PREGNANCY: WHAT SHOULD I DO AND NOT DO?
If you listen to every person who has good advice regarding the ‘right’ things to do in pregnancy, you may get yourself into a bit of a knot. Everyone will want to help you, and even strangers will feel in a position to tell you how to live your life. You will hear stories about other women’s pregnancies, even if you don’t want to. Pregnancy tends to affect people like that.
Eating. You are not ‘eating for two’ in quantity, but eating a healthy, balanced diet helps you both. You will need a good diet, because you are doing extra work, and that takes nutrients and energy. The extra energy you will need (particularly after the fourth month) is only about 160 calories, for example about one glass of normal milk, per day.
The developing foetus also needs a good supply of particular nutrients from which it makes bones, blood, nerves, muscles, etc.
The nutrients you both need can usually be found in a varied and balanced diet. The general dietary recommendations we hear these days (low fat, low sugar, high unrefined carbohydrate) make sense in pregnancy, too. A balanced diet is the best way of not missing out on a particular nutrient, and includes daily cereals (for example bread, rice, pasta, breakfast cereal, etc.), fruit and vegetables, milk products, and protein-rich foods.
A few specific nutrients of particular importance in pregnancy include:
• Protein. Extra protein is required during pregnancy. High protein foods include meats (lean red meat, fish, chicken), eggs, lentils. It is recommended that you try to include one to two serves of protein-rich foods per day.
• Iron. This is important when you are making blood cells, which both you and the foetus are doing. Anaemia is the result of a lack of iron and can make you feel weak, tired, and more prone to infections. There is quite a bit of iron in lean meat, kidney, liver, poultry, fish, nuts, dried beans, leafy green vegetables, wholegrain breads and cereals. Iron may be absorbed more effectively if it is eaten at the same time as foods containing vitamin C, like orange juice and tomatoes. It may be less effectively absorbed if large quantities of antacids or dairy products are taken at the same time.
• Calcium. For making bones and teeth you need plenty of calcium. Dairy products, like milk, yoghurt and cheese, are high in calcium. The daily requirement suggested for pregnant women is 600 millilitres of milk, or its equivalent in other dairy products. There are smaller quantities of calcium in other foods, like green vegetables (spinach, broccoli and silver beet), soy beans and fish (with soft, edible bones).
• Folic acid. This vitamin is required specifically for making new cells, particularly blood cells. It is found in liver, kidney, broccoli, spinach, and other green leafy vegetables. It is sometimes lost in cooking, so salads can be a good source. Other foods which contain folic acid include Vegemite, nuts, whole meal bread and avocado. Recent research is looking into possible links between folic acid and spina bifida. Some researchers have recommended folic acid tablets prior to, and during pregnancy to decrease the risk of spina bifida, particularly for those women at higher risk of affected pregnancies.
• Vitamin C. Apart from being renowned for preventing the common cold (which it may or may not do), vitamin C is important in pregnancy. Lack of vitamin C can affect skin, tooth and bone development. It is found in high quantities in citrus and other fruits and jukes, also in tomatoes and potatoes.
• Fats. A balanced diet will contain an adequate amount of fat from sources such as meat, dairy products and cooking oils. Fats contain fat-soluble vitamins, so are necessary for normal foetal development.
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