Eat Healthy While Pregnant

Although nausea and vomiting during the first few months of pregnancy can make this difficult, try to eat a well-balanced diet and take prenatal vitamins. Here are some recommendations to keep you and your baby healthy.

• Eat a variety of foods to get all the nutrients you need. Recommended daily servings include 6-11 servings of  grains, two to four servings of fruit, four or more servings of vegetables,  three servings of protein sources (meat, poultry, some fish, eggs or nuts). Use fats and sweets sparingly.
• Choose foods high in fiber that are enriched such as whole-grain breads, cereals, pasta, brown rice, fruits, and vegetables.
• Make sure you are getting enough vitamins and minerals in your daily diet while pregnant. You should take a prenatal vitamins to make sure you are consistently getting enough vitamins and minerals every day. Your doctor can recommend an over-the-counter brand or prescribe a prenatal vitamin for you.
• Eat and drink at least four servings of calcium-rich foods a day to help ensure that you are getting 1000-1300 mg of calcium in your daily diet during pregnancy.
• Eat at least three servings of iron-rich foods per day to ensure you are getting 27 mg of iron daily.
• Choose at least one good source of vitamin C every day, such as oranges, grapefruits, strawberries, honeydew, papaya, broccoli, cauliflower, brussel sprouts, green peppers, tomatoes, and mustard greens. Pregnant women need 70 mg of vitamin C a day.
• Choose at least one good source of folic acid every day, like dark green leafy vegetables, veal, and legumes (lima beans, black beans, black-eyed peas and chickpeas). Every pregnant woman needs at least 0.4 mg of folic acid per day to help prevent neural tube defects such as spina bifida.
• Choose at least one source of vitamin A every other day. Sources of vitamin A include carrots, pumpkins, sweet potatoes, spinach, water squash, turnip greens, beet greens, apricots, and cantaloupe.  Wee Peek Prenatal Imaging recommends eating organic and local when possible.