Eating Healthy During Pregnancy

During pregnancy starting off your with a healthy well
balanced diet is the best thing you do for yourself
and your baby. This way, you’ll only need to make
a few adjustments during your pregnancy.

Your first trimester
If you find it tough to maintain a balanced diet
during your first trimester, you can rest assured
that your not alone. Due to queasiness, some
women will eat all of the time and gain a lot of
weight in the process. Other women have trouble
getting food down and subsequently lose weight.

Preventing malnutrition and dehydration are your
most important factors during first trimester.

Calories
When you are pregnant, you need to consume around
300 calories more than usual every day. The best
way to go about doing this is listening to your
body when you are hungry. You should try to eat
as many foods as possible from the bottom of the
food pyramid.

If you gain weight too slow, try eating small
meals and slightly increase the fat in your diet.
You should always eat when you are hungry, as you
are now eating for 2 instead of one.

Calcium
By the second trimester, you’ll need around 1,500
milligrams of calcium each day for your bones and
your baby’, which is more than a quart of milk.
Calcium is something that’s missing from many
diets. Along with milk, other great sources for
calcium include dairy products, calcium fortified
juices, and even calcium tablets.

Fiber
Fiber can help to prevent constipation, which is
a common pregnancy problem. You can find fiber in
whole grains, fruits, and even vegetables. Fiber
supplements such as Metamucil and Citrucel are
safe to take during pregnancy.

Protein
Unless you happen to be a strict vegetarian, your
protein intake is not normally a problem for women
who eat a healthy diet.

Iron
A lot of women will start their pregnancy off with
a bit of iron deficiency. Good sources of iron
include dark leafy green vegetables and meats. Iron
supplements should be avoided, as they can cause
internal symptoms such as cramping, constipation,
or diarrhea.

Vitamins
Seeing as how you get a majority of the vitamins you
need in your diet, you may want to discuss prenatal
vitamins with your doctor. Folate is one of the most
important, and if you are getting enough of it, you
may be able to avoid vitamins all together – just ask
your doctor to make sure.

Exercise and Pregnancy
Prescribing a medication for pregnant women is a complex process.
Before obstetricians and gynecologists decide which dose of which drug can
best treat a condition without putting any harmful side effects on the
mother and the baby, they consider the patientís age, general health, the
number of months before delivery, tolerance for medications, and any other
drugs the pregnant patient may be taking.
Prescribing exercise on pregnant women has to be just as scientific and
precise. The type, intensity, frequency, and duration of a ìdoseî of
exercise are all critical. One personís healthy, vigorous workout could be
hazardous to another. These dangers may be greater in pregnant women
because they are more likely to have strains and other serious side effects
for the would-be mother.
However, if exercise will be implemented and carried out in a normal,
average range, exercise will not have an effect on the overall condition of
the pregnancy and especially on labor or delivery.
Pregnancy
Quality prenatal care should be given to a mother during her pregnancy. She
should be prepared for the normal delivery of a healthy baby. Complications
should be prevented at all costs.
All of these things are boiled down to the fact that a pregnant woman
should be cared in such a way that she will not be compelled to do vigorous
work but should not also stay in bed and be inactive until she gives birth
to her baby.
Consequently, a pregnant womanís condition varies in relation to the growth
and development of the baby in side her womb. Therefore, it is necessary
that proper health guidance be provided by her physician during her visit.
Moreover, it is important to keep the pregnant womanís life active in order
to promote good health, not only for her but also for the baby most
importantly.
Physical conditions like blood pressure, weight and health status is
usually monitored during the pregnant womanís visit to her doctor. For this
reason, it is significant to note that exercise can be the number one
factor in order to keep these aspects in good condition.
As the health experts contend, adequate physical and emotional information​
is needed by a pregnant woman to prepare herself for delivery. She needs
practical health messages in keeping herself and the baby healthy.
Hence, for mothers or would-be mothers who are not yet aware why they
should exert some effort in engaging into moderate, normal exercise, here
is a list of some of its benefits so that you will be able to understand
the reason why pregnant women have to exercise regularly:
1. Defiance against fatigue
As muscle becomes fatigued, it produces less force. To accomplish a task
like climbing the stairs, for example, or shoveling snow, more units of
muscle must be called into play to back up the wearied muscles.
The tired muscles are both less efficient and less effective. Hence, this
will just put more strain on the pregnant woman because of the weight that
is continuously adding up each day. That is why tired muscles will usually
result to leg cramps or sore muscles.
What every pregnant woman must know is that exercise improves the condition
of the muscles and their ability to work longer without fatigue.
2. Reduce backaches
Even when you sit or stand, some muscles are working, and such relatively
easy postures can tax some muscles and cause fatigue. The muscles of the
lower back, for example, can be exhausted and worn out by the effort of
keeping erect when a pregnant woman stand still for several hours.
With exercise, a pregnant woman can correct this error by developing her
posture.
3. Increase the amount of oxygen
Work and exercise rely on glycogen, a substance produced by the body from
complex carbohydrates and stored muscles and liver. The supply of glycogen
in the muscles determines and limits the duration of activity. Exercise
depletes the glycogen in the muscles and leads to tiredness.
However, when glycogen is depleted by strenuous activity, it is replaced in
quantities greater than before, as if the body recognized the need to lay
in a larger supply of fuel.
Hence, oxidation is essential for converting glycogen to the energy that
pregnant women need to wiggle a finger, flex a muscle, or practice the
lungs and heart for some blowing action during normal delivery.​
These are just some of the many benefits exercise can bring to pregnant
women. Besides, nothing is completely wrong for a pregnant woman doing some
moderate exercises. The only important thing to remember is that before
starting an exercise program, whether pregnant or not, it is best to
consult your doctor. As they say, doctors know best!​