Should a pregnant woman take Vitamin A?

Can pregnant woman consume multivitamin which contain Vitamin A 1500mcg?  Thanks, Ann

Ann, that is an excellent question.  The safest option is to take either a prescription of prenatal vitamins or even over-the-counter prenatal vitamins.  You’ll find that pharmaceutical companies/vitamin manufacturers have precisely packaged together the correct vitamin doses which you’ll need during your pregnancy and which will not harm your developing baby.

Vitamin A (retinol) is naturally found in eggs, milk, cheese, yogurt, liver and certain fish (oily fish, including mackerel). Because it is fat soluble, your body will store away for future use any of the vitamin intake it can’t use.  Typically, a healthy female body will only need roughly 0.6 milligrams of Vitamin A per day.

Vitamin A is essential for helping you see better in dim light as well as helping keep your immune system fit to fight infections.  Vitamin A also helps keep your skin &  mucus linings healthy.

Too much Vitamin A (over 1.5 milligrams per day) has been thought to actually weaken your bones and make them more susceptible to breaking later in life.

Large amounts of Vitamin A taken during pregnancy may hurt your developing child.  As a result, it is not normally recommended to take standard multi vitamin pills while you are pregnant–nor should you regularly eat foods (such as liver) which are naturally high in Vitamin A.

We highly recommend you consult with your physician or OB/GYN before beginning any vitamin regimen during your pregnancy.

Thank you again for the question!

Hannah