Healthy eating and drinking during your pregnancy will help you get the right balance of nutrients for your growing baby and for your body, helping you both to cope with the changes that are taking place. Therefore, eating a balanced diet of vegetables, fruit, starchy foods, protein and dairy is something that you should try to do throughout your pregnancy.
You should complement your diet with a vitamin D supplement, which helps healthy bone development. Eating foods that are good sources of iron will help to prevent you suffering from anaemia. Turkey, chicken, eggs, breakfast cereals, pulses and beans, brown rice, wholemeal bread, leafy green vegetables and dried fruit are all rich in iron.
On the other hand, you should avoid pate and mould ripened soft cheeses, liver and liver products and unpasteurised milk. And really, you shouldn't have any more than two portions of oily fish a week. Eating healthily is not just about what you eat but also its preparation. This is because your immune system changes and you are more prone to infection.
So good personal hygiene, and washing your hands properly before and after preparing food becomes much more important. You must also prepare and cook your food carefully to prevent food poisoning. For example ready meals, meat, poultry, shellfish and eggs need to be thoroughly cooked.
You are going to put on weight during pregnancy, but if you manage your diet and the amount of exercise that you take, you should be able to keep your weight gain to the average of about 11 kg. Lastly, if you require more advice about diet, your midwife can refer you to a dietician; please ask if you would like some guidance.
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