Pregnacare and Floradix/Floravital...?

[questions2008]

Hi, I've been taking the Pregnacare pregnancy supplement for the past 6 weeks ( I'm 5 weeks pregnant) and I've bought some Floravital now but is it safe to take both at the same time or will the extra iron be harmful to the baby? Should I just wait til 12 weeks and then switch to Floravital, or can I take them both after 12 weeks, or now?

TIA

I don't think that it would be a good idea to take two supplements at once.

The doses in prenatals are carefully determined to ensure that they supplement your regular diet with the correct amounts of vitamins and minerals so it is probably not a great idea to double them up.(Personally, I don't take anything other than folic acid during pregnancy, because the iron in prenatals aggravates my nausea).

You definitely do not want to take too much iron. I don't know whether it would be harmful for your baby, but it could make you feel very ill. The hormones (progesterone) your body produces during early pregnancy slow down your digestive system and iron can cause constipation in a "regular" non-pregnant digestive system. If you get it, morning sickness usually starts around week 6 or 7 and hits with a vengeance, so be gentle to your digestive system now!

You could certainly try a different prenatal if pregnacare is not agreeing with you, or if you want to swap. What is the difference with Floravital?

Ok, I have just looked up floravital - it is an iron supplement?

Personally I would discuss iron supplementation with your gp before taking it. It may not be necessary (bloods given at your first ante natal appointment will show if you are deficient and then your gp will advise you about what to take). I think that most people develop anaemia in the 6th or 7 mth of pregnancy, if at all, but if you are already anaemic I would discuss it with your gp. Pregnacare has iron, as you pointed out, so that will probably be enough if you are eating a balanced diet during your first trimester (lots of well washed leafy greens, but don't eat liver!)

Hi BB thanks for that, that's what I thought, I'll just wait and see what bloods say then.

I agree. Iron is a tricky one. You do not want to overdose on it. I am now 28 weeks with twins and take Iron supplement that my doc has prescribed. I am also taking pregnacare since conception.

I thought Pregnacare had no iron in it, as this is not thought suitable for pregnant women (in general) unless they specifically have a tendency to suffer anaemia?

I take Pregnacare, but also have been prescribed iron tablets due to marginal low iron count. The iron tablets are horrible tho, and I'd prefer to take Floradix or Spatone, depending on which is more suitable.

I'm a bit concerned about overdosing on vitamins in general really.

I think Floradix is a vitamin supplement with iron, but Spatone is iron on it's own?

Can anyone advise?

I was feeling very dizzy and tired for 2 days so rang my MIL who is a midwife. She said I ate a healthy diet but may be having a 'growth spirt'. I was to take, and she was very specific, liquid floradix for about 10 days. When I spoke to my midwife, now feeling much better exactly as MIL said, She frowned that I had been taking any suppliments and that I should be getting all I needed from a heathy balenced diet.

Hiya I took pregnacare with my 1st 2 prgnancies and was ill most of the way through. With baby no3 i started taking "prenatal Nutrients" by solgar,(felt great) they are much more easily digested than vitamins like pregnacare because they are made from extracting vitimins and minerals from food sources. Also there is a type of iron availiable from boots which is called spatone, it is actually water from a natural spring which is naturally high in iron, again it is absorbed really easily and doesn't seem to cause the constipation you can get with iron supplements.

As for not taking any supplements at all, it has been proven that the soil we grow our vegetables in contains about 60% less minerals and trace elements than in the 1960s. So vastly less vitamins are actually present in the food we eat, this makes it harder for us to ensure we meet our RDA's. Ultimately this boils down to it being only common sense to take a supplement!! As long as you eat a healthy balanced diet too and don't just rely on the vitamins for your nutrition then you are doing a good thing!

is it safe to take florvital and pregnacare together from 4wks of pregnancy? i took it in both my last pregnancies and had a missed misscarried in both what do you think?

If you want to check you're getting enough iron, then take Spatone - it is (I think) the only iron supplement where you body will take what it needs and no more.

I'm taking it a couple of times a week and it definitely seems to be making a difference (no bloods since before pg., so don't have figures yet)..

Faithlyn - I certainly don't think there is a connection between your supplementation and mism/c, but I just wouldn't bother taking both. Take the pregnacare, save some money!

J

I am currently taking Spatone and Floradix together (discussed with midwife) as my iron levels have dropped and I am loath to take the prescribed iron tablets as worried about the constipation.