Diets For Pregnancy - A Must For All Mothers

As mothers, the welfare of your baby solely lies in your hands and how well you are able to take care of yourself before pregnancy, while pregnant and of course after pregnancy. These three stages are very important for all expectant mothers and, therefore, require certain diets. While diets for the first stage will help prepare your body for conception, diets for the second stage will help retain conception till birth and keep both mother and child healthy, then diets for the third stage will help both the mother and baby adapt to changes after the first and second stages.

For all mothers, especially if this is your first time, the following tips will guide you through selecting a healthy diet for pregnancy especially before conception, during pregnancy and after child-birth.

Pre-pregnancy Diets

Eat Folic Acid-Friendly Foods: studies prove that the earlier you start taking foods rich in folic acid before conception, the lower the chances that your baby will develop neutral tube effects. Most whole grains and leafy green vegetables are naturally rich in folic acids.

Drop Junk Foods: this includes refined sugars, Danish, cakes, doughnuts, and refined white flour. A high intake of junk foods will increase the risk of vomiting and severe pregnancy nausea.

Increase Your Intake Of Pregnancy Friendly Foods: increase your intake of foods that will create a healthy environment for your baby. Foods like green veggies, nutritious yellow carrots, papaya, mango and apricots, heart-friendly whole grains, brown rice, oatmeal and low-fat dairy.

Diets While Pregnant

During the first three months of being pregnant, eat foods that are rich in protein, this will provide your baby with building blocks for cells and is critical since your unborn child develops its organ during the first three months of your pregnancy.

Mothers who are non-vegetarians can take turkey, tuna, chicken and beef; these foods are high in protein and will supply you and your baby with an adequate amount of protein when you take just one ounce. Fruits like almonds, papaya, apricots and cinnamon are packed with pregnancy-friendly vitamins and minerals. Mothers who are vegetarians can get an amazing supply of protein from beans, eggs and peanut butters and can also take fruits to supplement the supply of other necessary nutrients.

Post Pregnancy Diets

Meals taken after pregnancy are usually for three reasons, the first is to help the body adapt to changes after child-birth; the second reason is to help the body provide the baby with all the necessary nutritional needs, while the third reason is to help the mother stay in shape physically.

A good post pregnancy diet is one that has the right mix of protein, vitamins, minerals, and carbohydrate and takes into account the calorie needs of the mother keeping in mind that the baby will be breast-fed. After pregnancy, the metabolic rate of a woman may fall temporarily, so it is advisable to maintain diets low in fats and carbohydrates.