Ritual Essential Prenatal Multivitamin Review

Ritual Essential Prenatal Multivitamins are supplements for pregnant women and women who are trying to get pregnant. The company was founded by its CEO, Katerina Schneider, who became interested in vitamins when she became pregnant and couldn’t find a prenatal supplement she trusted.

In addition to prenatal supplements, the Ritual product line includes a variety of multivitamin products formulated for women (18+ and 50+), for men (18+ and 50+), postnatal women, teens (male and female) and kids (4+). Ritual also offers protein shakes specially formulated for men, women and pregnant and postnatal women.

The Essential prenatal multivitamin, like all Ritual products, operates on a subscription model—once you sign up, you receive the product monthly unless you cancel or reschedule your order. Ritual promises clean ingredients that are traceable. On its website, you can find the source and origin of each ingredient. For example, its vitamin D3 comes from the lichen plant produced by a supplier in Nottingham, U.K.  Additionally, each bottle of the Essential Prenatal Multivitamin comes enhanced with lemon—via a citrus tab—to keep the pills fresh, and includes delayed-release capsules that are designed to dissolve later in less sensitive areas of the stomach, according to Ritual.

Ritual contends it spent nearly three years developing its prenatal multivitamin, and told Forbes Health in a statement that it took a multi-step approach that included, “reviewing national databases to understand common nutrient gaps across different ages, sexes and life stages; auditing for nutrient gaps specific to certain lifestyles; and factoring in genetic variations that make it hard to efficiently utilize certain nutrient forms.”

Ritual Essential Prenatal vitamins have just 12 ingredients, fewer than most prenatal multis on the market. For example, One a Day Advanced contains 21 vitamins and minerals. Ritual’s reasoning behind its simplicity is that most people already get adequate amounts of many of the vitamins and minerals found in typical prenatal multis through the foods they eat.

“We take a food-first approach to nutrient intake when formulating our products, meaning you should aim to meet most of your nutrient needs through diet, and supplementation should help fill the gaps,” Ritual told Forbes Health in a statement. “When comparing the latest national reports of nutrient intake through diet to what expecting mothers actually need, the research revealed that many pregnant women were getting plenty of certain nutrients such as zinc, vitamin A and vitamin B6.”

When it comes to prenatal health, though, “It can be dangerous to assume all women have similar diets and nutrient shortfalls,” says Forbes Health Advisory Board member Taylor Wallace, Ph.D., founder and CEO of the Think Healthy Group and adjunct professor of nutrition and food studies at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia.

While Wallace isn’t opposed to a pared-down supplement for most adults, he’s a fan of covering all the bases during pregnancy. However, he agrees the vitamins and minerals in the Ritual Essential Prenatal Multivitamin are ones many women of childbearing age don’t get enough of from diet alone.

Here’s what’s in the Ritual Essential prenatal multivitamin.

The nutrients found in Ritual’s prenatal multivitamin are included in the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) Committee on Nutrition policy statement that discusses the most important nutrients for brain development in the first 1,000 days of life. The AAP defined the first 1,000 days as the period starting with conception through the first two years of life.

It’s worth noting, however, that the policy statement included other important nutrients for brain development that are not included in the Essential Prenatal. These are zinc and vitamins A and B6, as well as protein (an extreme rarity in prenatal multivitamins).

Another important point to keep in mind about supplements and vitamins: It’s not just about what’s in the pill, but how much of it your body absorbs. So, while a supplement may have 100% of the daily requirement of a particular mineral, a much smaller percentage of that may actually be absorbed. That’s why it’s important to also eat foods rich in the vitamins and minerals your body needs for optimal prenatal health, while also taking your prenatal vitamin.

Here are the health benefits of six of the vitamins and minerals as well as a certain fat contained in the Ritual Essential prenatal multivitamin.

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(Note: Product details and prices are accurate as of publication and are subject to change.)

