Eating and Nutrition During Pregnancy

To eat well during pregnancy you must do more than simply increase how much you eat. You must also consider what you eat. What you eat right before and during your pregnancy can affect the health of your growing baby.

Even before you start trying to get pregnant, you should take special care of your health. Eat healthy meals and snacks and take a multivitamin every day. If you are unsure about eating healthy during pregnancy, talk to your doctor or midwife.

The following information has been adapted from the websites listed at the bottom of this page.

Do I Really Need to "Eat for Two?"

While you are pregnant, you will need additional nutrients to keep you and your baby healthy. But, that does not mean you need to eat twice as much. You should only eat an extra 300 calories per day. A baked potato has 120 calories. So getting these extra 300 calories doesn't take a lot of food.

Make sure not to restrict your diet during pregnancy either. If you do, your unborn baby might not get the right amounts of protein, vitamins, and minerals. Low-calorie diets can break down a pregnant woman's stored fat. This can lead to the production of substances called ketones. Ketones can be found in the mother's blood and urine and are a sign of starvation. Constant production of ketones can result in a mentally retarded child.

What About Food Cravings During Pregnancy?

You have probably known women who craved specific foods during pregnancy, or perhaps you've had such cravings yourself. Researchers have tried to determine whether a hunger for a particular type of food indicates that a woman's body lacks the nutrients that food contains. Although this isn't the case, it's still unclear why these urges occur.

Some pregnant women crave chocolate, spicy foods, fruits, and comfort foods, such as mashed potatoes, cereals, and toasted white bread. Other women crave non-food items, such as clay and cornstarch. The craving and eating of non-food items is known as pica. Consuming things that aren't food can be dangerous to both you and your baby. If you have urges to eat non-food items, notify your doctor.

But following your cravings is fine, as long as you crave foods and these foods contribute to a healthy diet. Frequently, these cravings diminish about 3 months into the pregnancy.

What Food and Drinks Should I Avoid During Pregnancy?

As mentioned earlier, avoid alcohol. No level of alcohol consumption is considered safe during pregnancy. Also, check with your doctor before you take any vitamins or herbal products. Some of these can be harmful to the developing fetus.

And although many doctors feel that one or two 6- to 8-ounce cups per day of coffee, tea, or soda with caffeine won't harm your baby, it's probably wise to avoid caffeine altogether if you can. High caffeine consumption has been linked to an increased risk of miscarriage, so limit your intake or switch to decaffeinated products.

When you are pregnant, it is also important to avoid food-borne illnesses, such as listeriosis and toxoplasmosis, which can be life-threatening to an unborn baby and may cause birth defects or miscarriage. Foods you should avoid include:

Should I Take a Multivitamin During My Pregnancy?

Yes. Most doctors recommend that pregnant women or those trying to get pregnant take a multivitamin or prenatal vitamin every day. This ensures that you and your baby get enough important nutrients like folic acid. Folic acid helps prevent serious birth defects of your baby's brain and spine. These birth defects often happen before most women know they are pregnant.

Even women who plan carefully to eat healthy every day sometimes fail to get important nutrients. Taking a daily multivitamin or prenatal vitamin will guarantee you daily dose of needed nutrients. But don't overdo it. Taking more than one multivitamin daily can be harmful.

Should I Eat Fish When I am Pregnant?

Fish and shellfish can be part of a healthy diet. They are a great source of protein and heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids. But almost all fish and shellfish contain a harmful substance called mercury.

Mercury mainly gets into our bodies by the fish we eat. Only high levels of this metal seem to be harmful to developing babies. So the risk of mercury in fish and shellfish depends on the amount and type you eat.

By following some tips you can get the healthy protein and omega-3 fatty acids in fish and avoid mercury. Use these guidelines:

How Much Weight Should I Gain During Pregnancy?

The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) recommends an average weight gain during pregnancy of 25 to 30 pounds during pregnancy. But the amount of weight you should gain depends on your weight before you became pregnant and your height.

According to ACOG:

Check with your doctor to find out how much weight gain during pregnancy is healthy for you.

You should gain weight gradually during your pregnancy, with most of the weight gained in the last trimester. Doctors suggest women gain weight at the following rate:

Recent research shows that women who gain more than the recommended amount during pregnancy and who fail to lose this weight within six months after giving birth are at much higher risk of being obese nearly 10 years later.

Why Will I Gain 25 to 35 Pounds (on average) when a Newborn Weighs So Little?

Although patterns of weight gain during pregnancy, this is how those pounds may add up:

Is it Hard to Lose Weight After Pregnancy?

If you gain too much weight during pregnancy it can be hard to lose weight after you have your baby. During pregnancy, fat deposits can increase by more than 33 percent. Most women who gain the recommended amount of weight lose the extra weight in the birth process and in the weeks and months after birth. Breastfeeding also can help you lose extra weight by burning extra calories. Breastfeeding burns at least 500 calories each day.

Should I Avoid Alcohol While Pregnant?

There is no safe time during pregnancy for you to drink alcohol. There is also no known safe amount of alcohol to drink during pregnancy. When you are pregnant and you drink beer, wine, hard liquor, or other alcoholic beverages, alcohol gets into your blood. The alcohol in your blood gets into your baby's body through the umbilical cord. Alcohol can slow down the baby's growth, affect the baby's brain, and cause birth defects.

Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD) is a term describing a range of effects that can occur in a person whose mother drank alcohol during pregnancy. Some people with FASD have abnormal facial features and growth and central nervous system problems. People with FASD may have problems with learning, memory, attention span, communication, vision, and/or hearing. These problems often lead to problems in school and social problems. The effects of FASD last a lifetime.

