Are There Benefits To Taking Prenatal Vitamins When Not Pregnant?

Many women swear by the benefits of taking prenatal vitamins when they’re not pregnant, such as better energy and healthier hair, skin, and nails.

But is there any real benefit to taking a prenatal versus regular women’s multivitamin if you’re not pregnant?

In some cases, a prenatal may be beneficial when you’re not pregnant, but in most cases, it’s not necessary and could even be harmful.

Read on to learn more about the pros and cons of taking prenatal vitamins when you’re not pregnant, and be sure to talk to your doctor or healthcare provider about any supplements you are considering taking.

Prenatal Vitamins vs. Multivitamins: What’s The Difference?

Prenatal vitamin formulas vary from brand to brand.

However, all prenatals should contain higher amounts of key nutrients to promote optimal fetal development, reduce the risk of congenital abnormalities (FKA: birth defects), and help prevent nutritional deficiencies or insufficiencies during pregnancy.

Some of these nutrients include:

Folic acid, or folate, helps prevent neural tube defects. Folic acid is the synthetic form of folate that is added to fortified foods, while folate is the natural form found in foods.
- New information about how genetic variations impact folate metabolism, such as MTHFR, has led many prenatal health experts to recommend prenatal vitamins with methylfolate versus folic acid. Check with your healthcare practitioner for individual recommendations.
Iron is essential to make extra blood cells during pregnancy. Unfortunately, deficiencies in iron are common during pregnancy, affecting up to 50% of the world’s population.

Many prenatal vitamins also contain higher amounts of other nutrients studied for their benefits during pregnancy, including:

Zinc
Vitamin C
Vitamin D
B-Vitamins
Choline
Magnesium
Calcium

Prenatal vitamins also generally contain lower amounts of vitamin A, which can be toxic to the fetus if consumed in excess.

Some prenatal vitamins contain various superfoods, pregnancy-supportive herbs, omega-3 fatty acids like DHA, probiotics, prebiotics, and other ingredients to support pregnant and nursing mothers.

The bottom line is that prenatal vitamins are designed to meet the higher nutritional requirements of pregnancy and, therefore, contain higher concentrations of certain nutrients and other pregnancy-specific ingredients.

Benefits of Taking a Prenatal Vitamin When Not Pregnant

There are three scenarios in which a woman or person may consider taking a prenatal vitamin while not pregnant.

Preconception health
Breastfeeding/lactation nutritional support
For reasons unrelated to pregnancy, conception, or breastfeeding, such as to support energy and for stronger hair, skin, and nails

Let’s examine these further based on evidence and general consensus about supplementation.

Scenario 1: The Benefits of Taking Prenatal Vitamins for Preconception Health

Most prenatal health experts and organizations, including The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), recommend taking a prenatal multivitamin before getting pregnant.

Various studies have confirmed the benefits and necessities of adequate nutrient status in the mother and the father for fertility, conception, and a healthy pregnancy.

Plus, if a woman is deficient or insufficient (trending towards) in key nutrients, like iron or folate, before pregnancy, it can take some time to restore those nutrient levels.

According to ACOG, taking a prenatal during preconception can even help prevent nausea during pregnancy.

However, prenatal vitamins may not all provide adequate concentrations of nutrients for optimal fertility, so talk to your healthcare provider.

In general, taking a prenatal multivitamin before becoming pregnant is very low risk and can provide many benefits.

If you’re unsure, you can always have your nutrient levels checked to see where to focus.

Regardless, always talk to your healthcare practitioner for individual recommendations.

Scenario 2: The Pros and Cons Taking Prenatal Vitamins Breastfeeding/Lactation Support

Many women continue taking prenatal vitamins while breastfeeding.

However, according to the Centers for Disease Control and the American Pregnancy Association, a prenatal multivitamin may not provide sufficient nutrients to meet the needs of breastfeeding mothers and babies.

For example, the Dietary Guidelines for Americans and the American Academy of Pediatrics recommend that breastfed and partially breastfed infants be given 400 IU per day of supplemental vitamin D in the first few days of life. Alternatively, the mother can discuss taking high-dose vitamin D supplements herself to help meet the baby’s needs.

In addition, breastfeeding increases the need for iodine and choline, two vitamins not found in every prenatal multi.

Some companies carry lactation or post-natal-specific supplements, which may be more appropriate depending on the needs of the mother and baby.

Check with your healthcare practitioner about the best multivitamin or supplement to meet your lactation needs.

Scenario 3: The Pros and Cons of Taking Prenatal Vitamins While not Pregnant and with no plans to Become Pregnant

Many women choose to take or continue to take prenatal vitamins because they believe they provide specific health benefits, such as better energy and stronger hair, skin, and nails.

Is there anything to this supplement legend? Possibly.

Although research has not confirmed the benefits of taking a prenatal when not pregnant, we do know optimal iron levels, for example, help support energy as well as hair, skin, and nail health.

