Nutrition During Pregnancy

Nutrition is very important during pregnancy. Adequate diet is one of the best things during pregnancy. Good nutrition will help you meet the extra needs of your body during pregnancy. The purpose of nutrition is to balance sufficient material supply to support the development of the fetus and maintain a reasonable weight.

A common saying among pregnant women is “eaten for two,” but we know it’s dangerous to eat twice as much during pregnancy. Instead of ‘eating for two’, think of it as doubly healthy eating.

If you’re pregnant with one baby, you need an extra 340 calories a day starting in the second trimester and slightly more in the third trimester. Pregnant women with twins need an extra 600 calories/day, pregnant women with triplets need 900 extra calories/day.

Food group for pregnant women?

• Grains, cereals: Rice, bread, noodles, oatmeal, corn are all grains. Whole grains are those that are unprocessed and include nuts (seeds and beans). Oats, barley, quinoa, and brown rice are all whole grains, as are products made from them.
• Fruit: You can eat fresh, canned, frozen, or dried fruit. Juice counts in the fruit category, but it’s best to eat mostly fruit instead of juice.
• Vegetables: You can eat raw vegetables, boiled vegetables or drink juice from vegetables.
• Protein foods: Poultry, fish, seafood, beans and peas, eggs, processed soy products, nuts and seeds all contain protein. Eat a variety of protein every day.
• Dairy foods: Milk and dairy products, such as cheese, yogurt, and ice cream, make up the dairy group. Choose fat-free or low-fat varieties (1%).
• Oils and fats: Not a food group, but they provide you with important nutrients. During pregnancy, the fats you eat provide energy and help form the placenta and many of the fetal organs. Oils in foods come mainly from plant sources (soybeans, canola, sunflower), which can be found in some foods such as avocados and olives. Limit fats from animal sources, with the exception of fish (should avoid certain types of fish with high mercury content: white tuna, bigeye tuna, mackerel, orange fish, shark, ..)

Weight gain during pregnancy?

Weight gain depends on pre-pregnancy health and body mass index (BMI). If you are underweight before pregnancy, you should gain more weight than women with normal weight before pregnancy. If you are overweight or obese before pregnancy, you should eat less.
For pregnant women with normal body mass index (18.5-22.5) before pregnancy, the weight gain during pregnancy may be 12-14 kg. The degree of weight gain in three months is different:

• In the first 12 weeks of pregnancy (the first three months), you may only increase 0.5-2 kg, or you may not increase at all.
• If you have a healthy weight before pregnancy, you should increase 1-2 kg per month in the second and third trimester of pregnancy.

Excessive weight during pregnancy is associated with many complications of pregnancy and childbirth, including:

• Hypertension
• Preeclampsia
• Premature infant
• Gestational diabetes

Obesity during pregnancy also increases the following risks:

• Fetuses larger than normal (macro)
• Maternal (vaginal tear, perineal ptosis) and infant (shoulder seizure, clavicle fracture, asphyxia, etc.) l
• Caesarean birth
• Birth defects, especially neural tube defects

You and your obstetrician should jointly develop a good nutrition plan during pregnancy.

Your growth is below the recommended guidelines. If your fetus is well developed, growth below the recommended guidelines may still be considered beneficial. If your fetus does not develop well, you may need to change your diet and monitor its growth.

The nutrition during pregnancy is appropriate, the weight gain is reasonable, and the fetus is not well developed. If possible, it is necessary to discuss the deeper reasons with the obstetricians and gynaecologists.

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