Diet during Pregnancy

There's a lot of press coverage and medical opinion to be found about what your diet during pregnancy should be. Whilst there might be many styles of presentation, the general feeling is that you should continue to eat a healthy balanced diet throughout your pregnancy.

This sounds like a decent common sense approach. You have a new baby growing quickly inside of you, so it is important to ensure that the best nutrients get through to the little one to give them the best start in life. To help support your body during the changes of pregnancy, it is recommended that pregnant women consume an additional 300 calories per day.

The extra calorie intake is an interesting topic to cover in more detail. During non-pregnant times, we can be forgiven for thinking that a calorie is a demon, tempting us with cakes and chocolate. Yet, during pregnancy, additional calories are required. For some women, this may go completely against their mind set. If you find yourself constantly checking the scales during pregnancy, it is very important that you begin to understand why additional weight is so vital during pregnancy.

The common sense approach to diet during pregnancy is probably the best way, try not to drastically change your diet, yet have a common understanding of which foods constitute part of a balanced diet. If you're unsure, have a chat with your midwife or there are plenty of books available on the topic. The types of foods you should be eating on a regular basis will be plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables, low fat (lean) meats, chicken and turkey, wholemeal bread products and lower fat dairy products such as yogurts.

It is possible that your diet during pregnancy does not provide enough of one or two particular vitamins. This is nothing to be overly concerned about, we all have dislikes for certain foods, however it is important that the vitamins you're missing out on are supplemented in other ways. Again, we suggest that you speak with your midwife or Medical Doctor. Rest assured, that in almost all cases they will prescribe additional nutrients during your pregnancy.

Other vital nutrients you will require during pregnancy will be iron and calcium. Depending on your existing diet, you may already get enough of these two nutrients. However, during pregnancy you may find that you need a little more of each. You baby will rely on calcium to rapidly grow, try to take in plenty of dairy products, yogurts and milk.

When we speak about diet during pregnancy at our group sessions, it is never long before we're onto the topic of comfort eating. Or more specifically, eating lots of chocolate, ice creams and other foods we'd normally have only in limitations when not pregnant. Our view on this topic is simple, if it makes you feel good and it relaxes you, then it is a good thing. The only caveat to this is, that it has to be in addition to healthy balanced diet and not instead of it.