Leena Watts
Pregnancy is an exciting time, but it can also be a period of uncertainty, especially when it comes to nutrition and weight management. While it's generally not recommended to lose weight during pregnancy, it is possible to do so safely under medical supervision. Most pregnant people will experience weight gain, but the amount will depend on their pre-pregnancy BMI, with underweight individuals needing to gain more and those with higher BMIs advised to gain less. Eating a healthy, balanced diet and staying active can help manage weight gain and reduce the chances of a cesarean delivery. A healthy diet during pregnancy should include a variety of whole grains, fruits, vegetables, lean proteins, and healthy fats, while limiting sweets, solid fats, and mercury-rich seafood. Prenatal supplements are often recommended to ensure adequate nutrient intake, but they don't replace a nutritious diet. Maintaining a healthy weight and getting the right nutrients are crucial for supporting the growth and development of the fetus.
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What You'll Learn
- Eat a balanced diet of protein, fruits, vegetables, and whole grains
- Consume more of certain nutrients like folic acid, iron, and iodine
- Avoid raw or undercooked fish, meats, and eggs
- Drink water instead of sugary drinks, and take prenatal vitamins
- Maintain a healthy weight by consulting a doctor about exercise
Eat a balanced diet of protein, fruits, vegetables, and whole grains
Eating a balanced diet during pregnancy is essential for maintaining a healthy pregnancy and supporting your baby's growth and development. Here are some detailed guidelines on how to eat a balanced diet of protein, fruits, vegetables, and whole grains while pregnant:
Protein:
- Include a variety of protein sources in your diet, such as lean meats, poultry, fish, eggs, beans, peas, nuts, and seeds.
- If you follow a plant-based diet, opt for tofu, lentils, and other plant-based protein sources.
- Remove the skin from poultry and try to avoid adding extra fat or oil when cooking meat to reduce your intake of unhealthy fats.
- Ensure that poultry, burgers, sausages, and whole cuts of meat are cooked thoroughly until steaming hot.
- Eat two portions of fish per week, one of which should be oily fish like salmon, sardines, or mackerel, but avoid fish with high mercury levels such as shark, swordfish, and marlin.
Fruits:
- Include a variety of fresh, frozen, canned, dried, or juiced fruits in your diet.
- Aim for at least five portions of fruit per day.
- Fruits such as cantaloupe, honeydew, mangoes, bananas, oranges, and grapefruit are excellent sources of potassium and other nutrients.
- Be cautious when preparing fruit by thoroughly rinsing it under running water and using separate knives to avoid cross-contamination with raw foods that may contain bacteria.
- If you have blood sugar concerns or notice abnormal weight gain, consider reducing your fruit intake and consult your healthcare provider for guidance.
Vegetables:
- Aim for a variety of colourful vegetables to ensure a diverse range of nutrients.
- Include dark green vegetables, carrots, sweet potatoes, spinach, tomatoes, and peppers in your diet.
- Vegetables provide essential vitamins and minerals, as well as fibre, which aids digestion and prevents constipation.
- Like fruit, aim for at least five portions of vegetables per day.
Whole Grains:
- Choose whole grains such as brown rice, whole-wheat pasta, oatmeal, bulgur, and whole-wheat bread over refined, white flour products.
- Whole grains are rich in fibre, iron, B vitamins, and folic acid, which are crucial for your baby's development.
- Include ready-to-eat cereals or cooked cereals in your diet, as they are good sources of iron and folic acid.
- Starchy foods like bread, potatoes, and whole grains should make up just over a third of the food you eat, providing energy and important nutrients.
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Consume more of certain nutrients like folic acid, iron, and iodine
When you're pregnant, it's important to increase your intake of certain nutrients, including folic acid, iron, and iodine. These nutrients are essential for the development of the baby and can help reduce the risk of certain birth defects.
Folic acid, for instance, helps to reduce the risk of neural tube defects (NTDs) in the developing fetus. NTDs are abnormalities of the spine, skull, and brain, with two common types being spina bifida and anencephaly. It is recommended that women who are trying to conceive or are in their first trimester take a folic acid supplement, in addition to eating foods rich in folate, such as dark, leafy green vegetables, legumes, and fruits like oranges and berries.
Iron is another crucial nutrient during pregnancy. It helps prevent anemia, which is common in pregnant women due to the increased blood volume needed to support the growing baby. Good sources of iron include lean meats, chicken, seafood, beans, lentils, and tofu.
Iodine is also essential during pregnancy, as it is required for the production of maternal and fetal thyroid hormones, which regulate the development of the fetal brain and nervous system. Insufficient iodine intake can lead to negative reproductive outcomes, such as perinatal and infant mortality, and intellectual impairment. While there is some evidence that excessive iodine intake may carry risks, oral iodine supplementation is generally associated with improved infant survival and a reduced risk of certain conditions. Seafood is a good source of iodine, but it's important to choose options that are lower in mercury, as it can be harmful to the baby's development.
In addition to these specific nutrients, it's important to maintain a balanced diet during pregnancy, including whole fruits and vegetables, whole grains, proteins, and low-fat or fat-free dairy. Making smart food choices will help ensure a healthy pregnancy and give your baby the best start in life.
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Avoid raw or undercooked fish, meats, and eggs
Eating raw or undercooked fish, meats, and eggs during pregnancy is not recommended. This is because your immune system is lowered when you're pregnant, making you more susceptible to harmful bacteria and parasites that may be present in these foods.
