The Joy of giving new life to the world is beyond explanation and making it healthy is obligatory. Nutrition plays an essential role in everyday life for everyone and when it comes to providing the nutrition to the new life or during pregnancy one should think critically. Pregnancy nutrition are not just diet and food, every step toward a new life comes with various challenges, and making life healthy is the biggest hurdle in the fast moving life. Managing or planning the diet and other values are crucial as it can be helpful or harmful both.
When a woman is pregnant people generally say that she should take care of her eating habit, lifestyle and even there is a popular saying, ‘Eating for two’. It is assumed that the mother should eat for two to have a healthy pregnancy and child but eating too much can be dangerous. Therefore, the perfect balance of pregnancy nutrition needs to be followed before or during pregnancy.
Benefits and Importance of pregnancy nutrition
Good and balanced diet is the key to healthy fetal growth. What we eat, how we eat, the amount of food every single thing matters as it affects the overall health of mother and the child. Fetus growth, power to fight with disease, nutrition to the mother and child, bone development, brain functioning, maintaining blood pressures and blood cell growth and many more.
Sources of Nutrition
The nutrition’s are classified as micro and macro values depending on the quantity required to a human body. Nutrients such as Protein, Fiber, Fats and Carbohydrate are the macro-nutrient because the human body needs them in large quantities whereas nutrients like Vitamins and Minerals that are equally important to our body but need to be consumed in minimal quantities.
Therefore, it is important to understand the balance with these nutrients and follow the pregnancy nutrition diet properly especially for the good health of child and mother. We generally get macro nutrients with micro nutrients as the food contains it all. Here is the classification of certain pregnancy nutrition and their importance during pregnancy.
- Protein can be gained through animal and plants both and it is said to be the prior pregnancy nutrition for the mothers. Cereals, milk, vegetables, fish and meat are the main source and they also contain fiber, iron, omega and other minerals as well.
People often take protein powder or protein shake to complete the daily protein intake. For pregnant women, a combination of fine powder of roasted almonds, seeds as per preference (pumpkin, flax, sunflower and other), oats are considered as the best natural protein powder for pregnancy. Although, there are several animal and plant based protein powders as a pregnancy nutrition product available in the market.
For the protein shakes pregnant women either choose from market available protein shakes for pregnancy or can make fruits and nuts shake.
- Grains, fruits and vegetables are rich in carbohydrates and also constrain fiber, magnesium, vitamins.
Here is the list of some of the basic pregnancy nutrition required and their source of availability:
- Fat and Fatty Acids: Fat is an important source of energy for every life and helps in absorbing the protein in the body. Hence, it is recommended to maintain the fats intake as a pregnancy nutrition during the pregnancy phase. Pregnant women should avoid processed food and junk food because they have more saturated fats, Trans fats and cholesterol which result in bad health. Try to include nuts, fish, and vegetables as pregnancy nutrition.
- Carbohydrates: carbohydrates are the important source of energy of cells as pregnancy nutrition to the pregnant women and the fetus. Simple carbohydrates such as glucose, fructose are the primary source of energy for the brain, and controls the metabolism and cell communication of the fetal brain development.
- Iron: low iron in a body leads to restlessness, dizziness and low or no energy. Anemia is still one of the most common problems to affect women globally, and iron deficiency is among one of its causes. Anemia during pregnancy can result in an increased risk of preterm birth, low birth weight, miscarriages, and deficiency in the fetus growth. Food such as meat, green leafy vegetables, dried fruit and nuts are rich in iron.
- Calcium: Calcium is another important pregnancy nutrition that builds the fetus’s bones and teeth. Dairy products such as milk, cheese and yogurt are the key source of calcium.
- Fiber: Fiber has a positive impact on fertility and fetus growth. As an important pregnancy nutrition, fiber is easily obtained from fruits, vegetables, and whole grains.
- Vitamin A: Vitamin A is essential for development of healthy skin and good eyesight. Its sources are Carrot, Dark green leafy vegetables and sweet potatoes
- Vitamin C: Vitamin C mostly found in a variety of fruit and vegetables. Especially in citric Fruits. Some sources of Vitamin C pregnancy nutrition are Oranges, red and green peppers, strawberries, Lime juice, broccoli and more.
