defects and properly develop the brain and nervous system. but you will need to supplement with something for DHA, EPA, and Omega 3.
Possible Side Effects
Without fish oil, this is one of the most palatable vitamins on our list, not contributing to morning sickness. Some users report a fishy smell and the capsule size is rather large. If you have a tricky time swallowing pills, consider the gummy vitamin from SmartyPants.
Dosage
This is a one-a-day supplement, although you’ll also need something for DHA, EPA, and Omega 3.
Pros
- Complete, economic prenatal multivitamin option
- Helps prevent birth defects
- Contributes to brain development
- Only need to take one pill per day
Cons
- Large pill to swallow
- Some report a fishy smell
5. Best Prenatal Vitamin With DHA: Nature Made Prenatal Multi + DHA
Editor’s Rating:
This prenatal multivitamin is proven to be absorbed optimally by people’s digestive systems. You get the benefits of a multivitamin with the added bonus of DHA to ensure your baby’s optimal development.
The capsules are smooth to ensure easy swallowing, even though they’re quite large. These capsules may have a strong smell because fish oils make up part of the ingredients.
Ingredients
Each gel capsule contains:
- Vitamins A, C, D, E
- Vitamin B6 and B12
- Folic Acid
- Calcium
- Iron Zinc
- Omega 3 Fatty Acids (DHA & EPA (Eicosapentaenoic Acid)
How It Helps Your Baby and Body
Your own and your baby’s general health is looked after by an array of vitamins & minerals. Omega fatty acids promote general health as well, but the DAH and EPA specifically targets brain development of the foetus.
Possible Side Effects
Because of the fish oil, the soft gel capsules can sometimes taste of fish or give a strong aftertaste. The supplement manufacturer has recognized the issues and will continue to refine the formula do avoid those off-flavors. Unfortunately, a fishy flavor could increase some women’s’ pregnancy-related nausea. For this reason, we’d recommend you take this supplement with food to avoid causing an upset stomach.
Dosage
Bottles contain 150 capsules (soft gels) and you only have to take one every day.
Pros
- Gel capsules are easily palatable
- High DHA levels for optimum development
- Softgels are easier to swallow than large pills
- Low daily dosage
Cons
- Strong smell, taste and after taste
6. Best Organic Prenatal Vitamin: Actif Organic Prenatal Vitamin
Editor’s Rating:
Providing vital and fundamental nutrients with completely natural and organic ingredients, the Actif Organic Prenatal Vitamin pays attention not only to what supplements are included in their multivitamin, but also how they get those supplements. With minimal off tastes and doing a good job to prevent nausea, it’s our favorite organic multivitamin.
Ingredients
Each pill contains:
- Vitamins B1, B2, B6 and B12
- 100% Natural Folic Acid
- Vitamin A (Beta-Carotene)
- Calcium
- Naturally sourced DHA, EPA and Omega 3
- Probiotic digestive support
How It Helps Your Baby and Body
This supplement’s series of B vitamins is great at reducing a risk of baby development complications, and that’s why natural folic acid is such an important part of a multivitamin when pregnant. Vitamin A helps build a healthy immune system (for you and for your baby), while DHA, EPA, and Omega 3 all support cardiovascular health.
Possible Side Effects
Perhaps thanks to organic ingredients, perhaps thanks to the probiotic digestive support, these multivitamins have minimal side effects. Some women report some nausea after consuming, especially on an empty stomach.
Dosage
All of the necessary nutrients for a pregnancy are delivered in a single, daily pill! We love the easy-to-swallow compact pill, and each bottle contains a 90-day supply.
Pros
- Small, one-a-day pill is easy to remember and easy to take
- Contains all of the necessary nutrients in just one pill
- Completely organic and natural ingredients
- Minimal side effects
Cons
- Some women report nausea after consuming
7. Best Vegetarian Prenatal Vitamin: Best Nest Wellness Mama Bird Prenatal Multi+
Editor’s Rating:
This supplement doesn’t include fish oil, making it vegetarian, although it’s ridiculously complete with an impressive ingredient list. Side effects are minimal, but you’ll need something for Omega 3, DHA, and EPA support.
Ingredients
This supplement truly excels from a nutrient perspective, with loads of nutrients that other supplements leave out, with too many to name here. The supplement includes:
- Vitamins A, C, D, E, and K
- Thiamin
- Riboflavin
- Niacin
- Folate
- b12
- Choline
- Calcium
- Iron
- Others
While this supplement is remarkably complete, it unfortunately lacks DHA, Omega 3, and EPA, as it doesn’t contain fish oil. While this yields a vegan/vegetarian supplement, you’ll have to purchase an additional supplement for those nutrients. A more complete option is this supplement from One A Day.
How It Helps Your Baby and Body
A fully featured vitamin, this prenatal supplement truly provides everything you need for a healthy baby and a healthy pregnancy. Among other benefits of multivitamins, this supplement can prevent birth defects, improve mood, reduce nausea, and improve immune resistance. Since this vegetarian and vegan supplement doesn’t include fish oil, we’d recommend an additional supplement to provide DHA, EPA, and Omega 3 support.
