What Foods To Eat During Pregnancy
There has been so much confusion over the years as to what constitutes healthy eating during pregnancy. Topics such as weight gain, calorie intake, the use of salt, what foods to eat during pregnancy, what foods to avoid during pregnancy, as well as the use of vitamin supplements were poorly understood. As a result, women were given erroneous and conflicting advice, sometimes causing harm—even death—to mother and/or child.
Here’s a fact: The quality of what you eat before, during and even after pregnancy affects your baby’s health more than any other single element. So, knowing what foods to eat during pregnancy to provide the optimum nutrition for yourself and your unborn baby should be your primary concern throughout the 9 months.
It’s never too late to improve your diet. Your baby benefits when you make positive changes, no matter how small, even in your 3rd trimester. In fact, your baby’s requirements for iron, protein, and calcium are highest in the final 8 to 12 weeks of pregnancy. By making lifelong improvements in your diet you will pass on lasting benefits to your children into adulthood, since they will grow up with better eating habits, experience better health and will consequently feed their own families better.
There is still much to learn. However, nutritionary information of what foods to eat during pregnancy today is based more on well-grounded research and a deeper understanding of the physiology of pregnancy.
In closing, don’t ever let anyone else—no matter the acronym(s) that follow their name—tell you what to do with your body. If you get advice that goes against your better judgment or doesn’t feel right, put it to the test. Do your own research and get a second (or third) opinion from those who hold the same values as you.
