What are the essential foods during pregnancy?

Pregnancy is one of the crucial phases in a woman’s life. The constant hormonal changes and its effect can take a massive toll on her body, mind and spirit. Due to the continuous internal changes, it becomes challenging to maintain a routine and diet. The changes gradually happen in three trimesters, and each of them requires proper care.

Despite the changes a woman goes through, it is necessary to maintain a proper diet during pregnancy. You may want to indulge into your cravings, but it’ll help if you keep in mind that, what you are eating, is giving the strength to your unborn child to grow and live inside you. Therefore, it is recommended to consume a few essential foods during pregnancy. 

How to decide what to eat? 

The requirements differ in each trimester, and a professional dietitian may suggest a separate chart for every one of them. However, there are a few foods which are enriched with vitamins, proteins and other such elements which will make you and your child healthy. You can always

 consult with a doctor for a diet chart, but including a few foods which are known for its ways to improve social health will impart a positive effect on your body and mind. 

To decide what to eat, you should know about the elements which are necessary for you and from where you can get it. For example, bananas are a very beneficial food that you can incorporate in your daily diet during pregnancy. This particular fruit is enriched with protein, iron, Vitamin D, and whatnot. 

A few foods that every woman should include during pregnancy –

To make it simple for you, it can be said that you should choose a specific food, according to its nutritious value. Furthermore, you should also maintain a balance in the consumption of such elements. The balance is required to ensure that every nutrient is equally distributed in your body and any of it is not overdosing you. 

There are four crucial nutrients that every woman should consume during pregnancy are – Protein, Iron, Calcium, and Vitamin D. 

Every one of these nutrients has a health benefit, which will help a woman to avail enough strength and prepare her body for the big day. 

You can go through the following section to know about the essential foods during pregnancy and its nutrition value. In the next section, the amount of nutrient a food hold is also being discussed –

1. Protein –

Protein is among the primary nutrients that you should include in your diet because it promotes growth to your baby. It is recommended to have approximately 70g of protein every day. 

There are various fruits and vegetables, wherein you can get the recommended amount of protein. Lean meat, egg, fish etc. are considered to be amongst the essential foods during pregnancy, as they hold a fair amount of protein. There are a few other foods that you can try are as follows –

• Cottage Cheese – Cottage cheese is not only delicious, but it is one of the best sources of protein. One cup of this food contains 28g of protein. 
• Fish – Fish is a good source of protein; hence you can consume 85g of it every day. 85g of fish contains around 17g of protein. 
• Milk – You can have a cup of milk every day, as it contains at least 8g of protein. 
• Eggs – It is recommended to have a large egg every day, so you can easily consume 6g of protein.

2. Iron – 

It is known to everyone that iron develops haemoglobin in the blood, and a pregnant woman requires more of it. Other than creating haemoglobin in blood, iron, also helps to provide oxygen to your child.

 It is recommended that a pregnant woman should at least consume 27mg of iron every day. Following are a few of the foods that you can consume to have the required amount of iron in your blood –

• Cereal – You can have 1/2 cup of cereal every day to avail around 20mg of iron.
• Meat – Although having meat regularly is not recommended, you can have around 85g of it every other day. 85g of meat contains 3mg of iron. 
• Beans – You can also add 1/2 cup of beans in your daily diet, as it holds 2mg of protein. 

3. Calcium –

Cereal is considered to be one of the essential foods during pregnancy that you can consume because it not only holds an amount of iron but also contains a large amount of calcium (approximately 100g to 1000g). 

You can go through the following section to know more about such foods –

• Juice – Juice is a delicious beverage, that can not only satiate your desire for a sugar rush and equally provide you with 350mg of calcium. 
• Milk – It is known to all that milk holds a high amount of calcium, which is required for both the mother and child to make them healthy. Therefore, it is advised to have 1 cup of milk, as it holds 300mg of calcium.

4. Vitamin D –

Other than Calcium, Vitamin D is also required for your child’s bone and teeth development. You can consume 600 IU of Vitamin D every day to ensure the healthy growth of your baby. Following are a few foods that contain a good amount of Vitamin D –

• Fish – Due to pregnancy if you don’t develop an aversion towards fishes, then it will help if you include fish in your daily meal plan, as it contains around 570 IU of Vitamin D.
• Milk – By going through the sections, you can understand that milk is one of the essential foods during pregnancy. Other than protein, calcium a cup of milk also contains 115 IU of Vitamin D. 

To conclude, it can be mentioned that you need to consult a professional to know how to boost your overall wellness. However, it would be best if you were not reluctant to include the essential foods during pregnancy mentioned as above in your diet. The nutritional value of such foods will ensure you and your child’s proper development and well being.