Beginning with a healthy well balanced diet is the best thing you do for yourself and your baby. This way, you'll only need to make a few adjustments during your pregnancy.
Your First Trimester
If you discover that it’s tough to maintain a well balanced diet during your first trimester, you can rest assured that you’re not alone. As a result of queasiness, some women will eat all of the time and gain a lot of weight in the process.
Other women have trouble getting food down and eventually lose weight. Preventing malnutrition and dehydration are your most crucial factors during first trimester.
Calories
Generally, when you are pregnant, you need to consume around 300 calories more than usual every day. The best way to go about doing this is listening to your body when you are hungry. You should try to eat as many foods as possible from the bottom of the
food pyramid.
If you gain weight too slow, try eating small meals and slightly increase the fat in your diet. You should always eat when you are hungry, as you
are now eating for 2 instead of one.
Calcium
By the second trimester, you'll need around 1,500 milligrams of calcium each day for your bones and your baby', which is more than a quart of milk.
Calcium is something that's missing from many diets. Along with milk, other great sources for calcium include dairy products, calcium fortified juices, and even calcium tablets.
Fiber
Fiber can help to prevent constipation, which commonly a pregnancy problem. You can discover fiber in whole grains, fruits, and even vegetables. Fiber supplements such as Metamucil and Citrucel are safe to take during pregnancy.
Protein
Unless you happen to be a strict vegetarian, your protein intake is not normally a problem for women who eat a healthy diet.
Iron
A handful of women will begin their pregnancy off with a bit of iron deficiency. Great sources of iron include dark leafy green vegetables and meats. In addition, Iron supplements should be avoided, as they can cause internal symptoms such as cramping, constipation, or diarrhea.
Vitamins
Seeing as how you get most of the vitamins you need in your diet, you may want to talk about prenatal vitamins with your doctor. Folate for example, is one of the most essential vitamins, and if you are getting enough of it, you may be able to avoid vitamins all together - we suggest that you ask your doctor to make sure.
