Nutrition During Your Pregnancy
It is important that you eat a variety of nutritious foods during your pregnancy to ensure that your body and the baby that is growing inside of you get all the right nutrients, and also to ensure that you control your weight gain. If you choose to eat a variety of nutritious foods, you will be assured of consuming adequate calories and an ideal weight gain -- one of the most important signs of how your pregnancy is progressing.
Should you not eat enough, you will be robbing your baby of important calories and nutrients, possibly resulting in premature delivery, low birth weight, or more health problems. Healthy eating will ensure a healthy pregnancy, and more importantly, and healthy baby.
Problems with morning sickness/hyperemesis? Check out these articles for help:
·Morning sickness: It's not easy being green
·Problems with morning sickness
·Morning sickness: What to pack for the journey
·Morning sickness
·Nausea and vomiting in pregnancy
The simplest way to give your baby the nutrients is to eat a variety of wholesome foods including:
- 9 servings from the bread, cereal, rice, and pasta group
- 4 servings from the vegetable group
- 3 servings from the fruit group
- 3 servings from the milk, yogurt, and cheese group
- 3 servings from the meat, poultry, fish, dry beans, eggs, and nuts group
Eating correctly helps control your weight gain during pregnancy. Depending on your weight before pregnancy, the recommended weight gain is:
- Under weight: 30-40 pounds
- Normal weight: 25-35 pounds
- Over weight: 15-25 pounds
Following a Vitamin Rich Diet
By including fruits, vegetables, animal products an assortment of whole grain foods and fortified cereals in your diet, you should be getting all the nutrients you and your baby need during the duration of your pregnancy. Remember that prenatal vitamins are an insurance policy and should not replace a proper diet.
| Vitamin | Sources |
|---|---|
| Fat Soluble Vitamins | |
| Vitamin A and Beta carotene | fish, milk eggs, dark orange and green vegetables, such as carrots & spinach |
| Vitamin D | milk, fatty fish, egg yolks |
| Vitamin E | vegetable oil, margarine, nuts, spinach and wheat germ |
| Vitamin K | dark green leafy vegetables |
| Water Soluble Vitamins | |
| Vitamin C | Citrus fruits and juices, strawberries, potato, tomatoes |
| Thiamin (B1) | Whole grain fortified cereals, rice, pasta, organ meats |
| Riboflavin (B2) | Meats, fish, poultry, dairy products, fortified cereals |
| Niacin (B3) | Fortified cereals and breads, meat, fish, peanuts, milk, eggs |
| Pyridoxine (B6) | Poultry, fish, liver, pork, eggs, soyabeans, oats and peanuts |
| Cobalamin (B12) | Poultry, meats, fish, eggs, and dairy products |
| Biotin | liver, eggs, grains, yeast and dried peas |
| Pantothenic acid | Meats, poultry, whole grains, dried peas and beans |
For help learning to eat all the correct nutrients during your pregnancy you may want to consult with your health care provider or dietician. Eating correctly is the first half of fitness during pregnancy. For optimal health, combine a good diet with a regular exercise schedule.
Comments
Thanks for this wonderful article, it will help me a lot!
I love this article. It is very informative and gives a great detailed outline of what to eat during your pregnancy.
Along with eating well, don't forget to add some type of exercise into your daily routine. Walking, using resistance bands and a balance ball, all go a long way at reducing the stress on the body that being pregnant can bring. Plus, you will be conditioning yourself for labor and delivery by getting your muscles strengthened and stretched and increasing your lung capacity as well.