Pregnancy Health Enhancement

Folic acid:

Folic acid is the most important of all prenatal vitamins. If any woman is able to become pregnant, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommends a daily supplement of folic acid at a dose of 0.4-0.8 mg per day to prevent the possibility of neural tube defects (44).

Hepatitis B:

All women who become pregnant are recommended by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) to be tested for hepatitis B infection at the first prenatal visit (1st visit to the obstetrician after becoming pregnant) because the transmission of the virus to the baby can potentially be prevented (19).

Antibody testing:

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommends Rh blood typing with antibody testing during the first prenatal care visit and a repeat Rh antibody test for women who are Rh negative between 24 and 28 weeks gestation only if the father is not known to be Rh negative (21). If a woman is Rh negative, the baby may develop a severe anemia related to Rh disease which destroys the fetal red blood cells, and this can be prevented by giving the mother Rh immune globulin at 28 weeks (22).