It’s often been said that one of the best things you can do for your baby – the child who is growing in your stomach – is to make a healthy diet a mainstay throughout your pregnancy. After all, the food mom eats is their little one’s primary source of nutrition.
Eating healthy, however, can be challenging: the occasional nausea, gestational diabetes, the list of foods that are prohibited, etc.
So today we’re happy to provide you tips and tricks courtesy of our editors on what they ate and their attitudes toward food that can help you have a healthy pregnancy diet – and give your baby his or her best start at life.
“Eating for two” is a bit of a misnomer. According to Baby Center, the average pregnant woman who is at a healthy weight pre-pregnancy needs no extra calories in the first trimester, about 350 extra calories a day in the second trimester and 450 extra calories a day in the third trimester. This number will of course vary given your own medical history or if you’re carrying multiples, but it’s a good rule of thumb to use.
Four of our editors had four very different experiences with food during their pregnancy:
While pregnant with her daughters, founder and editor Lindsey always ate when she was hungry, but tried to make choices that gave her lots of bang for her buck and kept her fuller for longer. She ate more fruits/vegetables and more lean protein, and carried water and a little bag of almonds or a granola bar with her to be prepared when nausea/hunger pangs flared up. “With both pregnancies my weight gain was on the lower end of average, and I think it is because I didn’t use pregnancy as an excuse to eat more than I needed,” Lindsey said.
Our editor Praveen was a fairly healthy eater before she became pregnant, and didn’t experience any morning sickness during pregnancy, so she was able to continue her healthy diet of tea and toast, a good-sized lunch with carrots and yogurt as sides and a slightly larger dinner.
However another editor, Mallory, went through a situation many of our readers might be familiar with: she simply couldn’t stomach healthy food, or most food really, at all. Mallory ate lots of bread and pasta during her first trimester, and even turned to protein-fortified pasta to get that essential nutrient amidst all the carbs. After that rough trimester concluded she ate four smaller meals every day (the baby didn’t allow her much space to eat), and always had peanut butter toast before bed to fight nausea. Hard boiled eggs and trail mix/Cliff bars also helped Mallory waylay her hunger, which could turn into nausea if her needs weren’t satiated.
At 15 weeks of pregnancy, our editor Hannah was diagnosed with gestational diabetes. According to the American Diabetic Association, this diagnosis, which affects 18 percent of pregnancies, means a woman hasn’t had the condition previously but during pregnancy has high blood sugar levels.
Hannah was immediately put on a special diabetic diet and had to be very careful about the quality and type of carbohydrates she was eating, as some could cause her blood sugar to spike more than others. She avoided white or brown rice (as well as processed white or wheat bread, cookies and cakes) and substituted quinoa instead. Hannah also substituted almond flour for white and ate lots of fresh foods and lean protein, such as egg whites, nonfat Greek yogurt, apples and grilled chicken.
Our editors’ healthy diets contributed to them delivering healthy babies – and now helps them serve as a role model for healthy living for their little ones.
Lindsey found that she actually prefers vegetable sushi rolls to fish ones (she had to make the substitution during pregnancy) and she drinks less caffeine now (she didn’t have any in her first trimesters and tried to often have decaf tea) – even with a 19 month old and a seven week old in tow. She finds this type of eating helps her to lose the baby weight and keep her energy up.
Mallory admits to being a healthy eater before she was pregnant, but she’d also indulge in the occasional cookies or pizza. “Once I realized that sugar or saturated fat was going to my son Harry, I stopped,” she said. That attitude, combined with breastfeeding and baby-led weaning with Harry, caused Mallory to actually lose 10 pounds from her pre-baby weight the year after Harry was born.
Hannah’s gestational diabetes caused her to be more aware of her eating in the present moment (to prevent blood sugar spikes) and in the future (to lessen her risk of developing Type II diabetes). Her diligence to her health and diet during her pregnancy helped her deliver a 7 lbs, 4 oz baby girl (the biggest risk with gestational diabetes is that the baby will grow too large in utero), and she still follows many of the same eating and portion guidelines.
“Eating less refined carbs and more protein has helped me lose all the baby weight (and then some!) and gives me the energy I need to care for my child,” she said.
What about you, Wise Mamas? What were some of your favorite foods to stay healthy or combat nausea during pregnancy? Are you still maintaining a healthy diet after having given birth?
The post A Closer Look: Healthy Eating and Attitudes Toward Food During Pregnancy appeared first on The Wise Baby.