When you are pregnant, your body undergoes hormonal changes which can affect your appetite, mood swings, metabolism and overall health. Hence, eating the right foods and a pregnancy diet plan is of paramount importance. Your meals must have sufficient iron, vitamins, calcium and folic acid to keep you energised throughout the day. Here are some guidelines on foods to eat during pregnancy.
You need to switch to a balanced diet for pregnancy to take good care of your health. This is because your baby will derive the essential nutrients needed from you. You also need a pregnancy diet plan to check excessive weight gain or loss during pregnancy.
Pregnancy diet charts are weekly pregnancy meal plans to help you through each trimester of your pregnancy. These pregnancy diet charts are made using much needed nutrient-rich foods. If you are pregnant or plan to get pregnant, you should start following a pregnancy diet chart right away. Follow a 3-month pregnancy diet chart initially for the proper nutrition reserve to be built. This will supplement the baby right from the conception stage, enhance your metabolism and make your body and immune system stronger.
We have divided the pregnancy diet chart into 3 parts in which foods to eat during your trimester pregnancy is mentioned.
In the first trimester of your pregnancy, the most important nutrients needed for your and baby’s health are folic acid, iron, and vitamin B6.
In the second trimester, the baby's bones are growing as well as his/her brain, necessitating calcium and vitamin D for growing healthy bones and omega 3 for brain development. Another recommended nutrient is a form of vitamin A named beta carotene that brings about healthy blood and skin. Iron-rich foods are recommended especially for vegetarians as anaemia (low Haemoglobin) is common among them in India.
In the third trimester, your baby’s growth will pick up and you will gain weight speedily. But you need not worry about putting on these extra kilos as long as you are engaged in a healthy and well-balanced diet. Keep in mind that your energy requirements will increase during this period. Vitamin K is needed for blood to clot after childbirth. So, eat lots of food rich in vitamin K. Iron continues to be a vital nutrient during this stage too.
It’s absolutely important to keep yourself hydrated and consume as much water or juice as you can at frequent intervals. Fresh fruit and vegetables are important and so are foods prepared with whole grains like jowar, nachni, oats, and barley recipes. Fish oils, walnuts and flax seeds are sources of essential Omega 3 fats that are needed during pregnancy.
Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, especially if you are expecting. A nutritious breakfast can comprise of:
A vegetable omelette or a vegetable sandwich with cheese is also an alternative source of proteins
Ensure that lunchtime is a balanced meal, ranging from dishes using pulses, dals, cereals, whole grains, nuts and fresh vegetables. These give you the nourishment of vitamins, fibre, and minerals that you need. Use only healthy oils like rice bran oil, coconut oil, ghee, or olive oil for cooking. You can have salads or a bowl of vegetable soup as a pre-lunch snack. If you are a non-vegetarian, chicken and fish are the recommended pregnancy foods. They have proteins, omega-3 and healthy fats, apart from helping form red blood cells.
Your lunch diet plan could have the following options:
It is normal to experience hunger pangs frequently when you are pregnant. Hence, you need more energy and therefore more food. Make it a habit to eat small meals more frequently rather than 3 big meals in a day. Here are some ideas to snack on.
Have a light dinner and have it early for you to digest your food properly and have a good night’s sleep. You can duplicate the lunch ideas for dinner as well. But here are some more pregnancy food tips:
Do write to us if you have any suggestions regarding Pregnancy Diet Plan. We’d love to hear from you!