Should I supplement???

[gatorgrrl]

If I am pregnant do you think I should take a prenatal vitamin?

[Sharon in Colorado]

Not if you are eating your nutrients first hand from fruits and vegetables.

[gatorgrrl]

well, I am but I seem to be not getting enough calcium

[rawpriestess]

Well, I was adament about NOT supplimenting my foods with any kind of suppliment, I read alot and I researched alot, then I finally asked my body what it wanted. for some reason, I needed probiotics and enzymes, and B vitamins, so I decided since my body told me to take them, I would, I am happy and when these bottles are finished, I may not take any more.


went vegetarian over 11 years ago because my body told me to, I went raw because my body told me too, I didn't take suppliments for many years because my body told me not to, so now that my body is telling me to take suppliments, I am, but that is me.

If you need calcium, sesame seeds is great!!!

[gatorgrrl]

Great I will try some sesame seeds. That seems to be the only thing I am insufficent in.

[vgloveforlife]

If I were you I would take a supplement (liquid or powder) once and awhile..not everday but maybe two times a week just to insure that you and the baby are getting everything you need.

Some good sources of calcium are kale, tahini, almond butter, carob, figs among other foods.

Here's a good link:

http://www.interlog.com/~john13/recipes/calcium.htm

[PDMagnusen]

Hey, gatorgrrl. It's hard for me to give advice on this topic because I haven't been pregnant, but I will give you my thoughts anyway :) . From what I hear and witnessed when my sister had children, prenatal vitamins are very important to the development of the baby. In my mind, it would seem that these vitamins are mostly for the majority of people who are on a SAD diet and are not getting nearly enough vitmins and nutrients for themselves, let alone a growing fetus. If you are raw and feel that you are getting enough variety in your diet, I would think you would be okay. But if you are new to raw (I can't remember what you've said in past post regarding this), then you may want to consider taking supplements. I know for me, I was raw for 4 month or so before I even started getting into a good groove of eating the proper variety of foods my body needs. I am still learning what is working and not working for me. How many weeks preganant are you? How long have you been raw?

Priscilla

[gatorgrrl]

Thanks so much for everyone's thoughts on this matter.

PD

Officially I do not know if I am pg. If I am thats mean I'm 4 1/2 weeks. I have been off and on failrly high raw for 2 1/2 years, but only 15 days ago did I commit to making this 100%, 100% of the time. I miscarried about 1 1/2 yrs ago and during that period my diet was what I would consider a healthy SAD if that is even possible. I was taking prenatals and I tracked my nutrients and was sufficient in my diet of everything but Folate, which is the most important thing during early pregnancy. I am pround to say that now on a daily basis 100% raw I consume 3-5 times the RDA recommedations of Folate.

[Dimond]

I personally wouldn't take a chance if I was pregnant & would definitely supplement to make sure my baby is healthy. A good whole food organic supplement can only help.

[gatorgrrl]

I take Natures First Law Raw Superfood. Do ya'll think this would do the trick?

I have the prenatal vitamins the my dr perscribes, but it bothers me just looking at them. They sure don't look raw to me. ewwwwww

[NFrawRUNNER]

Gotta agree with "Gilmore Girl" A good whole foods supplement can only help...Think of it as insurance. Even at 100% raw our foods aren't always 100% full of the nutrition they claim to be due to soil depletion, etc... I wouldn't risk it and I am a mom to 5!!! :eek:

[harp]

i am not a pregnant or even a woman, on top of that i am newly raw and more ignorant than not. still from what research i have done supplements can be harmful. i would check with gosia who is a woman and knowledgable and presents an alternative view which thus far makes more sense to me than supplementing. you might want to check with rawschool.com also. there are plenty of folks who will recomend supplementing so i won't list them. it's not an easy choice but to me it just seems sensible if you're eating the right foods why do we need supplements?

peas,

harp raw food dude?

[Sunshine9]

If it was my body and my baby I would ABSOLUTELY SUPPLEMENT. Pregnancy is not a time to use yourself as a lab rat if you are new to the living foods world. Ideally yes you would get all your nutrition from fruits and vegetables, but right at the beginning of raw we usually are not assimiliating nearly what we should be from our fruits and veggies because our systems have been weakened by cooked food. I would agree though that most general supplements are in fact harmful with a lot of additives, so I would do a lot of research and then look into the best supplements on the market. Perhaps Nature's First Law, Tree of Life, Healthforce.. there are some great companies out there promoting the best quality supplements. I know Gabriel Cousens has done a lot of research on pregnancy nutrition and raising live food babies. Check out "Conscious Eating" and "Rainbow Green Live-Food Cuisine."

Congrats if you are in fact pregnant... :)

[squidly]

Supplementing is your choice but remember that many supplements are nothing more than a toxic waste to your body. Supplements are synthetic, not in a balanced proportion as is found in your food and can also lead to overdosing on certain nutrients if your body is already sufficient in them. Your body will often spend more energy ridding the waste products of supplementation.

More important than supplements to your growing baby is an environment that is non toxic - minimal stress, lots of love, organic raw foods, music, exercise and more loving care. Don't stress about supplmentation.

I have a blood disorder that makes my blood die ten times fater than normal and so have trouble getting enough B12, folic acid or iron yet even with this disease a vegan diet increased my levels of everything except b12 so it is the only supplement I have - 3 needles every 3 years or so. My little girl was born healthy and is beautiful, intelligent and happy. A blood doctor even told me that he though it was great I was vegan and that it should meet all my requirements even while pregnant as long as I kept up my greens for folate - go the green smoothies!!

Anyway I am rambling - fingers crossed for being pregnant - I would love to be pregnant again. Enjoy the journey!!