Possible Side Effects
Users report few to no side effects when taking these prenatal vitamins, although it’s possible that the lack of side effects due to the fact that this doesn’t fish oil, which has a reputation of being hard on the tummy for expecting women.
Dosage
Dosage is simple and the company recommends the simple formula of one pill every 24 hours for most expecting women, although check with your doctor to see if your body has additional nutrient demands.
Pros
- Others
- Completely vegan/vegetarian supplement
- Remarkably complete list of nutrients
- No reported side effects
- Contains many of the nutrients necessary for a healthy pregnancy
Cons
- Lacks Omega 3, DHA, and EPA from fish oil
8. Best Prenatal Multivitamin: One A Day Women’s Prenatal 1 Multivitamin
Editor’s Rating:
This prenatal vitamin is designed to help before, during and after a pregnancy. Continuing to use it ensures optimal health for both lives even after the baby is born. It keeps the mother healthy and the supplements help encourage healthy, complete milk production.
Ingredients
The important items on the ingredients list include:
- Omega 3 Fish oil
- Calcium carbonate
- Vitamin A, B12, C, D3, E
- Iron
- Magnesium
- Zinc Oxide
- Folic Acid
How It Helps Your Baby and Body
This is to ensure overall wellness. The benefit of it containing DHA—purported to be vital for babies’ development—is that you won’t have to acquire an additional supplement.
Possible Side Effects
Because this supplement is free of gluten, milk and artificial substances (coloring or sweetener), there are fewer chances of the product aggravating allergies.
The brand also advises you to talk to your doctor if you’re pregnant and want to take these. Make sure they’ll be beneficial. Even while it works for other parts of your body—such as giving you more energy—using this can result in stomach cramps.
Dosage
One a Day is available in packs of 30 or 60. Because you only need one a day, it’s easy to add it to your daily schedule and it’s effortless to swallow, since it’s a smooth gel capsule.
Pros
- No artificial ingredients such as coloring or sweetener
- Gluten and dairy free
- Smooth gel capsule
- Only need one per day
- No aftertaste
Cons
- Fishy smell because of fish extracts
- Capsules can break easily
9. Best Superfood Prenatal Vitamin: Rainbow Light Complete Prenatal System
Editor’s Rating:
Here’s a vitamin aimed at supplying all of the vitamins and nutrients pregnant women need in one capsule. Due to how easy an upset stomach can compound the daily challenges of being pregnant, the capsules contain probiotics and enzymes to regulate your digestive system.
Ingredients
With these tablets you get:
- Vitamins A, C, D, E, K
- Vitamin B1, B2, B6 and B12
- Large amounts of folic acid to help develop the baby’s spine and brain
- Calcium
- Iron
- Zinc
- Magnesium
- 30 Million CFU of probiotics
How It Helps Your Baby and Body
While most necessary minerals can be found in these tablets, you also get probiotics to regulate your digestive system. As mentioned, the folic acid results in optimum brain development for the foetus.
Even after the birth these can help, since some mothers report it helps their bodies produce adequate levels of breastmilk. Note that these supplements will make your urine turn more yellow than usual, so don’t get a fright.
Possible Side Effects
While it benefits your digestive system, some users report an increased level of flatulence and constipation. Test them out first before your buy in bulk.
Dosage
You can purchase containers with 180 pills. You need to take six daily, with two options of dose schedule: two pills three times a day, or three pills two times a day.
Pros
- Containers are recyclable
- BPA free containers
- Gluten and dairy free
- Easy on the stomach; less nausea
- Healthy, organic supplement
Cons
- Must drink a high number of pills each day
- No DHA
- Pills aren’t smooth so can be difficult to swallow
- Unwelcome smell
10. Best Allergen-Free Multivitamin: SmartyPants Prenatal Formula Multivitamin
Editor’s Rating:
Ingredients
This prenatal vitamin contains 18 distinct nutrients for a healthy pregnancy, including the hyper-important Omega 3, EPA, and DHA that typically comes from fish oil. Supplements include, among others:
- Folate
- Vitamin D3
- Vitamin B12 (less common in prenatal vitamins but used here to boost energy)
- Vitamin K
- Omega 3, EPA, DHA
How It Helps Your Baby and Body
This gummy multivitamin intentionally skips the allergens that are frequently used in supplements, not using or containing milk, eggs, tree nuts, fish, shellfish, soy, gluten, or wheat. This means it’s great for expecting mothers with allergies. Keep an eye out that some ingredients can be sourced from pork, meaning that this isn’t a good pick for vegetarians or those who keep kosher or halal.
Possible Side Effects
As with nearly all prenatal vitamins, this SmartyPants vitamin has the potential to contribute to nausea and morning sickness. It’s also not technically a ‘complete’ multivitamin, as it expects you to get some nutrients from food. For this reason, it lacks Iron, Calcium, and Vitamin C. Those who don’t get enough of those nutrients from their diet will need to supplement.
Dosage
Four doses a day is a lot, but since the multivitamin comes in a gummy form, it goes down easily.
