The First 1000 Days: tending minerals in mother & baby during the child birth continuum
Listen to this Article instead! Below is a recording by the Author
Imagine with me for a moment that you are growing inside the womb of your mother. Her body is your first home, your sense of safety, your Source for Everything. Every move she makes ripples into you. Every soft sigh, every tear shed, every meal, all informing your being. Her nervous system shapes yours, her stress levels and cortisol production molds the future you. The amount of sunlight, joy and laughter she experiences tells your body how to greet life too.
Her vitality and health are not separate from you, they deeply shape the very foundation of your life.
When we view pregnancy, even pre-conception in this way, we take on a very different lens of “ inheritance”. We get up close and personal with what was given to us, and ultimately what we will give to our children.
At the very smallest part of our body, the cells, are the Mitochondria. Membrane-bound organelles in eukaryotic cells that generate most of the cell's energy supply, primarily in the form of adenosine triphosphate (ATP). Cellular Energy. Mitochondria are primarily responsible for the creation of this with Minerals ( especially magnesium!) along with glucose .
What does Mitochondria have to do with Pregnancy specifically?
Mitochondria possess their own small, circular DNA (mtDNA) and ribosomes, inherited almost exclusively from the mother. This means the way your Mitchondrial DNA is functioning directly informs the way your baby’s will too. Passing on certain pre-dispositions for depletion, and even the sequestering of certain minerals and heavy metals. Because mother’s body is our first home, her Minerals, Mental Health, Mitochondria and Matrilineal Line hold great affect upon the development of our own ecosystem.
“Mitochondria can play a critical role in physiological adaptations during pregnancy. Differences in mitochondrial function have been found between healthy and complicated pregnancies. Pregnancy signifies increased nutritional requirements to support fetal growth and the metabolism of maternal and fetal tissues. Nutrient availability regulates mitochondrial metabolism, where excessive macronutrient supply could lead to oxidative stress and contribute to mitochondrial dysfunction, while micronutrients are essential elements for optimal mitochondrial processes, as cofactors in energy metabolism and/or as antioxidants. Inadequate macronutrient and micronutrient consumption can result in adverse pregnancy outcomes, possibly through mitochondrial dysfunction, by impairing energy supply, one-carbon metabolism, biosynthetic pathways, and the availability of metabolic co-factors which modulate the epigenetic processes capable of establishing significant short- and long-term effects on infant health.”
Hair Tissue Mineral Analysis ( HTMA) and Mineral Balancing During Pregnancy ensure that both Mother & Baby are set up to thrive, not just survive pregnancy & birth.
Pregnancy is one of the most mineral-intensive seasons of a woman’s life.
Your body is building bones, nerves, organs, hormones, blood volume, and an entirely new nervous system, all while continuing to regulate your own. It is not a small task. It is an act of ongoing exchange.
This is where HTMA and thoughtful mineral balancing can offer something deeply supportive. Not as a replacement for medical care or a diagnostic tool, but as a way of looking at how the mother’s body is adapting over time while she grows life.
Pregnancy is a season of mineral exchange. During pregnancy, the body prioritizes the baby, but if well-nourished and minerally replenished, pregnancy can be a time of healing, vitality and profound positive shifts in a woman’s body.
We’ve been told Pregnancy is a time where we are taken from. We lose our beauty, our shape, our vitality. But it doesn’t have to be that way…
If minerals are abundant, both mother and baby are supported. If minerals are limited, the baby is still protected, often at the expense of the mother’s reserves. This is not a failure of the body. It is a feature of maternal physiology.
HTMA offers a way to look at how mineral patterns are shifting over time, not just in a single moment. It can help reveal whether the mother is drawing deeply from her reserves and where additional support may be needed.
Why HTMA Can Be Helpful During Pregnancy
Hair Tissue Mineral Analysis reflects longer-term mineral patterns rather than moment-to-moment levels. Because hair grows slowly, it carries information about what the body has been living with over the past months.
During pregnancy, this can be especially meaningful.
