What to eat and avoid in Pregnancy

Introduction

Just because you are pregnant does not mean you get to eat anything, at any time you want. As a pregnant woman, there are a few restrictions in place to help keep you and your baby safe and healthy. There will be times when you will crave certain food and you will have to show a lot of willpower.

There will also be many different types of food that you should eat but will not want to do so because they taste bland. We will show you how to manage such food and make them taste great.

In fact, the information in this chapter also will help you make a shopping list that will make it almost impossible for you to eat the wrong types of food. During pregnancy, the key to a healthy body and a healthy child is eating simple and eating right.

You need a lot of nutrition during pregnancy because a lot of the nutrition you absorb goes to your child. However, that does not mean you eat everything in sight. Although you should eat more, rules of moderation and variety still apply.

Foods to Have

Nutrition already holds a lot of value to women. This fact is amplified during pregnancy. When you are pregnant, you not only need to fulfill the nutritional requirements of your own body, you need to provide nutrition to your child as well.

Omega-3 Rich Fish

Eating fish rich in omega-3 fatty acids, especially DHA, is a great way to improve the development of your baby’s brain. Salmon and lake trout are just two examples

of fish rich in omega-3.

Furthermore, with the right amount of omega-3, not only will your child sleep better, you will experience less, if any, postpartum depression.

Meat

Meat is very important for pregnant moms, especiallylean meat as it contains a low amount of fat and a high amount of protein. This essential nutrient is required to help your baby’s body grow. A
protein deficiency could result in birth defects.

However, you must remember to eat lean meat and stay away from any meat that has a high amount of fat in it. If you are a bacon lover, say goodbye to it.

Meat is also high in iron; an essential component of blood. Without an adequate blood supply, your child will not get enough oxygen. The development of your child’s teeth and bones will also be affected.

Meat will also:

Keep the placenta healthy.
Your baby’s hormones in check.
Improve the metabolism of the baby.
Enhance the formation of breast milk.

Vegetables

Vegetables are an important part of any pregnant woman’s diet because they provide the body with a high amount of carbohydrate. Carbohydrate is the number one nutrient that any pregnant woman requires.

Carbohydrate is the single most important fuel source for the body. Without an ample supply of carbohydrates, your body will tire out faster.

Additionally, your child will not get its
required amount of energy; resulting in poor growth. Vegetables also contain calcium, another essential vitamin during pregnancy.

However, moms-to-be need to remember that they require simple, not complex carbohydrates. Simple carbs are broken down much more efficiently by the body and are thus essential to keeping off the excess baby fat.

Milk

Milk is an exceptionally important component of any pregnancy diet because milk

contains a high amount of calcium, essential for proper structural growth. Calcium is essential for your baby’s growing heart, muscles, bones, and nervous system.

Calcium is not only essential for your baby, it is essential for the pregnant mom too. Sufficient calcium levels reduce blood pressure and back pain, nullify muscle cramps, and even reduce the pain experienced during labor.

This is one of the biggest reasons why moms-to-

be are not allowed to skip breakfast. A healthy whole-grain cereal with a few fruits, and a glass of freshly squeezed juice, is one of

the best breakfast ideas for any pregnant woman.

Foods to Avoid

When you are pregnant, there are many different foods you should avoid.

Pregnancy is not a license that allows you to feast on anything you want. Here is a list of foods that you need to avoid at all costs.

Fast Food

If there is one thing you need to avoid at all costs during pregnancy, it’s fast food. Everyone knows fast food isa greasy, fat-filled and cholesterol packing monstrosity.

The last thing any pregnant woman needs is significant weight gain and to bear an obese baby. Remember women, the more fat you eat, the harder the time you will have during labor.

Ready-to-eat

Anything that is ready to eat is completely off limits to pregnant women. You will be doing nothing but packing oncalories; possibly the only thing such food is good for.

Ready-to-eat meals and snacks have very little

nutritional content in them and should be avoided. All you will be doing is gaining weight.

Contrary to popular belief, even ready-to-eat salads are out of the question. Many contain a lot of additives. Furthermore, many contain fattening and unhealthy salad dressings. Although tasty, you are better off making your own salad. It does not take long and it is definitely a lot more nutritious.

Soft Cheese

Soft cheese and pregnancy do not go well together. This is primarily because soft cheese can contain large amounts of saturated fat; a pregnant woman’s worst enemy. Although this is not always the case, it is better to be safe than sorry.

Ice-cream

Even though the picture on the side looks absolutelytempting, this is yet another type of food that you will have to stay away from.

This one is particularly for
women who have gestational
diabetes.During pregnancy,
the last thing you need is sugary ice-cream. All it will do is pack on the extra pounds.

Making Shopping Lists

When most of us go shopping, we can hardly remember what we need to buy. We end up buying items we don’t need because they were on sale. As a pregnant woman, you cannot afford to buy food that

you don’t need or should avoid.

If you are looking for a way to avoid unhealthy food and feast on healthy food, there is only one thing you can do; make a shopping list. Making a shopping list will ensure that you only buy what you need to buy and are not tempted to buy the big 2-liter soft ice cream on sale.

To be honest, most of us can hardly remember what food we need to eat and which ones we need to avoid. We end up writing unhealthy food on our shopping list and this can be hazardous, for both you and your baby.

Therefore, if you want to ensure that you never put the wrong kind of food on your shopping list, have a friend (who has undergone pregnancy) check it for you. She will ensure that you have the right items on your list. In case you have put ‘extra’ items on your list, she will make sure they are off the list.