Pros
- Delicious gummy vitamin form
- Designed with your body’s absorption capabilities in mind
- No significant side effects
- Contains B12 for energy
- Allergen free
Cons
- Four doses per day
- Not technically a complete multivitamin
- Uses pork products in production
The Complete Guide to Prenatal Vitamins
When you’re healthier, you can help your baby develop optimally and there is a lower possibility of complications. The goal of a prenatal vitamin is to make sure a mother has everything she needs to nutritionally provide for her baby and for herself.
When to Start Using Prenatal Vitamins
Supplements are in preparation for the miracle of life, so it’s ideal to start taking them when you plan on getting pregnant. Just remember they can’t necessarily enhance your chances for trying to conceive. They are, though, an important way of keeping you and your baby healthy during your pregnancy.
Benefits of Using Prenatal Vitamins
It’s smart to use prenatal vitamins even before you fall pregnant because it can aid you in these ways:
- It helps with a healthy pregnancy and can prevent pre-eclampsia
- It benefits your baby’s development with minerals like zinc that can supports organ function
- It keeps your muscles, bones and heart healthy
- Can reduce nausea and morning sickness
- Increasing mineral levels prevents adverse medical problems, as low Vitamin B levels have been connected to birth defects
- Improves outcomes if carrying twins or other high risk pregnancies
Side Effects of Prenatal Vitamins
Although prenatal vitamins are mostly natural vitamins and minerals your body needs anyway, you must keep an eye out for side effects. They typically shouldn’t be worried about and don’t require medical attention, but there’s no reason to make your experience of being pregnant more strenuous.
If you experience one or some of these side effects, you should consider switching to another brand:
- Nausea
- A loss of appetite
- Constipation, especially when iron levels are high
- Discolored feces
Which Supplement Is Best for You?
You can see from the reviews above that manufacturers cater for a range of preferences and needs. Don’t think the most expensive is the best. You have the privilege of finding the perfect balance between a range of features.
Consider some of these questions to help inform your purchasing criteria:
- Do you require vegan or vegetarian supplements? It’s not necessary to compromise your diet simply to digest vitamins, because these days manufacturers cater for all groups of people.
- Do you have a specific deficiency—according to medical tests—that may cause you or your baby problems? You need a supplement that provides for these deficiencies.
- Do you feel very nauseous or have a very sensitive palate? In these cases chewable gummies are often more beneficial.
A Few Warnings
We can’t stress enough how important it is to first try out a supplement before you commit to it, and to consult your doctor. While there are many healthy elements in the supplements above, some ingredients can cause problems too.
Folic Acid
One example is folic acid. Some women can only absorb and process this in its purest, natural form. A synthetic substitute—folate in this case—often reacts differently in the body. This could mean you simply don’t get the benefit of that supplement, or there can be side effects.
These small differences don’t matter to everyone, so it’s vital you:
- Get to know your own body well
- Pick supplements that align with your allergies or your body’s preferences
- Monitor all changes after starting to take a supplement
- Consult with a medical professional if you suspect adverse side effects not mentioned on the packaging
Too Much Iron
Another problem creeps in when you take in too much iron. Iron is essential to your health, but you can easily boost your levels too high if your normal diet already provides enough iron.
With too much iron you’re bound to get constipated which you probably don’t want to add to your physical challenges during your pregnancy. In these cases it’s comforting to know the range of prenatal vitamins also includes products without iron, or with very low levels.
Your Diet and Your Vitamins
This brings us to how important it is to make your diet and your supplements work together to your benefit.
A Few Tips
- Take cognisance of what your diet already provides so you don’t take in too much of a certain substance. Usually your body will simply expel excess, but on occasion it can have adverse effects.
- Have your blood tested before taking a supplement so you know what your body needs.
- Regularly test your blood so you know how the supplements affect your body and you can make adjustments if necessary.
Supplements Can’t Replace Your Diet
Note that these supplements aren’t designed to be used in the place of healthy meals. To have a healthy body you must eat regularly.
These supplements are simply to supply ingredients the average plate of food doesn’t provide, or to help manage deficiencies. This means some women may not even need prenatal vitamins to have a healthy pregnancy, therefore this is not a prerequisite. But when it comes to your child, it’s best to play it safe, isn’t it?
Supplements Aren’t Cures
While you can optimize your health with supplements, you shouldn’t try to cure yourself with them. If you suspect any illness, it’s vital you seek medical attention.
Supplements can help your body fight disease. However, at times during pregnancy your body’s immune system will be at its lowest. If you do contract a disease you need to eradicate it with medical help so it doesn’t affect your baby.
Supplements Can’t Help You Get Pregnant
Different healthy women have different probabilities of conceiving, but supplementation doesn’t have much to do with the fertility of a mother. However, once your body begins to grow a baby, it will undergo many changes. Creating a baby is hard on the body and leads to many physical and nutritional demands. Prenatal vitamins prepare your body and help it be in optimum condition for creating a new life.
Wrapping Up
When getting ready for an amazing but emotionally and physically challenging chapter of your life, why not make sure you and your baby can be as healthy and happy as possible? That’s what a prenatal vitamin can help you get right, so look over our guide to find the perfect pill for you and your little one.