Vitamin D3 when pregnant - Page 2

[1love4ever]

First I would only be taking a whole foods based prenatal vitamin because the synthetic vitamins such as the one you are taking are not easily absorbed by the body, basically you are getting very little if any of the nutrients out of it!  This thread is a good one for more info http://www.mothering.com/community/t/1332315/which-pre-natal-vitamins-are-more-popular-here-x-posted   The cheap synthetic vitamins also often contain harlful ingredients such as antifreeze(honestly), artificial colors, preservatives, etc.  When your supp is whole foods based you get SO much more out of it, and your body absorbs the nutrients because it RECOGNIZES them!  It does not recognize synthetic chemicals.   And yes, sounds like your doc has outdated info, more vitamin D than that is important.  There are also other ways of warding off illness(echinacea, goldenseal, elderberry.  Not sure about during pregnancy, anyone else know?  I am pregnant and I swallow half a large clove of garlic a day plus take New Chapter All Flora probiotics.  DD just got sick and I always get sick when she does, but not this time!  I also take Garden of Life prenatal).  And, even if you do get the flu, it is very unlikely to harm your baby.  I had the flu and was miserable and barely could eat for 3 days at the beginning of this pregnancy before I started with the garlic, whole foods prenatal, and probiotics, but the baby is fine according to ultrasound and I will know for sure here in a week and a half!   Not only that but keep in mind that the flu shot most likely will offer no protection from the flu anyway.

[Abraisme]

Yup, I agree with this.  I take about 4000 IU a day, while I'm pregnant or not.  My whole food multi has 1000 and I take an extra 3000 iu. 
 

Originally Posted by MommyMatsumoto 

I take at least 5,000 IU of vitamin D3 all of the time (even when not pregnant).  The recommendation I've heard is 35 IU per pound of body weight and at least 5,000 IU for pregnant women.  I guess, with my prenatal vitamin, I get more like 5,800 IU.  Personally, I don't think that 400 IU is enough to make a difference.

Check this out:

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/07/22/pregnant-women-advised-to-get-more-vitamin-d.aspx

[vivica2]

with all the information online (studies published online) it is easy to read and decide for yourself. i am taking 4,000iu daily (well, the days i can keep the vit down ;))   docs dont always have the answer.  

my OB told me that 1 year ttc was not that long. and when i told him a had a pattern of a 'luteal phase defect' he said "there is no such thing, a woman ALWAYS mensruates 14 days after she ovulates"  so obviously his information was outdated. btw: his nurse also told me that my child would "ride the short bus if i didnt get a flu shot while pregnant"   

i say this to make the point that you can have a good doc, with outdated information. take control of your medical care that you CAN control. ie:vitamin and mineral intake, birthing options, etc....

good luck making your own decision. 

[1love4ever]

Originally Posted by vivica2 

btw: his nurse also told me that my child would "ride the short bus if i didnt get a flu shot while pregnant"   

WOW, that is harsh, I cant believe she would say something like that!  And obviously she has incorrect info as well, your kid would be more likely to be harmed FROM the vaccine, than from the flu itself!

There is an OB Dr where I live (there are only a 2 OBs to choose from if thats the route your going, so everyone knows everything about each of them) who is like 70 years old, and he gives every woman an episiotomy and an enema and he will refuse you as a patient if you tell him you wont have those things done.  I have had several friends who had him and they of course had their epidurals, and he just gave them the episiotomy without even telling them ahead of time, or while he was doing it, or anything, they only knew it happened because he was stitching them up afterwards. 

So, it is absolutely true that a Dr does NOT always know the latest info, or the correct info.  Look at all the Drs that push vaccines?  they couldnt tell you a single ingredient in them!  My Dr told me that circumcision was beneficial!!  What!?  She had very outdated info that has been proven absolutely false.  She also said that EVERY baby born to a GBS positive mom who's not given antibiotics in labor will become infected and likely die.  Yeah, right.  Very rare in a full term healthy mom and baby who's water has not been broken more than 18 hrs.  Do your own research and make your own decision, dont just listen to what a Dr has to say.  They do NOT know everything.

[emmaegbert]

FYI if you do want to take more vitamin D, you can get a totally tasteless, odorless drop formulation.

The one we take is 2000iu per drop. I take 4000-6000 iu a day plus my prenatal.

I did have my levels tested at one point (and they were at the very low end of normal despite, at the time, being a fair skinned person living in southern california, in the middle of summer, who spends time outside and was taking a prenatal vitamin with 1000iu).

