You show us a mother, and we’ll show you a woman who never stops giving her all—often from the moment she finds out she’s going to be a mother. So it’s no surprise that the pregnancy and postpartum stages often leave us feeling depleted in more ways than one.
In fact, research has shown that 95% of pregnant women are depleted in key nutrients, such as omega-3 and choline, during a time when they need nutrients most. And that postpartum and postnatal depletion can last up to 10 years. (In case you were thinking that constantly drained feeling was just in your head.)
Put simply, women deserve (and actually need) more. Fortunately, the founders of Needed agree with us. When Julie Sawaya and Ryan Woodbury, two mothers and trained nutritionists, started their own fertility journeys, they found that more often than not women are simply served the bare minimum when it comes to prenatal and postnatal care―including in the choices available to them for their nutritional support. So in 2017, they started Needed, a complete perinatal nutrition system and supplement company with the simple-yet-radical goal of fully replenishing a woman’s nutritional needs during this critical time in her life.
Here are 4 ways Needed is providing radically better nutritional support for mothers and mothers-to-be
1. They’re fertility and motherhood experts
While virtually every woman who has experienced pregnancy can tell you there are an abundance of vitamin options on the market, the difference at Needed is that perinatal care is their exclusive focus. As a result, they deeply understand women’s needs in these life stages and have tailored and bundled plans that help women thrive. And the care doesn’t stop at the supplements. Needed also features a customer service team made up of moms and perinatal experts (i.e. doulas and registered nutritionists)―so there’s always an expert available to answer your questions.
Instead of simply checking the boxes of basic nutrition, their supplements take a research-backed approach to satisfy the demands your body experiences during pregnancy and postpartum with abundance―not bare minimums. And because their products were specifically designed for those who are trying to conceive, pregnant, and postpartum, you’ll know you’re making a safe, effective choice for your health and the health of your baby.
2. An easier-to-take prenatal multi
Of course, choosing a prenatal supplement is only half the battle―the other half is often getting yourself to take it in spite of morning sickness and pill fatigue throughout pregnancy. But Needed has you covered there, too. Their expert-backed formula is available in both capsule and powder form, offering a variety of ways to consume your prenatal. Additionally, their Prenatal Multi goes beyond nutritional bare minimums, offering seven times more choline, over six times more vitamin D3, and twenty times more vitamin B6 than typical one-a-day and gummy prenatals.
Dr. Leah Gordon, who worked directly with Needed to create the prenatal, shared “We spent almost three years vetting every nutrient form, dose, and ingredient supplier to offer the most nourishing product. I’m excited to finally offer my patients and community of mothers and mothers-to-be a prenatal without compromise.”
3. A deeper emphasis on research
The Needed Nutritional System
took three years to develop―but the company hasn’t stopped there. In an effort to meet the evolving needs of their audience, Needed launched its own ongoing clinical research arm called Needed Labs to collect groundbreaking data to better understand women’s needs in this life stage (pregnant and breastfeeding women’s research is chronically underfunded).
Their revolutionary approach to product development begins with an exhaustive review of the clinical research. When they find a gap (and often they do), they turn to their collective of more than 4,000 practitioners―including nutritionists, naturopathic doctors, midwives and OB-GYNs―to fill the holes, testing women’s nutrient needs at every stage of motherhood to provide what’s actually needed and third-party testing every product batch for maximum safety. And because each woman’s needs are as unique as she is, they’ll even provide you with direct access to a nutritionist when you become a Needed subscriber to help customize your approach.
4. Complete nutritional care for pregnancy and postpartum
And while we love a complete prenatal, sometimes more is, well, needed. That’s why, in addition to Needed’s bundled nutrition plans, you can also tailor your nutritional needs with a variety of additional supplements better taken separately, such as Omega-3 and Iron. They have also developed formulas to support other needs common to perinatal stages, including Stress, Sleep and Cognitive Support as well as options for your partner to help you both navigate all the demands of parenthood.
Ready to get your pregnancy and postpartum nutritional needs met? Take 20% off of the first month of your subscription with code MOTHERLY20 or get $100 off your first 3 months of a pre-bundled plan with code COMPLETE100.