It is not uncommon for women to need information about what foods should be part of a healthy diet — and which foods to avoid — in addition to concerns about gaining weight.
Healthcare professionals encourage women to understand why nutrition is important: to give their babies a healthy start in life.
“If the mother does not get adequate nutrition, the fetus will not get adequate nutrition to promote healthy growth — which can lead to low birth weight or premature delivery,” said Lois Woods, nutritionist at Taylor County Health District Women, Infants and Children program.
For example, she said, “If you get too much sodium in your diet, it can lead to early delivery of the fetus and the baby’s health compromises because it does not have the proper nutrition status.”
Nutrition during pregnancy comes down to the basics of healthy choices.
“Healthy lifestyle, healthy eating habits, not taking certain medications, appropriate prenatal care and appropriate immunizations are definitely a must,” said Mari Weis, director of Advancing Babies Chances.
There are a number behaviors to avoid, such as taking in too much caffeine, drinking alcohol and smoking.
“We want to limit the amount of caffeine because it can speed up your heartbeat and the baby’s heartbeat and of course, not drink alcohol,” said Dr. Charles Anderson, obstetrician/gynecologist at Abilene Regional Medical Center. “We have restricted smoking because it decreases the baby’s growth.”
Pregnancy often creates questions about how much weight gain is normal.
“When women first come to see me, one of the things they are most concerned about is how much weight they should gain because they do not want to gain too much,” Anderson said.
Most women gain about three pounds each month, for a total weight gain of between 20 to 30 pounds, he said.
The foundation of a pregnant woman’s diet should be common sense, Anderson said.
“We want a well-rounded diet with vegetables, salad and appropriate protein in the form of red meat or chicken; this usually covers the basic food groups,” Anderson said.
An important vitamin to take early is folic acid, Anderson said. “That way the baby will have the necessary vitamins and some iron that is in the prenatal vitamins.”
Folic acid is also important because a deficiency can cause birth defects, said Tracy Gower, dietician at Hendrick Health System. This means pregnant women should eat leafy vegetables, berries, beans, peas and cereal bars that are fortified.
One element that some prenatal vitamins lack is calcium, Anderson said.
“I usually recommend two glasses of skim milk every day to get the appropriate amount of calcium,” he said.
Women should be attentive to nutrients, Gower said.
“Select cereals and bread products fortified with iron to get extra iron in your diet, and make sure that you have plenty of vitamin C which can come from oranges — 100 percent fruit juice with fortification, broccoli and green leafy vegetables,” says Gower.
Vitamin A is important.
“A lot of the orange vegetables like carrots, orange peppers and tomato products have vitamin A,” Gower said.
In general, pregnant women should be wary of eating fish.
“Some fish including shark, swordfish and mackerel can be an issue because of the mercury content,” Gower said. “The general guideline with all other fish including tuna is to have less than 12 ounces per week.”
When eating meats, pregnant women should make sure the meat is prepared properly.
“They should be heated up until they are steaming hot to kill off any bacteria that could cause food-borne illness,” Gower said. “If you get meat with bad bacteria, it can cause serious problems with the baby.”
Pregnant women should seek immediate medical attention if they suspect you may have food-borne illness.
“Listeria is a food-borne illness that can cause you to lose the fetus, so you should be extra cautious that you are handling foods properly,” said Martha Alice Spraberry, Taylor County Extension family and consumer sciences agent.
And women should not forget to practice good hygiene.
“Make sure you are washing your hands when handling products,” Spraberry said.
Paying attention to basic nutritional guidelines is important for one reason: Babies are counting on their mothers to make wise choices.
SOURCE: reporternews
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