Prenatal Vitamins & Minerals (Multiple Micronutrient Supplements, MMS)
Vitamin Angels works save lives and improve maternal and child health by scaling up access to MMS globally.
Every woman has a right to a healthy pregnancy.
Vitamin Angels and our partners are advancing MMS acceptance, uptake, and adherence among pregnant women around the world.
Nutrition During Pregnancy
Women have increased nutritional needs during pregnancy — to take care of their health and support their babies’ rapid growth and development — which often cannot be met through diet alone. Pregnancy can increase the required daily intake of several key vitamins and minerals by as much as 50%. This heightened demand is especially challenging in low- and middle-income countries, where many women in underserved communities are already deficient in several micronutrients even before pregnancy.
Malnutrition During Pregnancy
Poor maternal nutrition can cause babies to be born too soon or too small, resulting in more than 800,000 newborn deaths annually. Additionally, undernourished women are more likely to develop serious complications during pregnancy and childbirth. For example, anemia — commonly caused by iron deficiency — affects 36% of pregnant women and can increase the risk of death due to postpartum hemorrhage, the leading cause of maternal mortality.
The consequences of poor maternal nutrition carry into childhood and beyond. Children born to undernourished women are more likely to experience physical and cognitive setbacks that can keep them from reaching their full potential as adults.
Formulating the Micronutrients in Vitamin Angels’ Nutritional Supplement
The MMS formulation provided by Vitamin Angels is consistent with the United Nations International Multiple Micronutrient Antenatal Preparation (UNIMMAP) MMS formula and manufactured to international quality standards. The UNIMMAP MMS formulation contains 15 vitamins and minerals, including iron and folic acid, in recommended doses that have been proven to be effective in multiple regions. UNIMMAP MMS is on the World Health Organization’s Essential Medicines List.
Vitamin Angels is Working to Advance Access to MMS
Wherever they live, mothers share a common goal: making a better life for their children. Vitamin Angels connect pregnant women with MMS to help them have healthier pregnancies and help their babies get the best start in life. In addition to directly supplying MMS, Vitamin Angels works with our partners, including governments, to build demand for MMS, secure a steady global supply, and influence policy to support MMS.
Learn about how Barriers to Access can prevent women from having a healthy pregnancy.
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