Vitamin D3

Vitamin D during pregnancy is important for a baby’s bone, tooth enamel and overall growth and development. Research suggests a vitamin D deficiency can play a role in preeclampsia and preterm birth risk, as well as impact both mom and baby’s ability to fight disease and infection.

Iron

During pregnancy, your body’s need for iron increases in order to make more blood to supply your baby with enough oxygen. According to the Committee on Nutritional Status During Pregnancy and Lactation, iron deficiency during pregnancy can increase both mom’s and baby’s risk of iron-deficiency anemia and increase the risk of premature birth and low birth weight.

Folate

Getting enough folate (or folic acid) before and during pregnancy helps prevent neural tube defects. When the neural tube does not close properly, it can result in severe birth defects of the brain and spine.

Ritual points out that its prenatal purposefully includes folate in the form of 5-MTHF as opposed to folic acid (the synthetic form of folate), citing that folate in this form, “bypasses common gene variations that make the conversion of folic acid to folate more difficult” for some people.

Iodine

Thyroid hormones regulate key processes in the development of your baby’s brain and nervous system. Iodine is required to produce adequate amounts of thyroid hormone. When pregnant women don’t get enough iodine, it can result in cognitive impairment and thyroid deficiency in the fetus.

Choline

“Choline helps a baby’s brain and spinal cord develop properly,” says Wallace. “And most pregnant women and breastfeeding moms aren’t getting enough of it. The American Medical Association recommends pregnant women consume 450 milligrams of choline a day, though it doesn’t say that this amount should specifically come from a supplement.

“Since choline is really bulky, most prenatal vitamins only contain 30 to 55 milligrams,” says Wallace. He adds that you can get choline from food sources, such as egg yolks.

DHA (docosahexaenoic acid)

DHA is a type of omega-3 fatty acid that plays a crucial role in the development of a baby’s brain and retina. It’s found in seafood and algae. Pregnant women in the U.S. eat little fish and therefore may not get the recommended amount of 200 milligrams of DHA per day.

Ritual Essential Prenatal Multivitamins cost $35 for a 30-day supply, which is significantly more expensive than most OTC options. For example, it’s roughly twice the cost of One a Day Advanced (which contains the same nutrients as Ritual with the exception of vitamin K and boron) and roughly three times the cost of NatureMade Prenatal Multi + DHA. However, NatureMade doesn’t contain vitamin K or choline.

Why don’t other prenatal vitamin companies include these ingredients? Wallace speculates that, “Some of the bigger companies shy away from putting vitamin K in their product, since it’s involved with blood clotting. I don’t really see a huge need to have vitamin K in a multivitamin, even though a significant number of people don’t get enough from food,” he says. “Boron is a trace nutrient that’s needed in only extremely tiny quantities. To my knowledge there’s never been a reason to include it in a multivitamin, as deficiency is extremely rare, ” he adds.

While your insurance company may cover the cost of prescription prenatal vitamins, most don’t cover OTC formulations. You can usually use flexible spending account (FSA) or health savings account (HSA) funds to pay for prenatal vitamins. Ritual advises that you check with your provider to confirm eligibility.

Ritual Essential Prenatal Multivitamins contain key ingredients many experts recommend for women who are pregnant or trying to get pregnant. However, many other prenatal vitamins provide the same nutrients at a much lower price.

The Ritual Essential Prenatal Multivitamin may be right for you if:

• You like products that detail the sources of their ingredients and are traceable.
• You know your diet is nutritious and would prefer a supplement with pared-down vitamins and minerals to the ones you might be missing from diet alone.
• You don’t want to worry about when you’re due for a refill (Ritual’s subscription service ensures your supplements will arrive every month unless you cancel or reschedule).
• You are a vegan or vegetarian, as Ritual doesn’t use any animal products.

It may not be right for you if:

• You are cost-conscious and satisfied with less expensive brands that also have high-quality ingredients and are safe and effective.
• You think you would benefit from the additional vitamins and minerals that other brands contain (or you’re not concerned about taking them).
• You don’t want to pay extra for features that don’t directly enhance your nutrition.