Pregnacare or similar while bf?

[Biscuitsandtea]

Hi, just wondered if anyone takes any multivitamin type supplements while bf?

I'm currently 34 weeks pg with dc2 and am currently taking Pregnacare plus, and I know they say it's suitable throughout pregnancy and bf.

But I wondered what supplements were best for bf. I figured that the pregnacare ones still have all the folic acid etc which I assume I don't need anymore. So wondered if there was something more appropriate.

Hope i've explained that clearly, can't go back and re-read it as am writing on my phone.

Thanks

Hmm, hope pregnacare is ok, I'm still trying to finish mine and ds is 9 months!

I'm taking one that i think is sanatogen for breastfeeding. Only started when dd was 22 weeks when i had a panic about the quality of my diet! Took the same one as you in pregnancy.

I'm sure pregnacare is fine, I just wondered as I'm about to restock and didn't want to waste money on pregnacare if there's something better / different / cheaper?

Cross post scotty - so you can buy specific bf ones then. Thanks - that's useful knowledge.

I think that pregnacare would be fine though,i just didn't have any left and the other ones are cheaper!

There's a pregnacare for breastfeeding. I remember a discussion here that the normal pregnacare either doesn't have or doesn't have enough calcium or vitamin D. On the other hand the pregnacare bf one does.

You can check their website and see the difference.

I have the Sainsbury's version of pregnacare, and it says for pregnant and breastfeeding women.

pregnacare is great as it has 10ug of vit D which BFing women should be taking daily.

all the own brand pg vits that i have looked at, have only had 5ug of vit D, so not enough for BFing
Sainsburys own brand (mum and bump) only has 5ug of vit D therefor not good enough for breast feeding mummies

You can buy vitamin d and calcium cheaply from supermarkets. Vitamin D is the supplement that's most important for breastfeeding mothers in the UK, especially in Winter.

None of them have actual vitamin d in as this a hormone triggered by sunlight.. Check Gabrielle palmers excellent book on nutrition

i don't agree that it's necessary to top up vitamin d in the winter in this country.
if you go for a half hour walk in the middle of the day, that's enough sunlight each day.

From November to March there is not enough of the correct wavelength light in this country to generate Vit D. However, we do store it so you may have stored enough from the summer.

I think the stores only last around 2 months LWL. Vitamin D deficiency is a big problem in this country and only just becoming more widely recognised. It is very hard to get sufficient from your diet alone in winter, and impossible to make it from UK sunshine in those months no matter how long you spend outdoors. In Scotland the vit D season is even shorter. It is a big issue and the advice to supplement is based on good research evidence. Actually, most of the population should probably be supplemented, but our health advice focuses solely on vulnerable groups (young children, pregnant and breastfeeding mothers and the elderly). Other countries as far north as us have the supplement in all milk, so the whole population is supplemented.

It's worth pointing out that all formula fed babies are already supplemented, as the formula itself contains the supplement.

Babies whose mums were pregnant in winter and didn't take the supplements, or who have other risk factors such as dark skin, or pregnant in summer but no middle of the day skin exposure to sun may need supplementing themselves directly in the first 6 months if they are exclusively breastfed.

nickel that's a half hour walk with arms or legs exposed - it's been far to cold for that here

"nickel that's a half hour walk with arms or legs exposed"

And in winter is still won't do you any good, even if you were naked, because in the UK we don't get the right type of sunshine at that time of year. Not even on a sunny winter's day. Vitamin D generation relies on specific wavelengths of sunlight, and these aren't there in winter and are only present in the middle parts of the day in summer.

Hmm I thought we had stores for 3 months, so almost enough.

Personally I took left over pregnacare, then the breastfeeding ones, but I'm not very good at remembering to take them, so only took them on average every other day. I'm also off dairy as DD has CMPI, but the soya milk I drink instead is vitamin D fortified, so I think I'm covered there...

nickel the NHS have a different opinion to you.

Probably far more researched too.

Formula fed babies are NOT supplemented by the formula as the vitamin is not sufficiently bio available. This is a dangerous myth.

I always understood that supplementation was not needed for formula fed babies who were having at least 500mls of formula per day but was advised for babies taking less than that

www.nhs.uk/Planners/birthtofive/Pages/Vitamins.aspx

Interesting pesto, I didn't know that. So it's better to stay wrapped up in winter and supplement than just freeze with arms and legs exposed? Good!

Oops and LWL didn't mean to leave you out!

SmileItsSunny there is actually an NHS advice on this issue : here.

It explains why you can't get it in winter or sunbeds.

fine- corrected on the winter levels.
but from the same document:
"There is not enough evidence to support a recommendation for food fortification or widespread vitamin D supplementation for the general population. Unlike vitamin D produced in the skin, there is the potential that vitamin D from supplements and fortificants could build up to toxic levels and there is not enough evidence about the possible risks of raised vitamin D blood levels in the general population over a long period of time."
www.nhs.uk/Livewell/Summerhealth/Documents/Concensus_statement%20_vitd_Dec_2010.pdf