The growth process of a new life is beautiful and complex. To support your body as it embarks on one of the most difficult work it has ever done, it is important that you eat a nourishing diet. The best foods to eat during pregnancy will help support both the parent and the baby during this crucial period when nutrient requests are higher.
From the second quarter, you will need 340 additional calories per day and a little more than that of the third quarter, according to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG). This is roughly the amount of calories that you will get an apple with 2 tablespoons of peanut butter and a glass of milk.
Of course, more important than the number is where these calories come from. Here, nutrition experts weigh on how to get the most out of your diet while you are pregnant.
1. Fish
In the past, the speakers has been told to avoid eating fish and other seafood because some have high levels of mercury, a toxic heavy metal linked to congenital malformations, according to ACOG. But there are a lot of fish that are sure to eat during pregnancy.
In fact, although this is a difficult sale if you are dealing with morning nausea, fatty fish, in particular, swim nutrients that are crucial for the development of your baby’s brain and eyes.
The speakers should obtain 8 to 12 ounces of seafood with low jaw each week, such as salmon, tuna tuna and trout, explains Lauren Manaker, RDN, LD, a prenatal dietitian, a certified lactation educator and author of The healthy pregnancy cooking book with seven gains.
Gras fish is an excellent food source of omega-3 fats, in particular, a type called docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). This healthy fat is good for baby and parent during pregnancy. “The DHA has been linked to a reduced risk of premature birth and to develop postpartum depression,” explains Manaker.
For our future vegan parents, Manaker suggests talking to your DHA supplements based on seaweed, which can be a good choice to help fill this nutrition gap.
Certain types of fish also give you the additional advantage of vitamin D, most of which do not get enough. During pregnancy, vitamin D is used to help build a baby’s bones and teeth, and this helps promote healthy view and skin, according to ACOG.
Trout, salmon, sardines and tuna will provide vitamin D as well as essential omega-3 fatty acids.
Warning
If you are pregnant, you should not eat bigeye tuna, King, Marlin, Orange Roughy, Shark, Swordfish or Tilefish, according to ACOG.
You should also limit white albacore tuna in your diet only 6 ounces per week. Make sure you check the opinions on all the fish you eat that have been taken in local waters.
2. Eggs
Eggs are one of those foods that are constantly ready to debate. But with regard to pregnancy, there is no doubt: eggs are a nutritional superstar, and it is because they are abundant in a very important nutrient – choline.
“Choline is a nutrient that we do not always speak of in the prenatal world, but it should be,” says Manaker. “It helps support a healthy development of the spinal cord and is linked to the health of the baby’s brain after birth.”
Not only that, but choline can be lacking in your prenatal supplement, advises the dietitian of reproductive health Rachelle Mallik, RD, founder of the food therapist.
A pregnant person needs at least 450 milligrams per day of choline, according to ACOG. An egg provides 169 milligrams of choline. Other foods rich in choline include:
- Chicken
- Lean beef
- Milk
- Soy
- Peanuts
3. Milk
Dairy milk provides a series of necessary nutrients during pregnancy, in particular:
- Calcium – For strong bones and teeth
- Vitamin B12 – Helps to train new red blood cells
- Vitamin A – For healthy sight, skin and bones
- Vitamin D (fortified) – for bones and teeth and the support of the immune system
Milk also has iodine, and although you get enough of this mineral from iodized salt otherwise, you will need more if you are pregnant.
“We have learned that iodine is crucial for the production of thyroid hormones and fetal development,” said Mallik. “The need for this nutrient increases by about 50% during pregnancy.” More specifically, you need 220 micrograms of iodine per day, according to ACOG.
The amount of iodine in milk can vary a little in May 2020 Nutrients. On average, a cup of milk can give you about 94 micrograms of iodine, according to the USDA.
A glass or two of milk can help you get closer to your daily goal for iodine. Mallik also recommends other food sources of iodine, such as eggs, seafood and iodized salt.
4. Bean and legumes
Your options for beans and legumes are endless – black beans, chickpeas, pintos, lenses, peas and more. These plants are the ideal food for pregnancy due to the nutrients they provide.
Beans and legumes are rich in fiber, which is particularly important during pregnancy. Constipation is a common problem during pregnancy with all the hormonal changes your body is going through.
Adding a portion or two of beans a day can help you get the fiber you need to stay regularly. Do not forget to slowly increase the fibers in your diet and drink a lot of water to avoid any additional upheaval.
Beans and legumes also give you iron, which is essential while you are pregnant. “Sperages have a higher risk of iron deficiency, because your daily needs are much higher,” said Bianca Tamburello, RDN. It recommends foods rich in iron for pregnancy to support the increase in blood volume.
Your blood volume (which is just a sophisticated way of saying that the amount of blood circulating in your body) will increase slightly during the first quarter, but will make a larger jump in the second and third quarters.
Some research shows that blood volume can increase up to 48% of the start of pregnancy at the end of the third quarter, according to a December 2019 review in BMC pregnancy and childbirth.
You can get iron from animal food such as lean beef, poultry and fish. There is also iron in plant foods such as beans and legumes, but your body may not absorb it too.
“Iron in animal food is better absorbed by the body, but there are ways to maximize the absorption of iron from vegetarian foods,” said Tamburello. “Combine vegetarian foods rich in iron with foods rich in vitamin C, such as orange juice, tomato juice or strawberries, which can help the absorption of iron.”
5. Potatoes – Sweet and white
Sweet potatoes are one of the best foods to eat while you are pregnant. An average sweet potato gives you more than 100% of the recommended amount of vitamin A that you need during pregnancy in the form of beta-carotene.
Vitamin A is presented in two forms:
- Vitamin A Preformed A: animal food such as milk, cheese, yogurt, liver oil and fish
- Provitamin A (or carotenoids): plant foods such as sweet potatoes, Cantaloup, carrots, mango and apricots
Vitamin A is essential for your eye health and for the development of your baby’s eyes, organs, bones and the immune system, according to a March 2019 review in Nutrients.
Although vitamin A deficiency is a public health problem in the world, it is not common among Americans. In fact, the vitamin A completion can cause toxicity, which is a real danger during pregnancy. Eating food with beta-carotene is a much safer way to make sure you get the nutrients you need.
White potatoes are often demonized in the world of food, but the truth is that they are full of nutrients you need. White potatoes have vitamin C and vitamin B6, which you will need more while you are pregnant, according to ACOG.
And be sure to prepare soft and white potatoes with the skins, which will give you more of this well-necessary fiber.
