healthy and keep your baby healthy
Eating a healthy, varied diet in pregnancy will help you to get all the vitamins and minerals you need. Some vitamins and minerals are especially important. Woman taking vitamins It is best to get vitamins and minerals from the food you eat, but when you are pregnant, you will need to take some supplements as well. Do not take vitamin A supplements, or any supplements containing vitamin A, as too much could harm your baby. You can get supplements from pharmacies and supermarkets, or your doctor may be able to prescribe them for you. If you want to get your folic acid or vitamin D from a multivitamin tablet, make sure that the tablet does not contain vitamin A (or retinol). Iron Pregnancy can deplete a mother’s iron stores. Therefore, it is important to have an appropriate intake of iron to help build and maintain these stores. Low iron levels in early pregnancy have been linked to premature birth and low birth weight. The average requirement for iron in pregnancy is 22mg/day but some women will need 27mg/day or more. A mixed diet of animal and plant foods can help you achieve your iron intake. Absorption of iron is better from animal foods compared to plant sources, and the recommended dietary intakes are based on a mixed western diet. Red meat is the best source of iron as well as also being a good source of protein and zinc. Other meats like chicken and fish also contain iron but not as much as red meat. Iron can also be found in leafy green vegetables, legumes, and iron-enriched breakfast cereals. Folate Folate is a B vitamin that is needed for healthy growth and development. Its requirements are increased during pregnancy for normal growth of the unborn baby. Adequate folate intake helps to prevent birth defects in the baby, such as spina bifida. Iodine Iodine is an essential mineral that we get from the food we eat. The developing baby in the womb, babies, and young children are at greatest risk from a diet deficient in iodine. Iodine is needed in very small but essential amounts by the human body. Iodine is essential to the production of thyroid hormone, which regulates body temperature, metabolic rate, reproduction, growth, blood cell production and nerve and muscle function. Thyroid hormone is produced in the thyroid gland, which is in the neck. Zinc Zinc is a component of various enzymes that help maintain structural integrity of proteins and help regulate gene expression, so getting enough is particularly important for the rapid cell growth that occurs during pregnancy. The average requirement for zinc during pregnancy is 9mg/day but some women will need as much as 11mg/day or more. Zinc can be found in lean meat, wholegrain cereals, milk, seafood, legumes, and nuts. Vitamin D You need vitamin D to keep your bones healthy and to provide your baby with enough vitamin D for the first few months of its life. Vitamin D regulates the amount of calcium and phosphate in the body, and these are needed to help keep bones and teeth healthy. Too little vitamin D can cause children’s bones to soften and can lead to rickets (a disease that affects bone development in children). Author’s Bio Princess Reus looks at how to is best pregnant women food to get vitamins and minerals from the food you eat, but when you are pregnant, you will need to take some supplements as well
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