I need help, my cousins living in Lahore just found out that she is pregnant and i advised her to start taking prenatal vitamins. She visited her OB yesterday for the first visit and wasn’t instructed to take any. That was the first thing i was told to start taking when i got pregnant (that was in the US,) so i was wondering if any mommies from Lahore or Pakistan in general can recommend any prenatal vitamins. Also are they available over the counter or your OB has to write a prescription?
I took premat F A while in pak but my soc starred me adter 1st tri. I took folic acid 5mg daily in first tri. She only needs folic acid in first tri a lot of docs dnt give multi vit until after first tri.
Both available otc.
She needs multivitamins+folic acid+dha, not just folic acid.
I am sure your friend can find them in pharmacy, if not prenatal, she can take regular multivitamin + folic acid. If she can find dha caps then add that too.
400 microgram of folic acid (not 5mg) once a day upto 12 weeks of pregnancy is the recommended dose.
And vitamin D 10 microgram throughout pregnancy and if bfing.
If your cousin is taking multivitamins, make sure not to supplement vit A.
Im sorry though don’t know any particular brand.
Thank you!!! i really wanted to find a name to give her. She didn’t even know what prenatal vitmains were…and will be sending her hubby to get them. So a brand name would be great and easier to give her.
generally only folic acid tablets are given in the 1st trimester of pregnancy.iron supplements not given cos can increase the nausea and gastrointestinal upsets associated with the 1st trimester, also most multivitamins come with vit A and E which can have some teratogenic risks
and trimester onwards:
capsule fefol vit once daily or twice a day depending upon the hemoglobin levels :very highly recommended
tab pregnovit
tab trihemic
calcium supplementation also essential from 2nd tri onwards:
tab cac -1000…great tasting effervescent tabs once daily
chewcal tablets
ot cheaper but good option tab qalsan… strawberry flavour
all calcium tablets once daily
hope this helps
Thank you ladies!!! the information has been forwarded to my cousin.
I think its interesting how in Pakistan they don’t start the ladies on prenatal until the second trimester, but here in the US many start taking prenatal even while they are trying to conceive. Which to me makes more sense…wouldn’t it be the best practice to make sure the baby has all the needed vitamins from the get go.
They give antenatal supplements as well as folic acid and pregnacare etc right from te first trimester here as well.people here are over confident and super knowledgeable and dont go to doctors unless it is an emergency and then blame the healthcare system. Theyll spend on designer dresses and eating out but will look for waaqif doctor who prescribes for free when it comes to health issues. Many women do not go for booking with an obstetrician till 2nd trimester so thats when theyll be prescribed medicines
^ so true and sad. My cousins FIL said he will pick the hospital she will be delivering at…i think that is too funny!..also if my cousin was on GS there would have been a thread about this issue in Life1
Please note that overdose of certain vitamins have a teratogenic effect as someone has already mentioned. Means toxic, cancerous. Especially to a developing fetus*** hence it is avoided in first trimester to take anything other than folic acid. ***
Second trimester in pakistan they do give calcium and iron but it is best to keep a healthy and organic diet
Proto i ve always seen a reputable ob/gyn for all my pregnancies since day 1 and never prescribed any multi bvit other than folic acid and that too 5 mg. i know its high but thats the dtdrd wid a lot of ob gyns in pak. So yah not all ob guns prescribe multi vit in first tri.
I was prescribed premat FA as multi and calcium supplement on top. I forget the name of calcium supplement.
You need folic acid to prevent neural tube defects in the first few WEEKS of pregnancy which is why you start taking it BEFORE you conceive. There needs to be a two month dosage built up in your system of folic acid for it to work. If you start taking it in your first or second trimi, there’s very little to no point. It’s just an extra pill to swallow.
^ agreed SGC, but still unless you are planning a baby you cannot help but give this in first tri when a woman does come to you in the ob.gyn outdoor/clinic. I have been advising ALL married women to just take it if they are thinking of conceiving anytime in the year.
I was not prescribed anything except folic acid myself. The only thing I was asked was if I am not a vegetarian and consume fruits/veggies and milk regularly. I had iron in the last trimester only and during the months of BF
And you are right rabia, this is ridiculous. Jis ne pay karna hota hai, hospital wohi choose karta hai and some people even swith doctors last minute because they get antenatals done with good ones and then deliveries with the ones who charge less
^^ Omg that’s just crazy. Delivery is one of the most important parts of having a baby. The OB experience and expertise are really needed at that time. I was induced once i went over my 40 weeks. But after 8 hours of Pitocin and horrible doubling/back labor… every time my contraction went higher, baby’s heart rate would drop. OB decided to do a C-section, hubby wanted to wait, but she said no. Once they opened me up…they found out that the umbilical cord was around baby’s neck and when contraction increased the umbilical cord get tight on his neck….and the cord had 2 knots on it. The nurse told us to name our son lucky and that in her 16 years as an L&D nurse, she had seen very few babies survive the true knots (2 knots.) An inexperience OB would have waited for me to have a naturel birth…and things would have ended horribly. An experience OB is the way to go!!! A little money isnt worth a life.
and some people even swith doctors last minute because they get antenatals done with good ones and then deliveries with the ones who charge less 
