If you eat a mostly or exclusively plant based diet, your iron is coming from non-heme iron sources, which like mentioned earlier, is the less absorbable form of iron. Since plant-based iron is not as easily used by the body, you are at higher risk for iron deficiency during pregnancy when following a vegetarian or vegan diet. However, there are a few things you can do to improve your iron absorption, answered in the next question below. Your doctor may also suggest an extra iron supplement on top of your prenatal supplement to help fill in this nutrient gap. Be sure to talk to your doctor before taking any extra supplements.