• Skip to content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Home
  • Shop ModernMom
  • Become An Insider

ModernMom

The premiere destination for moms

  • Parenting
    • Pregnancy
    • Baby
    • Kids
    • Tweens and Teens
    • ModernMom Monday Videos
  • Cooking
  • Living Healthy
    • Breast Cancer
    • Health & Fitness
    • Body after Baby
    • Beauty
    • Relationships
    • Love
  • Lifestyle
    • Crafts
    • At Home
    • Education
    • Travel
    • Pets
    • Decorate
    • Money
    • Brooke Burke
  • Celebrate
    • Holidays
      • Easter
      • Valentine’s Day
      • New Year’s
      • Christmas
      • Hanukah
      • Halloween
      • Thanksgiving
    • Birthdays
    • Parties
  • Must Have
  • Contests
  • Entertainment

Vitamins That Are Good for Women Trying to Conceive a Baby

September 28, 2010 by ModernMom Staff Leave a Comment

When you are trying to conceive a baby, good nutrition and maintaining a healthy weight are keys. The sooner you begin eating well, the more likely you are to get pregnant, according to the BabyCenter. It is easier to conceive if you are not underweight or overweight. The best way to ensure a healthy weight is to eat right and exercise. You can get many of the vitamins you need in the foods you eat and by taking vitamin supplements.

Food and Fertility

Food and fertility go together for both women and men when you are trying to conceive. You and your partner should eat several servings a day of fruit, vegetables, whole grains, yogurt, milk and cheese. The vitamins that help make healthy sperm are vitamin C, vitamin E, folic acid and zinc. If you are undernourished or obese, you may have trouble ovulating.

Folic Acid

Folic acid is the wonder supplement when you are trying to conceive and while you are pregnant. The only way you are going to get enough folic acid, 400 micrograms, is to take a supplement. Start taking it about a month before you start trying to conceive. If you take folic acid, you can reduce the risk of your baby having neural tube defects by 70 percent. A neural tube defect is an opening in the brain or spinal cord that can lead to defects such as spina bifida or anencephaly.

How to Take Folic Acid

You can buy folic acid supplements at the drugstore or supermarket. You can also get folic acid in certain multivitamins or prenatal vitamins. If you do take a multivitamin, make sure it doesn’t contain more than 2,565 international uinits of vitamin A. Too much vitamin A can cause birth defects, according to the BabyCenter.

Vitamin B Considerations

Vitamin B12 and B6 are essential when you are trying to conceive and are essential to good reproductive health, according to the Fertility Factor website. You can get vitamin B12 from animal products, such as fish, poultry, eggs and meat. Vegetarians may have a vitamin B12 deficiency and may want to discuss with their doctor what a proper diet entails for trying to conceive. You can get vitamin B6 in beans, leafy greens, oranges, cantaloupe, poultry and fortified cereal.

What Not to Eat

Some foods and vitamins can help you conceive, and others do the opposite. Avoid alcohol and tobacco, and cut back on caffeine to less than 3 cups a day. Fish, such as salmon and canned tuna, is good for the omega-3s, but avoid fish with high mercury content, such as swordfish and shark.

Comments

comments

Filed Under: Pregnancy

About ModernMom Staff

Reader Interactions

Primary Sidebar

Tell a friend

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Search

ModernMom Boutique

ModernMom TV

Featured

What To Expect When You Are No Longer Expecting

The world is full of advice for pregnant and … [Read More...] about What To Expect When You Are No Longer Expecting

Must Have

winter

Pre-Holiday Must-Haves

"It's beginning to look  a lot like Christmas..." The … [Read More...] about Pre-Holiday Must-Haves

Did you know?

Different Kinds of Textures for Children

Different Kinds of Textures for Children

Dizziness in Pregnancy

Causes of Dizziness in Pregnancy

toddler hair growth

Toddler Hair Growth

Bake Frozen and Pre-Breaded Chicken

How to Bake Frozen and Pre-Breaded Chicken

Male Fertility Tips

Advantages & Disadvantages for Children in a Single-Parent Family

Married Man Hides His Feelings For You

How To Know If A Married Man Hides His Feelings For You

Footer

  • About Us
  • Contact ModernMom
  • Advertise With Us
  • Press
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • Contributors

Copyright © 2021 Modern Mom. All Rights Reserved.

Reproduction of any portion of this website only at the express permission of Mom, Inc.

The information provided on ModernMom is for educational use only. It should not be used as a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.