When Were Prenatal Vitamins Invented? A Short History.

on Feb 27 2025

By Jessica D'Argenio Waller, MS, CNS, LDN. She is a board-certified clinical nutritionist specializing in maternal, pediatric, and family health.

What is the prenatal pill — and why are experts rethinking it?

The prenatal pill was created in the early 20th century to prevent folate deficiency and neural tube defects, but modern research suggests synthetic prenatal vitamins may not be the most bioavailable or reliable way to nourish pregnancy today. This article explores the history of the prenatal pill, how it’s made, how it’s regulated, and why food-based prenatal nutrition may represent the future of maternal health.

Nutrition advice for a healthy pregnancy has been making the rounds for millennia (pomegranates and pig feet were common offerings in the Middle Ages¹), but it's only within the past 100 years that the prenatal vitamin was invented—and only within recent decades that it was popularized. Here's what to know about the history of the prenatal pill, how synthetic prenatal vitamins are made—and where the new standard for prenatal supplements is headed. Hint: The future's looking very bright.

What was the prenatal pill originally designed to do?

The prenatal pill was originally designed to prevent folate deficiency and reduce the risk of neural tube defects, particularly in high-risk pregnancies. Its primary goal was deficiency prevention, not full-spectrum maternal nourishment.

A brief history of the prenatal pill

When looking at the history of the prenatal pill, we start with folic acid, which essentially is the entire category's raison d'être. In 1931, scientist Lucy Wills published groundbreaking research about the existence of folic acid in the British Medical Journal. Wills discovered that when pregnant women diagnosed with anemia ate Marmite (which is rich in B vitamins—folate is also known as vitamin B9), their symptoms of anemia began to decrease. Folate was called "the Wills Factor" until 1941, when the nutrient was first isolated from spinach.

Decades later, in the 1980s, several clinical studies suggested a link between folic acid deficiency in pregnancy and infants born with neural tube defects, prompting folic acid supplements to be prescribed to pregnant women who were considered "high risk"², usually if they had previously given birth to an infant with a neural tube disorder.

More research began to show that the majority of pregnant women had a mild folate deficiency²—even though they weren't displaying signs of a full clinical disorder—suggesting that even healthy women could benefit from supplementing their folate levels in pregnancy.

Why did prenatal vitamins become widely recommended?

Prenatal vitamins became widely recommended in the 1990s after research showed that many women of childbearing age had mild folate deficiencies, even without symptoms. Public health agencies began recommending folic acid supplementation to reduce birth defect risk before pregnancy is confirmed.

In 1992, the US Public Health Service recommended 400 micrograms of supplemental folic acid be taken daily by all women of childbearing age.³ This spurred the birth of prenatal supplements with added folic acid as we generally know them today—though they've been through several significant iterations since their debut.

Nowadays, taking a prenatal supplement probably tops your to-do list if you're considering getting pregnant—especially given the fact that we now know the neural tube closes between day 15 and day 28 of pregnancy⁴. But it's unlikely that your grandmother or even your mother took a prenatal pill, as the supplements were primarily prescribed to high-risk pregnancies until their broader use in the 1990s.

Numerous women in the 20th century gave birth to healthy babies sans prenatal pills. Instead, they were able to glean the necessary nutrients to support their pregnancies through food. Granted, this was during a time when farmed food contained more natural vitamins and minerals than it does now, thanks to decades of soil-depleting farming practices⁵.

Today, taking a prenatal supplement is less of a suggestion and more of a necessity to ensure any nutrient gaps are covered. Prenatal supplements can be especially helpful to correct an existing nutrient deficiency.

Meanwhile, clinical research on prenatal nutrition continues to evolve. In the nearly 100 years since the Wills Factor was discovered, further studies have shown that 40% of the US population has one or two genetic mutations on the MTHFR gene that affects the metabolism of folate, including synthetic folic acid⁶. Responding to the findings, numerous supplement companies have started to include methylated folate (5-MTHF) in their prenatal pills in an effort to improve bioavailability. Today, some new research suggests that continuing to supplement with folic acid later in pregnancy, well after the neural tube has closed, may be linked to increased risk of asthma in children⁷, though more large-scale studies are needed to confirm the findings.

These studies show that, just like our grandmothers' generation inherently knew, nutrients are more effectively absorbed from food⁸ than from synthetic pills, begging the question: Is a prenatal pill still the best choice for you and your growing baby?

