Sisters - today I’m going to be writing about a BIG ol’ topic! Prenatal vitamins… a disclaimer that this is not medical advice, but research I have done personally and decided was right for me.

I don’t take a prenatal - even though I have been preparing for conception for 8 months.

Why? Where to begin!

I was never one to take a one size fits all supplement - how could it give me everything my body needs?

Instead I chose to dig deeply and explore what areas that my body needed extra support and mindfully choose supplements which resonated with me.

We see that your standard prenatal supplements usually include synthetic vitamins, which aren’t optimal, but are significantly cheaper for them to use. The vitamin industry is at the end of the unregulated and based off financial gain for the most part (like so many industries alongside).

Examples of less optimal offerings in your average multi-vitamin/prenatal supplement?

Ascorbic acid instead of vitamin C.

Beta-Carotene instead of Retinol

Vitamin E with with d-alpha tocopherol rather than mixed tocopherols

And the classic… folic acid rather than methylfolate.

The list could go on…..

In addition, prenatals will often include iron which can be inflammatory, when women have an increased ability to absorb iron in pregnancy and also are no longer bleeding to dispose of excess iron. Copper is required to complement iron, which any prenatal again don’t contain or do contain in a potentially harmful source.

Whereas magnesium requirements go up in pregnancy and change throughout the trimesters… but many prenatal don’t include magnesium or include it in a form that is not optimally bio-available.

So what do I choose to do…? Organ Meat!

I was overjoyed to find Hirsch - a UK-based organic grass-fed supplier of beef liver and have now been taking them for several months (and you can get 10% off your first order here with the code SAIMA10).

Why organ meat?

“Organ meats provide a simple, safe, natural antidote for nutrient deficiencies.

In doing so, they provide a perfect way to maximise your fertility without taking drugs or hormones! 

Organ meats are fertility superfoods that are chock-full of vitamins, minerals, essential fats, and amino acids…all in a form that your body actually recognises and absorbs. These natural ingredients are a recipe for success when it comes to enhancing fertility in both genders. 

Below are just a few of the many nutritional highlights of organ meats.

Folate/B12

Folate is an essential B vitamin that assists with DNA production, cellular division, and nerve protection. Folate is especially important for pregnant mothers, since the developing fetus requires lots of it. Beef liver is the best source of vitamin B12 in existence.

Iron 

While everyone knows that iron is critical for building healthy blood, not many know that the iron in food comes in two distinctive forms. Organ meats contain the more absorbable form, heme iron. Research shows your body can absorb up to 35% of the heme iron you ingest. Iron helps keep the energy-hungry fetus perfectly oxygenated.

Vitamin A (retinol)

Organ meats are rich in several different types of vitamin A, including beta carotene and preformed vitamin A. These vitamins are important for healthy vision, clear skin, and normal cellular differentiation.

(Liver is so high in carotenoids, in fact, that pregnant or soon-to-be pregnant mums shouldn’t consume it every day.)

CoQ10

Coenzyme Q10 is another important fertility nutrient that’s readily available in organ meats. CoQ10 antioxidant capabilities mean it can protect both sperm and egg from oxidative or inflammatory stress. 

Considering that the amount of CoQ10 your body can produce begins dropping in your 20s or 30s, older prospective parents would be wise to include this important coenzyme in their diet.

Antioxidants

Organ meats are rich in other pro-fertility nutrients, too. Many organ meats contain vitamin E — and some even contain vitamin C! These antioxidants lower inflammation, improve stress tolerance, and promote natural fertility.

Detoxification compounds

Not to sound woo-woo or anything, but detoxification is a critical part of the overall health and wellness puzzle.

In a perfect environment, your liver would handle all needed detox processes with ease. 

Today’s environment, however, is anything but ideal. Our bodies are bombarded with toxins on a nearly continual basis. Toxic chemicals like glyphosate can be found in our food and water supply. Glyphosate disrupts the glycine pathways that our bodies use to make collagen and other important structural elements. Unfortunately, glyphosate has been found in the breastmilk of 80% of nursing Brazilian women. 

Now for some good news: organ meats can help your body get the detox it needs. 

