When we recommend a healthy diet during pregnancy, we don't mean counting calories or trying to lose weight. Following a diet to lose weight while pregnant can be risky for you and your baby. Losing weight can lead to losing important nutrients like iron, folic acid, vitamins, and other minerals. So it's best to avoid popular diets like Atkins, South Beach, and raw food diet, and so on.

The diet we suggest during pregnancy is about improving your eating habits to make sure you get the right nutrition for your and your baby's health. Healthy eating during pregnancy is key for your baby's growth and development. To get all the nutrients you need, eat a mix of foods like fruits, vegetables, bread, grains, protein sources, and dairy. Overall, you'll need about 300 extra calories a day.

Foods suitable for pregnancy:

It's always important to eat a variety of foods throughout the day to make sure you're getting all the nutrients you needِ, and for your baby. Here we review food groups and some suggested sources to start a healthy diet during pregnancy.

1- Fruits and vegetables:

Fruits and vegetables contain many important nutrients during pregnancy, especially vitamin C and folic acid. Pregnant women need at least 70 mg of vitamin C daily. It is found in fruits like oranges, grapefruit, honey, and in vegetables like broccoli, tomatoes, and Brussels sprouts.

To avoid neural tube defects, we recommend taking 4,0 mg of folic acid daily. Good sources include green leafy vegetables. Other sources of folic acid are legumes like beans, cowpeas, and veal. You should eat at least two to four servings of fruit and four or more servings of vegetables daily.

 

2- Bread and grains:

The main source of energy during pregnancy comes from carbohydrates found in bread and grains. Whole grains and enriched products provide important nutrients like iron, vitamin B, fiber, and some protein. You can get a good amount of folic acid from fortified bread and grains. Depending on your weight and nutritional needs, eat between six and eleven servings of bread or grains daily.

3- Proteins:

Meat, poultry, fish, eggs, and grains have protein, vitamin B, and iron you need during pregnancy. Your baby’s growth needs protein especially in the second and third trimesters. Iron helps carry oxygen as your baby grows and also delivers oxygen to your muscles. This helps you avoid problems like fatigue, weakness, moodiness, and depression.

The US nutrition authority recommends about 27 mg daily from beef, poultry, goat meat, liver, turkey, and veal, all good choices. Fish and some seafood are also good food choices during pregnancy and part of guidelines. Avoid fish high in mercury and aim for at least three servings of protein daily.

4- Dairy products:

You need to eat at least 1000 mg of calcium daily to support pregnancy. Calcium is essential for building and strengthening teeth, bones, normal blood clotting, muscle strength, and nerve function. From the start of your baby's growth, you should get enough calcium. If you don’t get enough from your diet, your body will take it from your bones, which could cause problems like osteoporosis later.

Good calcium sources are milk, cheese, yogurt, creamy soup, and sweets. There is also some calcium in green veggies, seafood, legumes, and peas. So you should eat at least four servings of dairy products daily.

5- Dietary supplements:

Even though the main source of vitamins and nutrients you need during pregnancy should come from your diet, prenatal vitamins help fill in some nutritional gaps. So it’s good to take prenatal vitamins for about three months before giving birth if possible. Talk to your nutritionist about the best supplements for you. Remember, prenatal vitamins or any supplements just support your diet during pregnancy.

Example of a healthy diet plan fit for pregnancy:

These food examples will give you some daily ideas. It includes three small but balanced meals and also three snacks throughout the day. This is important to meet your and your baby's full nutritional needs.

Breakfast: A meal of oatmeal, a banana, one slice of whole wheat toast, two teaspoons of jam, and one cup of fat-free milk.

Snack: A cup of yogurt and a bunch of grapes.

Lunch: Turkey meat (if fresh, don't eat it undercooked, or steam it to avoid listeria bacteria) with a cheese sandwich on whole wheat bread, a bag of healthy chips, a pear, and a cup of skim milk.

Snack: Raw veggies with low calories.

Dinner: Chicken meat, a cup of rice, a cup of veggies, and a cup of skim milk.

Snack: Fresh fruit, or low-fat frozen yogurt.