Even if you have always maintained a healthy diet, you should reassess the types of food you eat after you become pregnant. This includes the number of calories, protein level, types of vitamins, and various minerals you’re consuming. You’re now eating for two while your body undergoes significant changes. Most moms-to-be need to modify their eating habits in order to accommodate these changes.
Below, we’ll describe the most important features of a nutritious diet, and highlight a few foods you would do well to avoid. You’ll also learn the value of grazing, and reasons it is preferable to a traditional three-meals-a-day routine. Lastly, we’ll present several foods that should have a place in your diet due to the nutrients they offer you and your growing baby.
Transitioning To A Nutritious Diet
Your caloric intake needs will increase since your diet must accommodate you and your baby. As a general rule, plan to consume three hundred additional calories each day beginning in your second trimester.
Calories are merely one part of the equation, however. You must also make sure your body is receiving an adequate supply of protein, iron, and calcium. Also, because folic acid is known to minimize the chances of birth defects, take vitamins that include it. If your current diet does not contain important vitamins and minerals, speak with your obstetrician about prenatal supplements.
Foods To Avoid During Your Pregnancy
Many foods contain bacteria that can pose a danger to an unborn baby. These include raw fish (e.g. sushi), soft cheeses, and meat and seafood that has been undercooked. Also, keep in mind that most types of fish contain mercury, which can be harmful to unborn babies in large quantities. For this reason, most obstetricians recommend limiting your consumption of seafood until after childbirth.
Alcohol and caffeine are also believed to be dangerous to the health of fetuses. Consumption of the former should be stopped immediately after becoming pregnant. The latter – found in teas, chocolate, and soft drinks, in addition to coffee – can be tapered off slowly.
Focus On Maintaining An Appropriate Weight
Even though weight gain is expected during pregnancy, many women diet in order to minimize it. This is dangerous since your health, as well as that of your baby, depends on getting a sufficient volume of calories, protein, and nutrients. Most diets cut back on these things. If you are underweight or undernourished throughout your pregnancy, it could affect the long-term health of your baby.
Consult your obstetrician, who can recommend an ideal weight at every stage of your pregnancy based on your frame. Plan to gain approximately one pound each week beginning in month four, and continuing through childbirth.
The Value Of Grazing
A lot of moms-to-be cope with discomfort following large meals. This is understandable; during the second and third trimesters, there is less room available throughout the digestive tract. Consequently, large meals can lead to nausea, bloating, and other unpleasant symptoms.
An effective solution is to consume smaller meals several times a day rather than three larger meals. This allows your body to digest food more easily, which aids in the absorption of nutrients, and reduces discomfort.
Healthy Foods For Moms-To-Be
Earlier, we mentioned several foods to avoid while you are pregnant. Conversely, there are many foods that offer valuable vitamins and nutrients for you and your unborn child. These include walnuts, lean meats (trimmed of fat), and an assortment of vegetables and fruits. With veggies, anything green is particularly rich with nutrients. Sweet potatoes, eggs, salmon (low in mercury), and nearly all types of beans, also offer nutritional value for moms-to-be. After you create a meal plan, ask your doctor whether you should make any changes given your circumstances.
Eating the right foods in the right quantities is always important, but even more so when you’re pregnant. Your long-term health, as well as your baby’s, depends on it.
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