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Fortified foods or supplements can ensure health pregnancy for vegans

Fortified foods or supplements can ensure health pregnancy for vegans

Women who choose not to eat animal-derived foods can still enjoy a healthy pregnancy as long as they eat fortified foods or take supplements, it has been claimed.

A study published in the latest issue of the journal Paediatrics warned that women who do not eat meat may be at risk of having a child with a neural tube defect as they may be deficient in vitamin B12.

Dr James Mills, from the US National Institute for Child Health and Human Development, claimed that vegans in particular may be at risk of deficiency as the vitamin is mostly found in foods derived from animals.

However, the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine has insisted that both vegetarians and vegans can still have a healthy pregnancy.

Spokeswoman and dietician Susan Levin pointed out that by eating foods that are fortified with vitamin B12 as well as plenty of fruits and vegetables, mums-to-be can obtain all the nutrients they need.

She noted: "Women who follow vegan diets not only have healthy pregnancies, they are often healthier than mums who consume meat."ADNFCR-1167-ID-19056244-ADNFCR