I also plan to discuss with our new family practitioner (who is actually really into holistic medicine) and perhaps have my own levels tested again when I bring the baby in for first visit (EDD tomorrow so this will be pretty soon!). I will be tandem nursing and heading into northern winter, so I'd like to make sure I am supplementing at a level that keeps my own levels in the "optimal" range. I have read (and been told) that mothers do pass vitamin D through their breastmilk and I'd prefer to supplement myself than a newborn.

I agree with others that this is something you need to ultimately decide for yourself. But one place to start would be to have your levels checked (I think you were planning on doing this?) and going from there.

[1love4ever]

Originally Posted by emmaegbert 

 I will be tandem nursing and heading into northern winter, so I'd like to make sure I am supplementing at a level that keeps my own levels in the "optimal" range. I have read (and been told) that mothers do pass vitamin D through their breastmilk and I'd prefer to supplement myself than a newborn.

Just so you know, a baby has vitamin D stores that last 2 months before supplementation or sun exposure would even be necessary.  I think that even with a mom supplementing heavily, still not enough is ever passed thru breast milk?  I get D drops from vitacost.com.  The NSI drops are 400IU per drop, and the vitacost brand drops are 2000IU per drop.  There are other brands too but they are more expensive.  They can be used as drops for babies or adults, and the only other ingredient is olive oil:)

[cameragirl]

I take 4,000 or so i.u. per day with my cod liver oil, whole-food prenatal, and supplements. I need to call and ask if my doctor will order a blood test, though. It has been awhile, but I was pretty deficient at one point and it took months to get back to normal. Btw, my OB knows and has no qualms about the cod liver oil or D3. Recent studies support both for many reasons.

[nia82]

I have Carlson drops for the kids (they come in 400, 1000 or 2000IUs). I had my levels tested when I had been taking 5000IUs for 3 months and they were borderline low. And that was in summer. I wear no sunscreen before 11am! My SILs obgyn in Menlo Park also recommends 5000IU minimum for pregnant mamas. Some docs actually read the research and decide to act on it :)

[emmaegbert]

Originally Posted by 1love4ever 

Just so you know, a baby has vitamin D stores that last 2 months before supplementation or sun exposure would even be necessary.  I think that even with a mom supplementing heavily, still not enough is ever passed thru breast milk?  I get D drops from vitacost.com.  The NSI drops are 400IU per drop, and the vitacost brand drops are 2000IU per drop.  There are other brands too but they are more expensive.  They can be used as drops for babies or adults, and the only other ingredient is olive oil:)

thanks, I will look into this more, and like I said, we actually have a new doctor who is actually quite well informed about nutrition and holistic medicine as well as being an MD, so I am interested to hear what he's got to say about it. I never supplemented the other babies (first b/c nobody was talking about it then and then the second was born in spring in San Diego... but honestly both of them living in southern california, very fair, and getting lots of outdoor time, I wasn't too concerned). We have some carlson baby drops already, and I take the NSI drops myself so I know that they don't have any gross extra ingredients :)

[1love4ever]

Originally Posted by nia82 

I have Carlson drops for the kids (they come in 400, 1000 or 2000IUs). I had my levels tested when I had been taking 5000IUs for 3 months and they were borderline low. And that was in summer. I wear no sunscreen before 11am! My SILs obgyn in Menlo Park also recommends 5000IU minimum for pregnant mamas. Some docs actually read the research and decide to act on it :)

Before 11am, the UVB rays that you need to produce vit D are very low even in the middle of summer.  I think it is between 12 and 3pm that they are strongest?  Middle of the day anyway is when you are supposed to expose your skin for vit D production, otherwise it does you little good.  Nov-March in the north the UVB rays are also not strong enough(and its probably too cold outside to wear short sleeves anyway) to allow vit D production.

[nia82]

That's unfortunately not an option for me - I have super light skin and in mid-day sun I burn after just 5 minutes of exposure... But my doc said the morning sun will help a little. Now I'm not sure!`

[1love4ever]

Originally Posted by nia82 

That's unfortunately not an option for me - I have super light skin and in mid-day sun I burn after just 5 minutes of exposure... But my doc said the morning sun will help a little. Now I'm not sure!`

I can understand that!  I have read that you only need to be exposed for like 20 minutes at like 2pm in the middle of summer to get enough vitamin D for the day tho.  That much at least will not make me burn.

[Kindermama]

I take 6000 daily as recommended by my midwife. I was taking 20,000 at one point because my Vit D was suuuper low. It's steady now but she wants me on a maintenance dose, especially with winter coming!