It’s a known fact that vitamin and mineral supplements are essential for a healthy pregnancy and beyond. But did you know that most over the counter vitamins use fillers such as coal tar, sand, dirt, and soap to bind the vitamins together? The FDA only requires manufactures to list the active ingredients within their product and not the fillers. These such vitamins do not have the synergic compounds of naturally-derived Vitamins. The result is that they are neither as well absorbed nor beneficial to your body. On the other hand, taking supplements that are made from naturally-derived whole food based sources allow your body to recognize the vitamins and minerals. This results in better absorption and positive benefits.

Here are a few ways to check and see if your body is actually digesting your current supplement and whether or not it contains fillers:

1 Soak one of your vitamins in about 3 inches of white vinegar for about 20 minutes. If you come back to an intact un-dissolved capsule, then it is most likely not dissolving in your stomach. Instead it is just passing through you body and finding its place in your toilet.

2 If you see dirt floating to the surface of your vinegar, then most likely the manufacturer is using sawdust as their filler.

3 Take a dry vitamin and wrap it in aluminum foil and bake it in the oven at 350 for about 10 minutes. If you see some black goo creep out, that signals coal as filler.

Here are 3 products on the market that use whole foods as their base for their supplements and stand out from the average supplement such as Centrum

Honestly, I have only and only use Shaklee supplements (when I remember to take them ;P. After seeing & learning about the company on Treehugger, Healthy Child Healthy World, Oprah, Dr. Oz and its website, I became an independent distributor and brand loyalist for it made sense to me. They have both a multi-vitamin with an iron and non-iron formula (more practical for men).

Please use this information provided as an educational, perspective expansion resource for determining your options and making your own informed choices. It is not intended as medical advice or to diagnose, prescribe, or treat any specific illness.

Tuesday night, I hosted the “Be Thankful and Biodynamic” event at the Jurlique concept store in Soho. With Thanksgiving just next week, and all of the wonderful new mothers I have been meeting of late, I was inspired to celebrate and connect the brilliance of biodynamics and motherhood.

I created this workshop to establish a dialogue & platform, for mothers to be and women in general, to try on a biomimicry/holistic thinking cap. I chose to hold the event at Jurlique for the company and their products are truly at the top echelon of environmentally sound, holistic and ethical companies. From sustainable packaging, including vegetable based inks and plastic made from corn, the Australian based company sees to it that all of the ingredients used to make their products are grown by the principles of biodynamic farming.

I gave a brief lecture on the benefits of a selected collection of Jurlique’s biodynamic essential oils and how they can enhance or support a mother in her 2nd or 3rd trimester; as well as those oils to refrain from during these times. The delicious Babycakes NYC, provided ridiculously amazing vegan brownies and chocolate chip cookies for the guest and the incredible staff at Jurlique- Soho gave guests biodynamic facials and hand massages. Guest walked away with wonderful Jurlique products for mother and baby as well as useful information on essential oils, mayan abdominal massage & resources for sustaining a baby/child’s creativity and expression.

Pregnancy is not only a transformation of a woman’s body, but her emotional state-of-mind as well. Doctors and scientists have confirmed that a mother’s emotional state significantly influences the health of her child. A baby’s birth weight and stress level can be influenced by an overly stressed or anxious mother. The hormonal changes that the female body undergoes during pregnancy can lead to many discomforts — from morning sickness, body aches, swelling to stretch marks.

The majority of all over the counter medicines and traditional remedies are off-limits to expecting moms. Though, during childbirth, a new category of sensations, ache and pain arises and in this case a variety of medicines are commonly administered. I ask myself, why? Women deserve the right to have access to the knowledge and options of natural alternatives to alleviate their discomforts, aches and pains throughout pregnancy and childbirth. The history of aromatherapy dates back to about 4500 BC and it is my opinion that a resurgence of attention to the practice of aromatherapy(essential oils) and botany, would do our healthcare system good (the ingredients would have to be grown sustainably of course).

Visit these links to learn more about essential oils and how they may be incorporated into your holistic pregnancy and lifestyle. Please do consult with your doctor before adopting any routine into your overall pregnancy and make the right choice for you:

Overview of Essential oils for pregnancy & childbirth
Some beneficial oils for pregnancy
Oils to abstain from during pregnancy
Perineum Massage
Lavender oils’ potential estrogenic effects on pre-adolescent infants & boys (DO KNOW WHERE YOUR LAVENDER IS COMING FROM AND WHAT OTHER INGRIDENTS ACCOMPANY THE PRODUCT THAT YOU ARE USING? )
Blend Recipes
More Blends
Aromatheraphy Practioner Certification

Water is an unsung hero throughout the duration of one’s pregnancy. Not only does it help to build new tissue & carry nutrients to your baby, it also keeps your baby floating in its cushion of amniotic fluid and prevents the uterus from contracting before its time. This, along with several other reasons, is why it is so ever important to make sure you intake in the purest water possible.

While several people live in new construction residences, many, especially city dwellers reside in buildings which have old pluming lines. One can look at their governmental water rating systems and see statements which claim their drinking water is pure and/or enhanced with fluoride or chlorine, and one could be alarmed after hearing about traces of pharmaceuticals in our water. At the end of the day, aside from the condition of the water, the water still has to be transported through your building’s pluming and that process can contaminate your water even further. The point I am trying to make is that it is very important to take action and do our part to grab hold of the reigns to our overall health by taking a few extra steps.

There are several ways to filter our drinking water and transport that filtered water around. From over the counter mounted filters, to below, there are various effective products within several price ranges on the market. Do make sure you do your research for certain filter & systems can leach bacteria in the water if its instructions aren’t followed carefully. A bit of background research is highly suggested, or consulting a consultant about such purchases is suggested as well. After you have your filtered water, take it with you to your office, the gym, or just on the go with one of these eco-friendly containers.

All of these tips are for everyone and can easily be incorporated into the lives of infants to retirees, but especially for women with child, clean water is essential for a healthy pregnancy.