How are most prenatal pills made today?

Most prenatal pills consist of separate synthetic vitamin and mineral compounds that are then combined into a pill or capsule in a lab. In some cases, these micronutrients are derived from naturally occurring sources, like plants or animal byproducts, but in other cases, manufacturers rely on human-made compounds that are synthesized from industrial processes. (Sometimes, a petroleum base is used, as is common in vitamin A synthesis⁹.) Synthetic forms tend to be much less expensive to create and produce at scale—so they have become commonplace.

Are prenatal supplements regulated by the FDA?

Yes. As dietary supplements, prenatal supplements are regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, in similar ways to food, but they are not reviewed or approved before reaching the market. Manufacturers are responsible for safety and labeling accuracy, which has led to inconsistencies across products.

It's worth noting that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is not empowered to review supplements before they hit the market—which means that companies themselves are solely responsible for ensuring their products are safe and meet labeling and quality requirements before they hit the store shelves. While some supplement companies proudly share the sources of their raw ingredients and submit to third-party label verification and testing to ensure they uphold good manufacturing processes, the same can't be said for every synthetic prenatal pill brand in the category.

With no gold standard for review or regulation, discrepancies abound: A 2024 report from the Government Accountability Office found that the majority of prenatal supplements tested included at least one nutrient in an amount that didn't match what was on the label¹⁰.

The findings are worrying, as inaccurately labeled products could result in pregnant people consuming too much or too little of the nutrients needed for a healthy pregnancy. But experts state that the benefits of taking a prenatal supplement still outweigh the potential risks. That said, could there be a better option? That's where Nunona comes in.

Synthetic vs. food-based sources of select micronutrients: How Nunona compares

While synthetic nutrients are typically manufactured through complex chemical processes, Nunona takes a food-first approach. Nunona Mama Bites deliver essential pregnancy nutrients through organic, whole foods that your body naturally recognizes—and efficiently absorbs.

Select micronutrients important for pregnancy	Synthetic source commonly found in standard supplements	Food source in Nunona Mama Bites
Vitamin A	Chemical synthesis using a petroleum-derived acetone base.⁹	Organic sweet potato
Vitamin B9 (Folate)	Chemical synthesis involving a condensation reaction to link a pteridine ring with para-aminobenzoic acid (PABA) and then combining with glutamic acid.¹³	Organic spinach
Vitamin C	Chemical synthesis involving a microbial fermentation with the bacteria Acetobacter suboxydans¹⁴	Organic broccoli
Vitamin D3	Sourced from lanolin¹⁵ (a waxy substance secreted by sheep to condition their wool)	Organic maitake mushrooms
Iron	Chemical synthesis involving dissolving iron filings in acid and adjusting the pH¹⁶	Organic spinach
Choline	Choline bitartrate is produced via chemical synthesis by reacting tartaric acid and trimethylamine¹⁷	Organic sunflower seeds
Zinc	Zinc bisglycinate is produced via chemical synthesis by dissolving zinc oxide in a glycine solution and adjusting the pH	Organic pumpkin & pumpkin seeds

Nunona and the future of maternal nutrition

When it comes to maternal nutrition, it's only natural that you want to give your developing baby the best possible start. We know that food sources of vitamins and minerals are more bioavailable—and there's no label-reading required on a lemon. For mothers seeking an alternative to synthetic prenatal pills, Nunona Mama Bites offer a food-first approach to prenatal and postnatal nutrition, delivering 27 essential micronutrients in the form the body naturally recognizes and absorbs — entirely sourced from organic whole foods. Nunona's Mama Bites wholly replace the need for a prenatal pill, plus they're third-party tested and manufactured in the US. By prioritizing closest-to-nature nutrition, Nunona is reimagining a world in which mothers and babies can thrive, thanks to whole food forms of the crucial vitamins and minerals necessary for this major life stage—now, and well into the future.

Key Takeaways: Prenatal Pills vs Food-Based Nutrition

Prenatal pills were designed to prevent deficiencies, not optimize whole-body nourishment
Synthetic vitamins may be less bioavailable than food-bound nutrients
Prenatal supplements are not FDA-approved before sale
Humans historically met pregnancy nutrient needs through food
Modern maternal nutrition is shifting toward whole-food, bioavailable solutions