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| |    Prescription Prenatal Vitamins by Elisa Ross, MD reviewed by Marjorie Greenfield, M.D. Prenatal vitamins come in many formulations, but most have a few things in common. Prescription prenatal vitamins have more folic acid, iron, and calcium than the usual daily vitamin supplement. The exact ingredients are listed on the packages. Prescription prenatal vitamins usually have 1 mg (or 1,000 ug) of folic acid in them. The extra dosage is not needed for protection of a fetus' spinal column, but is thought to help the baby make DNA building blocks and allow the mother to produce new red blood cells faster. Therefore, while it is not necessary to take prescription prenatal vitamins before pregnancy, it's not harmful, either. Over-the-counter multivitamins or folate supplements are also fine. The reason a prescription is needed for these prenatal vitamins is that the extra folic acid could possibly mask anemia caused by a rare disease that leads to deficiency of vitamin B12. If you have a family history of pernicious anemia, it is probably best to avoid more than .4 mg of supplemental folate until you are checked for anemia, a regular part of the blood tests you'll receive early in your pregnancy. Different kinds of prescription prenatal vitamins Different brands vary their product slightly to appeal to certain groups of mothers-to-be. Formulations are constantly changing, so ask your practitioner or pharmacist for up-to-date information. Here are some recent examples:
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