Introduction:

Adequate nutrition in pregnancy depends not only on a healthy diet, but also on the most effective way of taking vitamins, minerals and other nutrient supplementation.

Objective:

To describe aspects related to supplementation with folic acid, iron, iodine, calcium, vitamin B12 and omega-3 in pregnancy.

Method:

A systematic review was conducted between May 2022 and March 2023, concerning supplementation intake of vitamins and minerals in pregnancy. Electronic databases of biomedical scientific literature were reviewed such as: UpToDate, Science Direct, SciELO and PUBMED, LILACS. Searching was on articles published from 2016 to 2022. The key terms for searching in databases were as follow: supplements "Vitamins", "Micronutrients", "Minerals", and "Pregnancy", in English and Spanish.

Results:

A vitamin, minerals and different nutrients intake requirements has increased in pregnancy. An appropriate diet and the consumption of micronutrients in the form of supplements are the basic support for an adequate health status of the mother and the development the fetus; on the other hand, an adequate nutrition reduces the risk of congenital malformations, obstetric, fetal and perinatal complications. Not all pregnant women need the same amount of supplements, so it is necessary to identify those with a highest risk of presenting deficiency.

Conclusions:

Supplementation of vitamins, minerals and other micronutrients in pregnancy is very important to reduce the risk of obstetric complications and fetal or perinatal anomalies.

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