Pregnancy Nutrition
Without a doubt, a nutritious, well-balanced eating plan can be one of the greatest gifts you give to your developing baby. Pregnancy nutrition is essential to a healthy baby. Ideally, adopting a healthy eating plan before pregnancy is best. But no matter how many weeks are left on your countdown calendar, it’s never too late to start! Supplying your own body with a tasty blend of nutritious foods can improve your fertility, keep you feeling healthy during pregnancy, and pave the way for an easier labor. It can also help to establish essential building blocks of growth and overall health for your child.
Pregnancy is the one time in your life when you’re eating habits directly affect another person. Incorporating a variety of delicious vegetables, whole grains and legumes, lean protein, and other healthy food choices into your eating plan before and during pregnancy will give your baby a strong start in life.
Special nutrition needs in pregnancy
• Folic acid is a B vitamin that may help prevent certain birth defects. Before pregnancy, you need 400 mcg (micrograms) per day. During pregnancy and when breastfeeding, you need 600 mcg per day from foods or vitamins. It is hard to get this amount from foods alone, so you need to take a supplement that contains folic acid.
• Iron is important for your baby's growth and brain development. During pregnancy, the amount of blood in your body increases, so you need more iron for yourself and your growing baby. You should get 27 mg (milligrams) of iron a day.
• Calcium during pregnancy can reduce your risk of preeclampsia, a serious medical condition that causes a sudden increase in blood pressure. Calcium also builds up your baby's bones and teeth. Pregnant women require 1000 mg of calcium per day.
• Vitamin D helps the calcium to build up the baby's bones and teeth. All women, pregnant or not, should be getting 600 IU (international units) of vitamin D per day.
Do I need to eat more calories when I am pregnant?
How many calories you need depends on your weight gain goals. Your health care provider can tell you what your goal should be, based on things like your weight before pregnancy, your age, and how fast you gain weight. The general recommendations are:
•In the first trimester of pregnancy, you probably do not need extra calories
• In the second trimester, you usually need about 340 extra calories
• In the last trimester, you may need around 450 extra calories per day
• During the final weeks of pregnancy, you may not need extra calories