They’re rich in lipotropics that help clear fats and toxins out of your liver. Organs like beef liver are also rich in cytochrome P450, an important class of enzymes that promotes your own liver’s detoxification abilities. Eating organic foods and supplementing with beef liver may help reduce your toxic load and keep your detox pathways healthy. 

Newly discovered nutrients

Organ meats are also rich in newly discovered types of nutrients. These include peptides, hormone-mimickers, rare growth factors, and more.  

Beef liver, for example, contains a special “anti-fatigue factor” (not a B vitamin) that remains undiscovered to this day. It’s possible that other organ meats — like kidney, sweetbreads, or heart — also contain unknown fertility-boosting substances. Perhaps modern science still has a few things to learn from the traditional practice of eating organ meats during pregnancy, after all.” - Info taken from the Hirsch Blog on Fertility

If you are new to organ meats, the recommendation is to start slowly and build up to the 6 capsules per day, or follow your intuition on what your body needs.

It’s a relief to me to know that by taking my Hirsch Beef Liver Supplements, I am meeting the needs of my body and baby in the most bio-available and natural way.

The same principles apply in pregnancy, and postpartum where nutrient requirements continue to grow.

You may have some questions about whether Vitamin A is safe in pregnancy:

“Unfortunately, pregnant women are advised to avoid vitamin A rich foods like beef liver and cod liver oil. This recommendation is given because of a study done that linked some birth defects to vitamin A supplementation. The key here is that they were correlated and that this was a recall study--they called the participants and had them do a survey. This typically has a very low accuracy rate. I also think it's worth noting that the study was on vitamin A supplements and not foods that are high in vitamin A. Hopefully, you know by now that isolated nutrients don't work the same as a whole food version of that nutrient. Beef liver, for example, has a lot of vitamin A, but it also has a significant serving of copper, which works with vitamin A in the body. While supplementing with an isolated version of vitamin A may be too much (even though many studies show this isn't an issue), eating the real thing provides a lower dose of vitamin A with other essential nutrients. “ - Taken from the Hormone Healing RD Blog on Prenatals.

Vitamin A in the form of retinol is actually vital for cell growth and organ development in pregnancy.

Other supplements I choose to take intuitively include:

• Rosita’s cod liver oil (another form of copper/retinol/vitamin A)

• Vitamin K2 (deficiencies are common, and K2 is vital to skeletal development.)

• Vitamin E (antioxidant properties, anti-PUFA, supporting for skin and amniotic sac)

• Methylfolate (prevents neural tube defects, neurological issues and paralysis)

• Magnesium Glycinate (most of us are already depleted and requirements go up in pregnancy)

• Vitamin C as Acerola (antioxidant, supports progesterone, works with copper to reduce inflammation

• Ashwaghanda (adaptogen which supports stress in the body)

• Reishi (ancient super-mushroom with various benefits including having a “Reishi baby” known to be calm!)

• Iodine (another mineral many of us are deficient in, and requirements go up in pregnancy. The RDA for iodine during pregnancy is 220mcg and 290mcg during lactation.)

I try to get as much of my nutrition from food, so if I know I’ve eaten oranges or strawberries, I don’t take my vitamin C.

If I have an Epsom salt bath, I may skip the magnesium.

If I have eaten plenty of leafy greens, I will skip the folate.

And if my body feels uneasy as I’m about to take any of my supplements, I skip them.

Remember, you intuitively know what’s best for you and your baby sister!

What has your experience with prenatal supplements been?

Will you be trying beef liver supplements? You can get 10% off your first order at Hirsch with my link here and using the code SAIMA10 at check out!

Let me know your thoughts in the comments.

If you’d like to do a deep dive in to this topic and look at your personal diet, you can book a 1:1 with me here.

Extra Resources

Hirsch Organic Blog Post on Organ Meats as a Fertility Food: https://blog.hirschorganic.com/organ-meats-fertility-when-trying-to-get-pregnant/

Hormone Healing RD Blog on Prenatals: https://www.hormonehealingrd.com/blog/prenatal-nutrition

Hormone Healing RD Podcast on Prenatal Nutrition: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/are-you-menstrual/id1568547321?i=1000540340514

Cyclical Podcast on Early Pregnancy: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/cyclical-podcast/id1452308850?i=1000558593660