Posted by Hugh on December 16, 2017, at 14:40:03
In reply to Schizophrenia begins in the womb, posted by Hugh on November 26, 2017, at 13:36:23
Most prenatal vitamins have too much folic acid (which can increase the risk of autism) and none of them have enough choline. Dr. Tod Cooperman recommends taking no more than 400 mcg of folic acid per day during pregnancy, and most prenatal vitamins contain 800 mcg.
"Researchers [at Johns Hopkins University] found that if a new mother has a very high level of folate right after giving birth -- more than four times what is considered adequate -- the risk that her child will develop a condition on the autism spectrum doubles. Very high vitamin B12 levels in new moms are also potentially harmful, tripling the risk that her offspring will develop an autism spectrum disorder. If both levels are extremely high, the risk that a child develops the condition increases 17.6 times."
Complete article about the Johns Hopkins study:
https://hub.jhu.edu/2016/05/12/too-much-folate-pregnant-autism/
It's also important for pregnant women to supplement with iodine. Even though salt in the US has been iodized since 1924, Americans' iodine intake has fallen dramatically because fast foods and processed foods are made with salt that isn't iodized, and kosher salt isn't iodized, and sea salt usually isn't iodized. So 80% of the salt Americans consume is not iodized. Dr. Cooperman recommends 150 mcg of iodine per day from a supplement, plus more from your diet.
He recommends 27 mg of iron per day during pregnancy. B vitamins are also important during pregnancy, but be very careful not to get too much B12 or folic acid.
Dr. Cooperman can't recommend any brand of prenatal vitamins, because all of them are so far behind the science. So pregnant women might be better off taking a regular multivitamin that contains 150 mcg of iodine, 27 mg of iron, and no more than 400 mcg of folic acid, and then taking a separate choline supplement (phosphatidylcholine is best).
Here is Dr. Cooperman's talk on prenatal vitamins:
poster:Hugh
thread:1096070
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20161215/msgs/1096351.html