This is why who formulates your supplements matters. There’s a reason why we only trust a registered dietitian with 20+ years experience in fertility nutrition to create something that isn’t just effective, but also safe (with 3rd party test results to back it up). #prenatalvitamins #dietarysupplements #supplements #fertility #reproductivehealth
We Have a Problem: Safety, Ethics, and Quality Control in Prenatal Supplements When it comes to the health of vulnerable populations—like pregnant women and their unborn children—compromises in safety and quality control are unacceptable. A study just published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition (November 2024) sheds light on a critical issue: prenatal multivitamins, both over-the-counter and prescription, are falling short on multiple fronts. Among 47 products tested, alarming levels of toxic heavy metals were detected: seven exceeded the United States Pharmacopeia (USP)’s purity limits for arsenic, two for lead, and thirteen for cadmium—elements linked to kidney, bone, and neurological damage with chronic exposure. Additionally, nutrient labeling and content were inconsistent. Ex. only five of the 12 products listing choline contained the labeled amount, despite choline’s essential role in fetal brain development. While the USP sets baseline safety limits for heavy metals (e.g., 10 μg/day for lead), California’s stricter (20x stricter) Prop 65 limits (e.g., 0.5 μg/day for reproductive harm) highlight the inadequacy of federal standards for vulnerable groups. Yet, neither regulatory framework guarantees transparency or accountability for prenatal supplement brands. This is compounded by the study’s decision to omit brand names—an ethical dilemma when public health is at stake. I founded FullWell in part after reading a similar study published in Canada years ago that revealed significant contamination in prenatal supplements. As a Registered Dietitian specializing in reproductive health in private practice, I experienced firsthand how few companies shared their test results, instead relying on a “take our word for it” mentality. That simply isn’t enough during this critical stage of life. Even more concerning, most formulas lacked clinically significant amounts—if any—of key nutrients. It’s clear that supplements are rarely formulated by health practitioners with specific nutrition expertise, and when they are, formulas are often edited down by decision-makers prioritizing cost over the profound implications of these choices. The prenatal supplement industry needs to embrace accountability through third-party testing with stringent standards and radical transparency in sharing results. With the current political climate, enforcement may or may not come from government regulatory bodies. However, it’s up to us—consumers, practitioners, and companies prioritizing evidence-based care—to demand better. We have the power to drive change. Will the rest of the industry meet this challenge? Or will it require public and market pressure to drive change? I can tell you, as the current founder and CEO of a perinatal dietary supplement company (FullWell), that it is absolutely possible to run a profitable, scalable business while maintaining the quality, safety, and efficacy of the products. There’s no excuse for anything less.