HTMA can help illuminate:
Long-standing mineral depletion that predates pregnancy
How stress and adaptation are showing up in the body
Whether the nervous system appears under strain
Patterns that may influence energy, sleep, mood, and recovery
Emotional & psychological patterns
Imbalances in electrolyte minerals that effect nausea
Imbalances in minerals that affect sleep & mitochondrial health
Copper levels that can influence Postpartum Mood and hormonal health later in life
and much more…
A pregnant woman’s body already knows what it is doing.
Mineral balancing, when done appropriately, works with that wisdom by:
Replenishing what is being used at higher rates
Supporting nervous system regulation
Encouraging steadier energy and emotional resilience
Preparing the body for birth, recovery, and postpartum demands
Ensuring both Mother & Baby have enough for them BOTH
Setting the Mother-Baby dyad up for postpartum and beyond to ensure they are nourished and supported
Why Supporting the Mother Matters for the Baby
The baby is developing within the mother’s internal environment.
Minerals play a role in:
Nervous system development
Skeletal formation
Hormonal signaling
Stress regulation
Immune development
When the mother is supported, the baby benefits not only physically, but through a calmer, more regulated internal environment.
HTMA as a Preventative and Preparatory Tool
Many women enter pregnancy already depleted from years of stress, under-eating, over-giving, or burnout. Pregnancy then amplifies whatever is already present.
HTMA can help:
Identify patterns early rather than postpartum
Support steadier pregnancy experiences
Reduce the depth of postpartum depletion
Create a stronger foundation for breastfeeding and recovery
It offers context.
It offers foresight.
It offers a chance to care for the mother while she cares for life.
This Is Not Either Or.
HTMA and mineral balancing are not replacements for prenatal care, blood work, or medical oversight.
They are complementary.
Blood tests help us assess safety in the moment. HTMA helps us understand longer-term patterns and reserves. Together, they allow pregnancy care to be both protective and nourishing.
Below are 4 Crucial Studies on Minerals & Pregnancy
1. The Role of Micronutrients in Female Fertility: A Systematic Review
Authors: McCormack, S. et al. (2023)
Journal: Nutrition Reviews
🔗 Read on Oxford Academic
Summary:
This systematic review examined 39 studies exploring how minerals like zinc, selenium, copper, lead, and cadmium impact female fertility. It found strong evidence that adequate levels of zinc and selenium improve egg quality, IVF success rates, and hormone regulation. Toxic metals like lead and cadmium were associated with infertility and miscarriage.
2. Nutritional Needs and Mineral Supplementation in Pregnancy: Guidelines and Evidence
Authors: Jovanovic, M. et al. (2021)
Journal: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
🔗 Read on PubMed Central
Summary:
This review outlines mineral requirements during pregnancy, highlighting that most women do not meet recommended intake of essential minerals like calcium, magnesium, selenium, iodine, and zinc. Deficiencies increase risk for gestational diabetes, hypertension, low birth weight, and neural tube defects.
3. Minerals and Child Development: The Impact of Maternal Mineral Status on Fetal and Infant Growth
Authors: Zimmermann, M. et al.
Journal: Nutrients
🔗 Read on PubMed Central
Summary:
This article explains the developmental importance of iron, zinc, selenium, and iodine during gestation. It connects maternal deficiencies to neurodevelopmental delays, impaired immune development, and long-term cognitive issues in children. Special attention is given to the first 1,000 days of life.
4. The First 1000 Days: A Critical Window for Micronutrient Interventions
Authors: Baqui, A. et al. (2020)
Journal: Maternal & Child Nutrition
🔗 Read on Wiley Online Library
Summary:
This research focuses on how zinc, magnesium, iron, calcium, selenium, and iodine support the health of mother and baby from preconception through toddlerhood. It emphasizes the long-term impact of early mineral depletion on metabolic function, immunity, and child survival.
A Gentle Reframe
Pregnancy is not just about getting through nine months. It is about how a woman is held while she grows life. It is about how deeply she is resourced for birth and beyond. It is about tending the soil that both mother and baby will grow from. HTMA and mineral balancing offer one more way to listen, support, and nourish that process with care and respect.
Ready to replete your Minerals & have a Pregnancy that leaves you and Baby thriving?
Psst.. we also offer testing for the whole family!
HTMA Sessions make a great gift request for your Registry too!
