Rich Vitamin D Foods To Support Pregnancy
Vitamin D is essential for immunity, bone health and placenta health for pregnancy. Here are some rich vitamin D foods to support pregnancy.
Vitamin D deficiency is a global health crisis in pregnancy. On average, up to 50% of women are deficient in Vitamin D during pregnancy and up to 90% depending on factors like skin tone, sunscreen use and the latitude at which someone lives.
Having adequate levels of Vitamin D during pregnancy is important because it determines the baby’s Vitamin D status at birth. When a baby has low Vitamin D levels, this increases her chance of respiratory problems, low immunity, low birth weight, increased risk of autoimmune disease and poor language development.
While you can always bask in the sun every day and receive your Vitamin D intake, for those who are pregnant during winter or live in a colder climate, Vitamin D foods are important to consume regularly.
What I will cover in this post
- The difference between Vitamin D3 and Vitamin D2
- The risks for mother and baby with a Vitamin D deficiency
- Rich Vitamin D foods to support pregnancy
- Supplementation
The difference between Vitamin D3 and Vitamin D2
Vitamin D3, also known as cholecalciferol is only found in animal sourced foods.
Vitamin D2, also known as ergocalciferol is only found in plant based and fortified foods.
Vitamin D3 is 87% more potent in raising and maintaining serum 25(OH)D concentrations and produces 2-3 greater storage of Vitamin D than D2 (Study).
The risks for mother and baby with a Vitamin D deficiency
Risks of Vitamin D deficiency for mothers:
- Lowered immunity
- Increased risk of miscarriage
- Risk of pre-eclampsia
- Gestational diabetes
- Type 1 diabetes
- Multiple sclerosis
- Mental health challenges.
Risk of Vitamin D deficiency for babies:
- Low birth weight
- Growth restriction in infancy
- Asthma
- Poor language development
- Bone fragility
- Increased risk of type 1 diabetes
- Increased incidence of autoimmune diseases.
Rich Vitamin D foods to support pregnancy
I will list Vitamin D foods that are wonderful to supporting a healthy pregnancy. Consuming D3 foods daily is best for maintaining healthy Vitamin D stores and sustaining your baby’s Vitamin D stores, especially at birth.
Rich Vitamin D3 foods (from highest to lowest form. Important to note to cook all forms of seafood well before consuming):
Cod liver oil, salmon, snapper, mackerel, herring, trout, roe, halibut, white fish, milk (preferably whole and unhomogenised), tuna, egg yolk, beef liver and pork.
Vitamin D2 foods (mostly fortified):
Some mushrooms exposed to UV light, like portobello, maitake and morel.
Plant-based milks like soy, almond and rice milk contain Vitamin D2.
As mentioned, Vitamin D3 is more effective in filling more Vitamin D stores than Vitamin D2. So if you follow a plant-based diet, then I would consider supplementing with Vitamin D3 during pregnancy and breastfeeding.
Supplementation
If you naturally have low Vitamin D levels shown in blood work, live in a colder climate with limited sunlight, have a darker skin tone or do not eat sufficient foods containing Vitamin D, then I would strongly suggest taking a Vitamin D3 supplement.
The recommended daily intake of Vitamin D is approximately 2000-4000IU. It is recommended to take a higher dose if living in a colder climate or pregnant.
If you are pregnant and already have low Vitamin D levels, I would recommend taking a 5000IU Vitamin D supplement at minimum.
You can also take a fish oil supplement that combines both Vitamin D3 and Omega 3 and check how much Vitamin D3 it contains to receive the benefits of both nutrients.
I recommend this Vitamin D3 supplement to pregnant women.
I hope that you find this post helpful. Please leave a comment if you have any questions.
