Being pregnant and anticipating the birth of your new baby is incredibly exciting. You wait nine long months to meet your precious new baby. During that time, it is important to keep yourself healthy to ensure that you give birth to a healthy baby.
It is a myth that when you are pregnant you are eating for two. Your baby is not very big, and thus, does not have the same size stomach as a full size adult. It is important to maintain a healthy weight throughout your pregnancy. Your obstetrician will monitor your weight regularly during office visits. However, you should also monitor yourself to ensure that your weight gain throughout your pregnancy remains within the normal and recommended range. A healthy weight gain during pregnancy is a total of about ten to thirteen kg if you were at a healthy weight prior to getting pregnant. Here are some healthy diet tips to help ensure a healthy and safe pregnancy for mum and baby.
Pregnancy Diet Tips
1. Eat a well balanced diet of healthy and nutritious foods
Engaging in proper nutrition while you are pregnant is essential for keeping both mum and baby healthy as your fetus develops inside the womb. Be sure to eat lots of fresh produce, focusing on a wide variety of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, including cereals, breads, pasta, and rice, fish, poultry, lean meat, get plenty of calcium through milk, cheese and yogurt, and always keep yourself well-hydrated by drinking plenty of water.
2. Folic acid
Folate is credited with being crucial to a baby’s healthy development in the early phase of pregnancy. This nutrient can be found in such foods as spinach or other green rich leafy vegetables. Folic acid can also be taken in a dietary supplement. If you are planning on getting pregnant, start taking a folic acid supplement daily at least one month prior to the time you plan on attempting to conceive and then during your pregnancy.
3. Do not skimp on Iodine
Getting enough Iodine during pregnancy and while nursing is extremely important for the development of your baby’s brain as well as nervous system. A deficit of iodine may cause some learning problems in babies and children in their younger years. It can also impact their hearing and physical development. It is recommended that you take Iodine supplements daily during one’s entire pregnancy and while breastfeeding.
4. Eat fish low in Mercury
Fish has many healthy qualities and is highly recommended for pregnant women. However, avoid those fish with higher levels of mercury, such as shark, marlin, swordfish, orange roughy, and broadbill.
5. Stay away from foods containing Listeria
Listeria is a bacteria found in certain foods which can cause listeriosis. Although harmless in most people, listeriosis can be extremely dangerous in a pregnant person and her unborn baby. Listeria is typically found in unpasteurized foods, such as soft and semi-soft cheeses, sushi, pate, and cold lunch meats.
6. Avoid alcohol
It is recommended that women who are pregnant or breastfeeding do not drink alcohol.
7. Keep caffeine to a minimum
Although minimal amounts of caffeine are fine, ingesting a large amount of caffeine can increase your chances of having a miscarriage. It can also increase the risk your baby will have a low birth weight. Large quantities of caffeine can even affect the ability to conceive in the first place.
Information and advice contained in this article has been based on the Nutriton Australia Newsletter (April 2010) and a Australian and New Zealand Food Standards Media Realease (20 January 2010).