Like most women, I had problems taking my prenatal vitamins while I was pregnant. I tried them with meals, without meals, at different times of the day, and I even tried a couple of different formulas. What I ended up doing was keeping them by my bedside with a glass of water and taking them in the middle of the night when I woke up out of discomfort and/or necessity to pee. By the time I woke up for the day a couple of hours later, I had digested them and I didn’t feel any discomfort or nausea. I’m not sure if any physician would advise doing that, but it worked for me.

I knew from my mom that, once my daughter was born, I would need to continue taking prenatal vitamins while I nursed my baby. Since I planned to breastfeed her for at least a year, I knew I’d need a large supply of vitamins. Even with my health care provider’s prescription plan, the ones I took when I was pregnant were costly (I believe it was $10 for one month’s supply). I asked my ob/gyn if it was OK that I take over-the-counter vitamins while lactating instead of the prescription ones and he didn’t have a problem with it. He said the only difference between the two was probably the amount of iron. So I started taking OTC vitamins as soon as my prescription ran out (about 2 months after delivery). I started taking a bottle my mom gave me. I think it was from CVS. When that ran out, around last summer, I bought these Nature Made ones at Costco. I can't remember how much the bottle cost but it was probably around $15. I figured the huge bottle of 300 tablets would last me as long as I intended to nurse, and it has.

THE BASICS
Supplement Facts
Serving Size: 1 tablet
Amount Per Tablet % of Daily Value for Pregnant and Lactating Women
Vitamin A 4,000 IU 50 %
Vitamin C 100 mg 167 %
Vitamin D 400 IU 100 %
Vitamin E 11 IU 37 %
Thiamin 1.5 mg 88 %
Riboflavin 1.7 mg 85 %
Niacin 18 mg 90 %
Vitamin B6 2.6 mg 104 %
Folate 800 mcg 100 %
Vitamin B12 4 mcg 50 %
Calcium 200 mg 15 %
Iron 27 mg 150 %
Zinc 25 mg 167 %

Ingredients
Calcium Sulfate, Cellulose, Ascorbic Acid, Ferrous Fumarate, Acacia, Glycerides of Fatty Acids, Zinc Oxide, Croscarmellose Sodium, Niacinamide, Silicon Dioxide, Corn Starch, dl-Alpha Tocopheryl Acetate, Magnesium Stearate, Hydroxypropyl Methylcellulose, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Vitamin A Acetate, Riboflavin, Thiamin Mononitrate, Polyethylene Glycol, Folic Acid, Peanut Oil, Vitamin D, Cyanocobalamin.

MY EXPERIENCE
Nursing can be a tiring and, literally, draining experience so it’s very important that you drink plenty of fluids and continue to eat the healthy diet you were supposed to intake while pregnant. But as any mom will tell you, sleepless nights and crying babies can stress your body just as much, if not more, than being pregnant. So it is very important to continue taking supplements. I believe a lactating woman only needs an additional 500 calories per day (above the usual 2000 calorie diet) to maintain weight but there are definitely some vitamins and minerals that need a boost.

This Prenatal Formula has a nice balance of vitamins and minerals that a pregnant or lactating woman needs. As far as I know, the main differences between a garden variety multivitamin/mineral supplement and one designed as a prenatal formula revolve around the amounts of calcium, iron, folic acid, and B vitamins. This Nature Made type has 150% (27mg) of the suggested amount of iron for pregnant and lactating women, 100% (800mcg) of the folic acid, 15% (200mg) of calcium, 104% of B6, and 50% of B12. I compared the supplement facts on this bottle to those on my prescription prenatal vitamins and they were almost identical. I no longer have the bottle of prescription ones, but I believe the only difference was a slightly less amount of iron in the Nature Made formula.

Each yellow, speckled tablet is oval in shape and about a 1/2 inch long. Although they are not gel-coated like my prescription ones, they are significantly shorter and narrower and fairly easy to swallow. They have a light, slightly tart vitamin scent, I think due to the ascorbic acid. But it’s nothing overbearing and I don’t have any problems swallowing these pills.

Although the bottle suggests taking them with a meal, I usually take them in the morning with my cup of Postum (a noncaffeinated instant coffee variant made from molasses and wheat) and milk. I’ve never had any problems digesting these vitamins. Granted, I never took them while pregnant, but even on days when my stomach is upset due to something I ate the previous night or a touch of stomach flu, they haven’t aggravated my digestive tract.

I have not noticed any change in my post-pregnancy energy level from when I was taking the prescription vitamins versus the CVS ones versus these Nature Made ones. So I don’t think the difference in iron level is significant. But the couple of times when I forgot to take my vitamins or wasn’t home to take them, I did notice a significant decline in energy. I felt sluggish and couldn’t focus as well as usual.

I nursed my daughter for 18 months and these vitamins helped me get through the last half or so of that period. I’m still taking them now because I am not on birth control pills and my doctor advised me to continue taking prenatals in case I do get pregnant.

OVERALL
These prenatal vitamins have worked very well for me. They’re much easier to swallow than my prescription ones and the OTC ones my mom bought for me. They do not upset my stomach and have provided me with the vitamins and minerals my body needs.

FROM THE MANUFACTURER
For pregnant and lactating women; helps optimal development of the embryo and fetus—Nature Made’s Prenatal Formula contains a high level of Folic Acid which plays a role in the development of the nervous system of the fetus. Adequate Folic Acid in a healthful diet may reduce a woman’s risk of having a child with a brain or spinal cord birth defect.

No artificial colors, artificial flavors, preservatives, chemical solvents, yeast or gluten.

Directions: Take one tablet daily with a meal. Keep bottle tightly closed.

Warnings: Do not use if imprinted seal under cap is broken or missing. Accidental overdose of iron-containing products is a leading cause of fatal poisoning in children under 6. Keep this product out of reach of children. In case of accidental overdose, call a doctor or poison control center immediately.

Storage: Store in a cool, dry place.

www.NatureMade.com

Thanks to bops_mom for adding this product to the Epinions database so quickly!

This review has been part of mmcphee's You Can't Review That write-off. I really didn't think I'd find anything to say about vitamins but I guess when you use something everyday, you really do end up having an opinion about it.

Recommended: Yes