Pregnancy is a gift of God. Being pregnant is also a feeling of momentous. The 9 months journey
is not only the 9 month, here the planning period and the lactating period is also counted for a
healthy baby. In this period the special woman should also give some special care to her diet.
Here we will discuss about what to eat when to eat how to eat and also how to prepare meals for
a pregnant mother. Hope you will be helped from this post and get benefited.
Healthy eating when pregnant:
Healthy eating is very important. When you got pregnant you are the only media to your baby for proper nutrition. When you eat then only the baby eat. You must add all everything in a balanced quantity with quality to feed the baby within your womb. Healthy food habits or a healthy eating when pregnant refers to a healthy baby with proper growth and development always.
When to start your pregnant friendly diet:
Before planning for a baby you should start your balanced diet. During pregnancy from day 1, expecting mother must have had proteins, calcium, iron, fiber, folic acid, vitamins in her plate. Eat a variety of foods to get all the nutrients you need. Weight gain is a positive sign during pregnancy but excessive weight gain is not good too. The more body fat the less baby weight.
Daily recommended serving includes:
1. Fruits: Two or four servings of fruits.
In your day time add two small timing for fruit. Fruit eating is not a very enjoyable thing for all. So in your personal menu add fruit salad with honey and oregano to some taste. You may also make fruit custard in some alternate days etc.
2. Bread and grains: Six to eleven servings of breads and grains.
Having whole grains in your pregnancy plate always lowers the risk of high blood pressure, diabetes and heart conditions. Common whole grains that you must add in your plate are oatmeal, popcorn, brown rice, wheat berry, quinoa etc.
3. Vegetables: Four or more servings of vegetables.
Vegetables are most important addition in the plate that a pregnant mother should have. All green
vegetables can be eaten if not allergic to them in variety. Vegetable soup, salad, curry etc. is nearly liked by a pregnant mother.
4. Dairy products: Four servings of dairy products.
Milk, curd, yogurt, cheese, butter, cream, ice-cream and also chocolate can be added as your dairy product. Milk is the most important for calcium. Curd or yogurt (low fat) must be taken in the first half of your day for easy digestion. Having a glass of warm milk before bed also helps you with a good sleep.
5. Protein: Three servings of protein sources.
Such as meat, fish, eggs etc. proteins are most important for growth and development of the baby. If you got sufficient amount of protein it reflects in your baby’s life. If you are a pure vegetarian you must add some plant based protein in your diet. Plant based proteins also give you the same quantity as compared to animal based proteins. In your pregnancy plate add chickpeas, peanuts, almonds, lentils, quinoa, chia seeds, beans, broccoli, mushrooms etc. Plant based or animals based proteins are not a big deal. You just have to add some proteins in your plate when pregnant.
6. Fats and sweets: Some fats and sweets sparingly.
Dark chocolate is more preferable because of the simple sugar that added. It increases the chances of hyperglycaemia that is high blood sugar in both mother and baby. Fat is also important for physical growth, tissue building and proper weight gain. The more consuming of fat and sweets higher the risk for both of them, i.e. why these two items must be added sparingly.
If all the food items selected and taken properly the chances of having a LBW (LOW BIRTH WEIGHT) baby must reduced. Healthy eating when pregnant reduces the chances of baby having low birth weight, less the chances of IUGR.
Let us help you to choose the food items on your plate:
1. Only eating is not sufficient though it is said in healthy eating when pregnant, drinking is also mandatory. You as a pregnant lady need 70% of water in your daily diet.
2. Choose foods high in fiber that are enriched such as whole grain breads, cereals, pasta, rice as well fruits and vegetables.
3. Make sure you are getting enough vitamins and minerals in your daily diet. You should take prenatal vitamin supplement to make sure you are consistently getting enough vitamins and minerals every day.
4. Eat and drink at least four servings of dairy products and calcium rich foods a day to help ensure that you are getting 1000-1300 mg of calcium in daily diet.
5. Eat at least three servings of iron-rich foods, such as lean meats, spinach, beans, breakfast cereals each
day to ensure you are getting 27 mg of iron daily.
6. Choose from a variety of dairy products i.e. milk, cheese (especially cottage cheese),
7. Yogurt, to get iodine. You will need 250 mg of iodine a day to help ensure your baby’s brain and nervous system developed.
8. Choose at least one good source of vitamin C every day, such as oranges, grapes, strawberries, honeydew, papaya, broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, green peppers, tomato, mustard greens. A pregnant woman needs 70 mg of vitamin C a day.
9. Choose at least one good source of vitamin A every other day. Carrots, pumpkins, sweet potatoes, spinach, water squash, turnip greens, beet greens, apricots are good rich source of vitamin A.
10. Choose at least one good source of folic acid every day, like dark green leafy vegetables, legumes like lima beans, black beans, chick peas etc. You need 0.4 mg of folic acid a day to help prevent neural tube defects such as spina bifida.
11. Before putting anything in your pregnancy plate, make sure that you are non-allergic to them. Have sufficient water and minerals. Before making and taking wash your hands thoroughly and don’t take uncovered cut fruits and unhygienic food items.
You may like to read this : Is It Safe to Drink Alcohol While Pregnant
Something you must know:
LBW: this LBW refers to low birth weight baby, i.e. the birth weight is low according to gestational age. At 37 weeks baby weight must be 2.5 kg and more. Either it would be considered as LBW baby.
Gestational age: gestational is the age of your womb. This is counted from the day of your last menstruation to the counting date.
Spina bifida: also called a split spine, this is a birth defect that develops in mummy’s womb. The spinal cord failed to develop properly due to improper nutrition.
Being pregnant is the luckiest lifetime opportunity for every woman’s life. The all desires, ups and downs are quite different and sometime adventures for all women. Hope by this article you might get some tips about your diet plan and having a proper balanced diet. Wish you a very good luck to your upcoming baby child and also wish you a good health and healthy baby as well. Along with good food habit proper supplement is also important for all pregnant women. You all must aware of all danger signs during pregnancy. Let us know your confusion, we medicodiet team also have notice and try to answer you with our best. Thank you for your valuable time.