B vitamins are also well-known to promote energy, and many other nutrients in prenatals support various aspects of health.

However, these nutrients are also found in various foods and non-prenatal multivitamins, which are more appropriate for people who aren’t pregnant or not planning to become pregnant.

Are There Any Risks of Taking a Prenatal Vitamin When Not Pregnant?

Prenatal vitamins are specifically formulated with a balance of nutrients in concentrations that should benefit, not harm, pregnant women and their developing babies.

Therefore, the risks of adults taking them are minimal. But talk to your doctor to make sure.

Exceptions are if you already have adequate or high iron levels; taking supplemental iron could cause mild to severe side effects or toxicity.

Taking too much folate or folic acid and certain minerals can also cause imbalances in other nutrient levels over time.

Plus, if you’re not pregnant, chances are you don’t need the same concentrations of nutrients in prenatals and would be better off taking a multivitamin or women’s multivitamin for extra nutritional support.

Finally, prenatal vitamins tend to cost more than traditional multis or women’s multis, which can harm your bottom line.

Who Should Take Prenatal Vitamins When Not Pregnant?

Generally, it is recommended that nursing mothers and women planning to become pregnant take prenatal vitamins.

For everyone else, money would be better spent on eating a high-quality, nutrient-dense diet and supplementing with a women’s multivitamin or other targeted women’s health supplement specially designed for your season of life.

How to Find a High-Quality Multivitamin to Meet Your Needs

Not all multivitamins are created equal in terms of formulation, nutrient forms, safety testing, and overall quality.

The best women’s multivitamins:

Are designed for the unique nutritional needs of women at specific stages of life.
Contain a variety of vitamins, minerals, and other synergistic ingredients in the most bioavailable forms (such as methylated B vitamins, Vitamin D3, etc.) and safe doses to support optimal absorption and assimilation.
Are tested for purity and ingredient concentrations.
Do not contain problem ingredients such as artificial colors, flavors, dyes, or low-quality vitamins.

It’s also important to choose a multivitamin with or without iron, depending on your iron status, which blood tests can determine.

If healthy hair, skin, and nails are your priority, you can also find beauty-specific vitamin formulas, like Country Life’s Maxi-Hair® Plus Skin & Nails with biotin, vitamin A, MSM, and other hair, skin, and nail-supportive nutrients.

Discovery Country Life’s Top-Rated Women’s Multivitamin & Beauty Supplements

If you’re not pregnant and looking for a high-performing multivitamin to support your nutritional and beauty needs, Country Life has you covered with a wide variety of supplements for women.

Country Life’s Women’s Multivitamin line includes:

Country Life’s beauty-focused formulas include:

Maxi-Hair® Plus Skin & Nails: With biotin, MSM, vitamin A, horsetail extract, and amino acids.
Maxi-Hair® Skin & Nails 50 Plus: A 50+ version of our original Maxi-Hair with biotin plus clinically studied Cynatine® HNS Soluble Keratin with vitamins and minerals to reduce age-related hair loss and shedding.
Maxi-Collagen 7000: A grass-fed collagen formula with type I and III collagen, bioactive collagen peptides, vitamins A and C, and biotin designed to promote joint health and skin elasticity.
Maxi-Skin® Rescue: Shown to increase elasticity, improve radiance, and reduce imperfections, spots, and dark circle color in as little as 8 weeks.*
Maxi-Skin® Cera Clear: The first beauty supplement on the market in North America with Skin-CeraⓇ, clinically studied vegan Konjac ceramides, a non-drying, non-cystic acne solution that helps clear whiteheads and blackheads.**

Sources mentioned in this article:

“Folate and Folic Acid in Pregnancy”. American Pregnancy Association.
“Good Health Before Pregnancy: Prepregnancy Care.” The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.
“Iron Deficiency and Iron Deficiency Anemia During Pregnancy—Opportunities to Optimize Perinatal Health and Health Equity.” JAMA
“The Influence of Diet on Fertility and the Implications for Public Health Nutrition in the United States.” Frontiers in Public Health.
“The Impact of Minerals on Female Fertility: A Systematic Review”. Nutrients.
“Diet and Nutritional Factors in Male (In) Fertility—Underestimated Factors”. Journal of Clinical Medicine.
“Nutrition and Female Fertility: An Interdependent Correlation”. Frontiers in Endocrinology.
“Nutrition during pregnancy”. American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.
“Maternal Diet And Breastfeeding.” Centers for Disease Control Breastfeeding Special Circumstances.
“Nutritional Status of Breastfeeding Mothers and Impact of Diet and Dietary Supplementation: A Narrative Review.” Nutrients.
“Postnatal Vitamins While Breastfeeding”. The American Pregnancy Association.
“Iron Deficiency Anemia”. The Mayo Clinic.
“Vitamins and Minerals for Energy, Fatigue, and Cognition: A Narrative Review of the Biochemical and Clinical Evidence.” Nutrients.

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