Guidelines for Healthy Pregnancy

Nutrition

Now that you are pregnant, it is no time to diet.  You certainly want to eat the right things and try not to gain an unhealthy amount of weight, but you should NOT be dieting right now. 

• You will need about 300 to 350 calories more per day than when you were eating just for you – about 2,500 to 2,700 calories per day. 
•  If you are very thin by nature or if you are going through a multiple birth pregnancy, your doctor may even prescribe more of an increase in daily caloric intake.
•  On the other hand, if you are typically overweight, your doctor may advise that you consume more calories, but she may advise you to drop below the additional 300 to 350 usually prescribed for an average pregnancy.

You should plan to maintain a well-balanced diet throughout your pregnancy, consisting of lean meats and protein, fruits, vegetables, and whole-grain breads, as well as low-fat dairy products like cheese and milk.   

Protein - Two or more servings of lean, cooked meat or poultry (without the skin), or fish.  These servings should amount to 60 grams of protein per day.

Protein is especially important during your second and third trimester, as it will help your body keep up with the demands and growth of your baby in the womb. 

Whole Grains and Whole Grain Products -  Nine or more servings of whole grain products per day.  Try to stay away from white flour, sweetened cereals, etc.  They contain little or no nutritional value. 

Here are some examples of serving sizes:

• Whole Wheat or Other Whole Grain Bread: One slice
• Cooked (hot) Cereal, Brown Rice or Whole Grain Pasta:One half cup
• Cold Cereal:One cup

These products contain B Vitamins, and minerals and fiber to keep your body healthy and keep your digestive system moving. 

Dairy Products - Four or more servings per day.  

Here are some examples of serving sizes of dairy products:

• Cheese (natural, not processed):             One and one half ounces              
• Low-Fat or Non-Fat Milk:                          One cup 
• Natural (active ingredient) Yogurt:            One cup

Water – 6-8 eight ounce glasses of water per day (if you are exercising:  8-10 glasses) 

Vitamins and Minerals

We’ve talked about how important it is to follow a good diet during pregnancy.  Your prenatal vitamins, combined with the good food you eat should give you enough of the right vitamins and minerals. 

Calcium - Most women don’t get enough calcium (1,000 mg per day) but when you are pregnant your need for calcium is even more important, to meet the demands of your body and the demands of your baby’s calcium needs to grow strong bones. 

  

Iron – You need iron to produce hemoglobin and red blood cells.  Hemoglobin is the component of red blood cells that carries oxygen throughout your system. 

Folic Acid (Folate) -  Studies show that taking folic acid supplements during pregnancy decreases the risk of neural tube defects by up to 70%! 

Pregnancy and Diabetes

If you are a diabetic and you want to get pregnant, work with your OB/GYN doctor and your diabetes doctor to be sure you are in the best shape possible at least three to six months before you conceive. 

Your OB/GYN doctor will usually refer you to a dietitian so you can get meal plans that are specially designed to help you control your blood sugar.

Vegetarian Diets

If you are a strict ‘vegan’ and eat no animal products or animal byproducts, you may feel you will have a problem during pregnancy.  Or perhaps you are a ‘lacto-ovo-vegan’ and you do eat eggs and dairy products. 

Talk to your doctor about this, if you find that it is a problem.  You may want to take a caloric supplement.  

Things You Should Avoid in Your Diet

What you DON’T eat or drink during your pregnancy can be just as important as what you DO consume!

Here are some things to avoid while you are pregnant:

Alcohol – We shouldn’t have to tell you this, but we will anyway!  STAY AWAY FROM ALCOHOL DURING PREGNANCY.

Alcohol goes straight into your baby’s body in high concentration levels through your blood stream, through the umbilical cord and into the placenta, and can cause any one of an array of symptoms included in Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD).

Caffeine – Consuming a lot of caffeine can increase your chance of miscarriage.  Two or three cups a day may not seem like much to you, but just to be safe, you should try to stop drinking coffee altogether. 

MODERATION

Foods to Avoid
Avoid foods that MAY carry bacteria and other food-borne illness (toxoplasmosis and listeriosis to name two).  These can cause birth defects and miscarriage, and while you may be able to eat them with no problems, you may not want to take the risk during your pregnancy.

Exercise

Unless you have a serious problem or abnormality in your pregnancy, you should expect to continue to exercise throughout your term. 

Exercise during pregnancy is healthy and will help to reduce swelling and bloat, prevent excessive weight gain, reduce muscle and back strain, and constipation, improve your energy levels, your sleep patterns and your mood. 

Avoid exercise like high-impact aerobics, rock climbing, gymnastics that require balance or exercise at high elevations.  Don’t water ski, snow ski or ride a horse and use common sense when exercising during pregnancy. 

If you feel tired, overheated or dizzy, or if you get nauseous, weak or have blurred vision or heart palpitations, stop immediately and sit down and rest. 

Lifestyle

Food and exercise are important components of a healthy pregnancy; so is the way you live your life. 

Your lifestyle considerations include everything from the medications you take, and the amount of sleep you get, to the level of stress you experience on a daily basis. 

Let’s look at some of the factors you need to consider in your lifestyle:

Medication, Drugs and Medical Treatment  – If you are taking prescription or over the counter medication, talk to your OB/GYN doctor about these medications and be sure you can continue taking them throughout your pregnancy.

Don’t make assumptions.  Talk to your doctor!

If you are seeing a specialist for a medical issue, be sure to let them know you are pregnant so that they can consider that and talk to your OB/GYN doctor if appropriate. 

Remember to tell x-ray technicians and dentists that you are pregnant as well.

Ask your doctor to give you a list of ‘safe over the counter medications’ for things like muscle strain and headache, so you will know what to take if you need pain medication, allergy medication, etc.

There is no time to waste!

If you have used drugs at any time during your pregnancy, tell your doctor.  Even if you stopped using the drug or didn’t know you were pregnant when you used it, your baby can still be a risk and your doctor may need to monitor your pregnancy more closely.

Smoking – If you smoke and you are pregnant, get help and quit.  There is no other way to say it!

The risks of smoking are legendary and they have significant impact on your pregnancy, including:

•   Premature birth
•   Stillborn fetus
•    Low birth weight stillbirth
•    Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS)
•    Asthma and upper respiratory problems

A 50-page Guidelines of Healthy Pregnancy is available to download below. More information found in the eBook like Pregnancy Planning, Considerations, and the stages of pregnancy.

Get the eBook Today!