1. Get Enough Calories
During the first three months of your pregnancy, you don't need to change the number of calories you get from the foods you eat. During the last six months of pregnancy, normal-weight women need an extra 300 calories each day, for a total of about 1,900 to 2,500 calories a day.
If you were underweight, overweight or obese before you became pregnant, or if you are pregnant with more than one baby, you may need a different number of calories. Talk to your health care provider about how much weight you should gain and how many calories you need.
2. Get Enough Folic Acid
Folic acid helps prevent birth defects. Eat breakfast cereals and other foods enriched with folic acid. And eat foods rich in folate — the natural form of folic acid — such as orange juice, strawberries, spinach, broccoli and beans. You can also get these nutrients in a vitamin.
3. Minimize Morning Sickness and Discomfort
Morning sickness, heartburn and other discomforts can make eating right more difficult during pregnancy. Here are tips to make you feel better:
- If you feel sick to your stomach in the morning, eat dry whole-wheat toast or whole-grain crackers when you first wake up — even before you get out of bed. Eat the rest of your breakfast (fruit, oatmeal, cereal, milk, yogurt or other foods) later in the morning. Your health care provider can help you deal with morning sickness while keeping your healthy eating habits on track.
- To prevent the constipation that many women have during pregnancy, eat whole-grain cereals, vegetables, fruits, beans, whole-wheat breads and brown rice; drink plenty of water; and getting daily exercise.
- If you have heartburn during your pregnancy, eat small meals more often, eat slowly, avoid spicy foods such as peppers and fatty foods such as fried chicken. Drink beverages between meals instead of with meals and don't lie down soon after eating.
4. Keep Healthy Foods On Hand
A fruit bowl filled with apples, bananas, peaches, oranges and grapes makes it easy to grab a healthy snack. Fresh, frozen, and canned fruits, vegetables and beans make healthy and quick additions to meals. Be sure to choose canned fruits packed in their own juices. Also, rinse canned beans and vegetables with water before preparing to remove excess salt.
5. Skip Potentially Dangerous Foods
Some foods can harm you or your baby.
- Instead of wine, beer or a mixed drink, enjoy apple cider, tomato juice, sparkling water or other nonalcoholic beverages.
- Don't eat fish that may have high levels of methyl-mercury, such as shark, swordfish, king mackerel and tilefish during pregnancy. Eat no more than 12 ounces of any fish per week.
- Skip soft cheeses such as feta, Brie, and goat cheese and ready-to-eat meats including lunch meats, hot dogs and deli meats. These foods may contain bacteria called listeria that is harmful to unborn babies. Cooking lunch meats, hot dogs and deli meats until steaming hot can kill the bacteria, making these meats safe to eat.
- Avoid raw or undercooked fish, meat and poultry, such as sashimi and some types of sushi and ceviche. When raw or undercooked, these foods may contain harmful bacteria. Cook fish, meat and poultry thoroughly before eating.
- Cut back on caffeinated beverages. If you are a heavy coffee, tea or soda drinker, talk to your health care provider about whether you should cut back on caffeine. Try a decaffeinated version of your favorite beverage, a mug of warm low-fat or fat-free milk, or sparkling mineral water.
- Only eat real food. Some pregnant women may crave something that is not food, such as laundry starch or clay. Talk to your health care provider if you crave something that is not food.
Information in this article was excerpted from the Weight Control Information Network of the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.