Can I Drink Caffeine While Pregnant?

Caffeine is a stimulant found in colas, coffee, tea, chocolate, cocoa, and some over-the-counter and prescription drugs. Large quantities of caffeine can cause irritability, nervousness and insomnia as well as low birth-weight babies. Caffeine is also a diuretic and can rob your body of valuable water.

Some studies show that drinking caffeine during pregnancy can harm the fetus. Other research suggests that small amounts of caffeine are safe. Talk to your doctor before drinking caffeine during pregnancy. Caffeine is an ingredient in many over-the-counter and prescription drugs. Talk with your doctor before taking any drugs or medicines while pregnant.

How Should My Diet Change Now That I am Pregnant?

Whether or not you are pregnant, a healthy diet includes proteins, carbohydrates, fats, vitamins, minerals, and plenty of water. The U.S. government publishes dietary guidelines that can help you determine how many servings of each kind of food to eat every day. Eating a variety of foods in the proportions indicated is a good step toward staying healthy.

Food labels can tell you what kinds of nutrients are in the foods you eat. The letters RDA, which you find on food labeling, stand for recommended daily allowance, or the amount of a nutrient recommended for your daily diet. When you're pregnant, the RDAs for most nutrients are higher.

Here are some of the most common nutrients you need and the foods that contain them:

If you are eating a healthy diet before you become pregnant, you may only need to make a few changes to meet the special nutritional needs of pregnancy. According to the American Dietetic Association (ADA), a pregnant woman needs only 300 calories a day more than she did pre-pregnancy. The ADA recommends that pregnant women eat a total of 2,500 to 2,700 calories every day. These calories should come from a variety of healthy foods.

But what pregnant women eat is more important than how much. A pregnant woman needs more of many important vitamins, minerals and nutrients than she did pre-pregnancy. To get enough nutrients, pregnant omen should take a multivitamin or prenatal vitamin and eat healthy foods from the four basic food groups everyday.

Even though lots of foods, particularly breakfast cereals, are fortified with folic acid, doctors now encourage women to take folic acid supplements before and throughout pregnancy (especially for the first 28 days). Be sure to ask your doctor about folic acid if you're considering becoming pregnant.

Calcium is another important nutrient for pregnant women. Because your growing baby's calcium demands are high, you should increase your calcium consumption to prevent a loss of calcium from your own bones. Your doctor will also likely prescribe prenatal vitamins for you, which contain some extra calcium.

What Is Folic Acid and Why Does Your Baby Need it?

Folic acid, a B vitamin, helps prevent birth defects of the brain and spinal cord when taken very early in pregnancy. It is available in most multivitamins, as a folic acid-only supplement and in some foods.  Some studies suggest that folic acid may also protect women and men from heart disease, stroke, colon cancer and  breast cancer.

The best way to get enough folic acid is to take a multivitamin with 400 micrograms of folic acid in it and eat a healthy diet. Most multivitamins have this amount, but check the label to be sure. You also can get folic acid in your diet.  Eat a healthy diet that includes foods that contain folate, the natural form of the vitamin. Such foods include fortified breakfast cereals, dried beans, leafy green vegetables and orange juice.  However, it is hard to get enough folic acid every day through food alone. That is why the March of Dimes encourages all women of childbearing age to take a multivitamin containing folic acid every day as part of a healthy diet.

Folic acid is found in the following foods:

What Other Nutrients Do I Need for a Healthy Pregnancy?

Iron: Pregnant women need twice as much iron, approximately 30 mg per day, than other women.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that pregnant women start taking a low-dose iron supplement (30 mg/day) or a multivitamin with iron beginning at the time of their first prenatal visit. Ask your doctor what she recommends. Prenatal vitamins prescribed by your doctor or those you can buy over-the-counter usually have the amount of iron you need. But be sure to check the label to make sure. Pregnant women should also eat lots of iron-rich foods. Some good sources of iron include lean red meat, fish, poultry, dried fruits, whole-grain breads, and iron-fortified cereals.

Too little iron can cause a condition called anemia. If you have anemia, you might look pale and feel very tired. Your doctor checks for signs of anemia with the routine blood tests taken at different stages of your pregnancy. If your doctor or midwife finds that you have anemia, she/he will give you a special iron supplements to take once or twice a day.

Calcium: Pregnant women aged 19 to 50 years should get 1,000 mg/day of calcium. Younger pregnant women need even more, about 1300 mg/day.

Most women in the U.S. don't eat enough calcium. So many pregnant women will have to change their diets to get their fill of this important mineral. Low-fat or non-fat milk, yogurt, cheese or other dairy products are great sources of calcium. Eating green leafy vegetables and calcium-fortified foods like orange juice and breakfast cereal can also provide calcium. If your diet is not providing 1,000 mg/day of calcium, talk to your doctor about taking a calcium supplement.

Water: Pregnant women should drink at least six eight-ounce glasses of water per day. Plus, pregnant women should drink another glass of water for each hour of activity.

Water plays a key role in your diet during pregnancy. It carries the nutrients from the food you eat to your baby. It also helps prevent constipation, hemorrhoids, excessive swelling, and urinary tract or bladder infections. Drinking enough water, especially in your last trimester, prevents you from becoming dehydrated. Not getting enough water can lead to premature or early labor.

Juices also contain water. But juice also has a lot of calories that can cause you to gain extra weight. Coffee, soft drinks, and teas with caffeine actually reduce the amount of fluid in your body. So caffeinated drinks do not count towards the total amount of water you need every day.