Prenatal Vitamins
Prenatal vitamins are an essential component of a pregnancy wellness routine, both during and after the pregnancy.
Prenatal vitamins are supplements that contain daily vitamins and minerals that support the health of the mother and baby. There are certain nutrients, like Folate and Omega-3 fatty acids, that are critical to the healthy development of the child’s brain and nervous system during pregnancy and newborn stages. A quick trip to the local pharmacy or retail store, or perusal of online shopping websites, reveals the sundry brands that crowd the prenatal vitamin market.
There is no shortage of options. Friends will have a favorite brand, and there may even be a preferred brand suggestion by your doctor or health care provider.
But, an important consideration to ponder before selecting a brand, is the question: “Do all prenatal and postnatal women have the same nutritional needs?”
The Right Approach
It turns out there is not a one-size-fits-all approach for prenatal and postnatal nutrition. Each woman has a unique set of nutritional needs, while needing to cover some important bases to ensure a healthy pregnancy and newborn period. Women embrace different lifestyles that encompass decisions and experiences related to diet and food choices; activity levels and fitness routines; as well as health history and health status. These lifestyle factors can have a meaningful influence on appropriate dosing levels for nutritional supplementation.
Vous Vitamin is a brand that recognizes that prenatal and postnatal women have distinctive nutritional needs that can be addressed with custom vitamin dosing. The brand was started by Dr. Romy Block, an endocrinologist, and Dr. Arielle Levitan, an internist, the co-authors of the award-winning book, The Vitamin Solution: Two Doctors Clear the Confusion about Vitamins and Your Health. Drs. Block and Levitan realized that mass market vitamins were not helping consumers address their unique nutritional needs.
Personalization
Crude classifications like “prenatal” fail to recognize the nuances of each woman’s and each pregnancy’s nutritional requirements. In turn, Drs. Block and Levitan designed a brief online survey at Vous Vitamin’s website that asks the questions that they would ask women in their medical office about the lifestyle factors that can influence vitamin dosing levels. The survey information helps to guide a woman in the prenatal or postnatal stages to their personalized vitamin blend in a single, easy-to-swallow, tablet, taken twice daily, and easily combined with an Omega-3 supplement. The personalized vitamin blends have transparency around the ingredients, dosing, and daily values, allowing a woman to discuss the vitamin selection with their trusted doctor or health care provider to confirm that it is the right individualized approach for them.