Bacteria, such as Listeria, which causes listeriosis, can lead to vomiting, diarrhoea, preterm labour, stillbirth, and miscarriage. Listeriosis can also cause problems with your baby's kidneys and heart, as well as infections of the blood or brain. Parasitic infections, such as those caused by eating raw or undercooked fish, are also harder to treat in pregnant women due to the risk of fetal exposure to anti-parasitic medications.
In addition, raw or undercooked fish can expose your growing baby to mercury, a metal that can harm your baby's development and cause neurological issues. This is because fish absorb mercury from the water they swim in and from eating other fish that contain mercury.
To prevent these risks, it is recommended that pregnant women avoid eating raw or undercooked fish, including sushi, sashimi, and raw oysters. Instead, opt for fully cooked fish and seafood that are high in healthy fats and low in mercury. It is also important to ensure that any meat or eggs you consume are thoroughly cooked to prevent the risk of bacterial or parasitic infections.
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Drink water instead of sugary drinks, and take prenatal vitamins
When you're pregnant, it's important to stay hydrated. Water should be your primary beverage of choice as it contains no excess calories or sugars, which are usually found in most flavoured beverages. Drinking enough liquids throughout the day helps support healthy amniotic fluid levels, which are vital for the baby. It also helps your body absorb important nutrients from your prenatal vitamins and diet.
You can also drink milk, herbal teas, and sparkling water or seltzers. If you're craving flavoured water, you can add lemon, ginger, cucumber, or mint. It's best to avoid caffeine and limit your intake of artificial sweeteners. So, try to stay away from energy drinks, coffee, and soda. Fruit juice is healthy, but it should not be your main source of hydration due to its high sugar and calorie content. If you're drinking store-bought juice, stick to one glass a day, and make sure it's diluted with water.
It's also important to take prenatal vitamins to ensure you're getting all the nutrients you need. Folic acid, for example, can help prevent birth defects, but it's difficult to get enough from food alone. Vitamin D is another important supplement, as it regulates the amount of calcium and phosphate in the body, keeping bones, teeth, and muscles healthy. Choline, found in chicken, beef, eggs, milk, soy products, and peanuts, is also recommended during pregnancy as it plays a role in your fetus's brain development.
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Maintain a healthy weight by consulting a doctor about exercise
Maintaining a healthy weight during pregnancy is important for both mother and child. While pregnancy is not the time to try to reach peak fitness, staying active and fit has many benefits, including better weight control, improved mood, and maintenance of fitness levels. It can also help you adapt to your changing shape and weight gain, and make you less likely to experience problems in later pregnancy and labour.
Before starting or continuing an exercise routine, it is important to consult your doctor, physiotherapist, or another trusted healthcare professional. They will be able to advise you on exercises that are suitable for you and your pregnancy, and may recommend modifying your existing routine or choosing a new one. For example, they may advise you to avoid exercises with a high risk of falling, such as horse riding, skiing, or gymnastics, or contact sports where there is a risk of being hit, such as kickboxing or squash.
If you are new to exercise, start slowly and gradually increase your activity. You can begin with as little as 5 minutes a day and increase by 5 minutes each week until you reach 30 minutes a day. If you were very active before your pregnancy, you can continue the same workouts with your doctor's approval, but be mindful of your weight—if you start to lose weight, you may need to increase your calorie intake. Aim for at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity each week. Aerobic activity involves moving the large muscles in your body (such as your legs and arms) in a rhythmic way. Moderate intensity means you are moving enough to raise your heart rate and start sweating.
Pregnancy causes many changes to your body that can affect your exercise routine. Your joints become more relaxed and mobile, increasing the risk of injury, so avoid jerky or bouncy movements. Your weight distribution and body shape will change, and your centre of gravity will move forward, altering your balance and coordination. Your resting heart rate will increase, and your blood pressure will drop in the second trimester, so avoid rapid changes in position and do not lie flat on your back for long periods, especially after 16 weeks. Avoid raising your body temperature too high and stay well hydrated.
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Frequently asked questions
Eating a healthy, well-balanced diet can help to reduce some pregnancy symptoms, such as nausea and constipation. It is recommended to consume a variety of foods, including whole grains, fruits, vegetables, proteins, and dairy. Aim for whole foods like fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean meats, chicken, eggs, seafood, beans, lentils, nuts, and seeds. Stay away from raw or undercooked fish or shellfish, lunch or deli meats, and raw sprouts. Drink water instead of sugary drinks, and take a prenatal vitamin every day.
When you're pregnant, you need more of certain nutrients, including protein, iron, folic acid, iodine, and choline. It's also important to get enough calcium, vitamin D, potassium, and fiber. Folic acid is especially important during the first 28 days after conception, as it helps reduce the risk of neural tube defects. Good sources of vitamin D include fatty fish (like salmon and mackerel), egg yolks, and fortified foods like milk and cereal. Choline is found in chicken, beef, eggs, milk, soy products, and peanuts.
Limit sweets, solid fats (especially from animal sources and processed foods), and alcohol. Some types of fish, like bigeye tuna, king mackerel, and swordfish, should be avoided due to high levels of mercury. Rice is a leading dietary source of arsenic, which may have adverse effects on pregnancy, so consider eating a variety of grains.
Weight gain during pregnancy depends on your health and BMI before pregnancy. Generally, those with higher BMIs should aim for less weight gain, while those who were underweight before pregnancy should gain more weight. The CDC provides guidelines for weight gain during pregnancy based on your pre-pregnancy BMI.