- Vitamin D: Vitamin D maintains the amount of calcium and phosphate in the body, which are needed to keep bones, teeth and muscles healthy. Oily fish, eggs, Sunlight and red meat. Eating chicken as a pregnancy nutrition source can also be beneficial but raw meat or cold chicken salads are not recommended.
- Vitamin B6: Vitamin B6 is an important pregnancy nutrition as it forms and regulates the red blood cells, it also helps in digestion of proteins, fats and carbohydrates and other nutrients. Vitamin B6 is generally found in beef, liver, pork, whole grain cereals and bananas.
- Vitamin B12: Vitamin B12 is responsible for maintaining the nervous system and the formation of RBCs (red blood cells). The primary sources of this important pregnancy nutrition are animal products such as liver, meat, fish, poultry and milk.
Prenatal vitamins
Every food adds value to the diet and contributes to a healthy lifestyle. Some of the vitamins and minerals needed to be consumed in the form of pills and supplements as the availability of these nutrition are too less during pregnancy or required to take daily and required to be filled up with the help of such supplements as pregnancy nutrition. However, mothers who are preparing for giving birth need to stick to their healthy habits and need to consult the doctor for their diet plans as they provide the accurate requirement needed for mother and the child both, Such as prenatal vitamins, exercising and more.
Prenatal vitamins are the pregnancy nutrition supplements needed for mothers who are pregnant or planning to conceive. During or before pregnancy 400-600 mg of folic acid needs to be taken daily, it helps in the growth and development of the fetus and to avoid NTD ( Neural Tube defects) in children which is quite difficult to consume directly from food every day. Alongside, calcium, omega 3, iron, Iodine and other vitamins should be there in the daily diet.
Every mother thinks of giving the best and healthy life to their child and that begins from the womb, the first stage of life and to make it happen one should select the best prenatal vitamins to fulfill the daily basic pregnancy nutrition count. Not only best prenatal vitamins, people also pick protein powder, protein shakes to complete the protein intake.
Now, what are the best prenatal vitamins? Obviously, the one that completes the daily requirement, that is certified and passes the quality check which varies to pregnancy type, level and mother are the best prenatal vitamins. For example if the person is allergic to something, they can have an alternative of the same which is way better than risking two lives. Hence, consulting the doctor before taking any supplement or following any diet plan, doctor’s consultation is a must.
A healthy pregnancy can possibly be achieved with a balanced intake of pregnancy nutrition, exercise, and after avoiding toxic or non-recommended products.
FAQS
What are the most important pregnancy nutrition to get pregnant?
Every nutrition is important as all nutrients have different functions. Nutrients such as Protein, Fiber, Fats and Carbohydrate are consumed more therefore considered as the macro-nutrient whereas nutrients like Vitamins and Minerals that are equally important to our body but need to be consumed less.
Which fruit is best for pregnancy?
Fruits that have combined nutrient value are ideal as pregnancy nutrition fruits such as bananas, apples, watermelon, berries, oranges and other watery fruits. These fruits contain most nutrients, vitamins, essential minerals, micronutrients, and fiber.
What is the best protein powder for pregnancy?
There are numerous protein powders designed for pregnant women’s are easily available in the market. Animal based protein powder has high quality and is recommended more than plant based protein. However, if the person requires the plant based protein, they can have one from the market or make the same as per their preference, for example, a fine powder of calculated roasted almonds, seeds as per preference (pumpkin, flax, sunflower and more), and oats is considered as the best natural protein powder for pregnancy nutrition.
Can you eat chicken salad while pregnant?
Eating chicken or chicken salad during pregnancy is good for overall health as it includes vegetables but raw meat or cold chicken salads are not recommended.
What are the best protein shakes for pregnancy?
Sugar free juices, fresh juices that have high vitamin and protein value are best suited as pregnancy nutrition. Although, the nuts and fruits smoothies are considered as the best protein shakes for pregnancy.