Essential Nutrition During Pregnancy: Promoting Fetal Growth & Maternal Health

 Pregnancy causes many physical & hormonal changes to your body. You should consume the right nutrients to nourish yourself and grow your child. And select all the healthy foods from a various sources. Having a nutritious, and a well-balanced diet will not only make you feel better. But will also give your body and unborn child what they require. In this post we discuss maternal nutrition during pregnancy and things related to it.

Importance of maternal nutrition during pregnancy

You are feeding a new individual throughout pregnancy, so your body requires more nutrients than usual. To support both you and your child, you need a greater intake of macronutrients and micronutrients. The required nutrients are:

Protein

Protein is required for a proper & timely development of important tissues and organs of an unborn kid. During pregnancy, it promotes the development of breast and uterine tissue. It plays a key role in growing your blood supply. And helps your kid to receive more blood. You should increasing your daily protein consumption with passing of every trimester of pregnancy. Medical research tells us it’s necessary to have a higher protein intake during pregnancy compared to standard recommendations of protein.

You need to consume between 70 and 100 grams of protein each day, based on your weight and trimester. To find out how much you need, speak with your doctor as well. The best protein sources   are:

•  Lean pork and beef
•  Chicken
• Salmon
• Nuts
• Peanut Butter
• Cottage Cheese
• Beans

Calcium
Calcium play an important role in bone growth of baby and controls his bodily fluid balance. It will benefit your physique. A 1,000 mg daily intake of calcium is required by pregnant women, usually in two doses of 500 mg each. For improving the normal prenatal vitamins requirement, you need additional calcium in your daily routine. Its’ best sources are:

• Yogurt 
• Cheese
• Milk
• Fish and seafood low in mercury
• Tofu
• Leafy and dark green vegetables

Iron
Iron increases blood flow largely by interacting with sodium, potassium, and water. It plays a big role in making sure that both the mother and the kid are getting sufficient oxygen. To maximize absorption, you must consume 27 mg of iron along with some vitamin C per day.

Folate
Folate, also called folic acid, is important in minimizing neural tube abnormalities. Congenital disorders such as spina bifida and anencephaly also impacts the brain and spinal cord. Medical experts advise for taking about 600–800 mcg of folate every day during pregnancy. These foods contain good amount of folate:

•        Liver
•        Nuts
•        Eggs
•        Lentils and dried beans
•        Peanut butter and nuts
•        Veggies that are dark green

Some other important nutrients
The other nutrients, such as vitamin B, choline, and salt, are necessary for keeping you healthy throughout the pregnancy. Along with eating properly, you should take the prenatal vitamins. And drink around atleast 7-8 glasses of water every day. Getting sufficient amounts of iron, choline, and folate from food is difficult.

Conclusion
This concludes the important things about maternal nutrition during pregnancy. By taking into account all the nutrition needed throughout pregnancy, this advice helps too. All you have to do to have a pleasant and healthy pregnancy is to follow these tips. Know More