Consumer Reports: Many Prenatal Vitamins Lack Key Nutrients—See Top Picks

Consumer Reports has evaluated 15 popular prenatal vitamins, uncovering that several products on the market lack essential nutrients such as iron, calcium or choline that the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) recommends. Nutritionist Jessica D'Argenio Waller, MS, CNS, LDN, stresses prioritizing folic acid, calcium, iron, iodine, choline, vitamins A, C, D and the B complex—and consulting your doctor to tailor supplementation.

• Top Picks: Bird & Be The Prenatal Essentials and Nature Made Prenatal Multivitamin Folic Acid + DHA Softgels met most daily targets.
• Expert Advice: Look for third-party seals (NSF, USP, ConsumerLab.com) and continue prenatal vitamins through breastfeeding, as advised by health professionals.

CHARLESTON, S.C. — Dr. Sara Ritchie, Associate Professor of Pediatrics at MUSC Children's Health, outlines evidence-based guidelines to create a safe sleep environment and lower sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) risk. Key steps include placing babies on their backs on a firm, flat surface free of soft bedding, dressing them in light sleep clothing, and avoiding bed-sharing.
• Back sleeping on a bare crib mattress is essential.
• Room-sharing—not bed-sharing—until at least six months can cut SIDS risk by up to 50%.
Additional measures such as breastfeeding, timely immunizations, supervised tummy time, and offering a pacifier at sleep times further protect infants under one year.

A retrospective analysis of 6,025 US adults shows that having dependent children is associated with significantly younger age at initial stapedectomy for otosclerosis in both women and men.

Key findings:

• Women with children: surgery at 39.3 vs 49.9 years for childless women (P < .0001)


• Men with children: surgery at 40.5 vs 51.3 years for childless men (P < .0001)

Regression identified female sex (β=−1.38; P<.001) and number of children (β=−5.34; P<.001) as predictors, with no sex–children interaction (P=.186), pointing to social factors such as increased healthcare utilization rather than pregnancy physiology.