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Nutrition During Pregnancy: Nurturing a Healthy Mother and Baby
February 16, 2022
By Dennis Anderson-Villaluz, MBA, RD, LDN, FAND, Nutrition Advisor, and Julia Quam, MSPH, RDN, ORISE Health Policy Fellow, Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion
Good nutrition is the cornerstone for both a healthy mother and baby during pregnancy. The 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans dedicate an entire chapter to pregnant women and those who are breastfeeding, providing health professionals with essential insights into unique nutritional needs that can be integrated into their practices.
Optimal Diet During Pregnancy
While most expectant mothers exhibit slightly enhanced dietary quality compared to their peers outside of pregnancy or lactation, there remns room for improvement. Commonly observed deficiencies include insufficient intake of fruits, vegetables, dry products, and seafood alongside excessive consumption of added sugars, saturated fats, and sodium. Additionally, they often overindulge in refined grns while neglecting whole grn alternatives.
Special Considerations for Pregnant Women
For pregnant women seeking optimal health outcomes, aligning with general adult nutrition advice can significantly benefit their well-being. However, several specific considerations are crucial:
Healthy Weight Gn: Encouraging a healthy weight before pregnancy and adhering to gestational weight gn guidelines during pregnancy is vital for both mothers' health.
Increased Energy Requirements: For women with a healthy pre-pregnancy weight, an additional 340-450 calories per day from nutrient-dense foods becomes necessary, especially in the second and third trimesters. The requirements may vary for women with overweight or obesity before pregnancy.
Seafood: Advising at least eight to twelve ounces of diverse seafood intake per week that is low in methylmercury can support cognitive development in young children according to current research.
Folic Acid Folate: Consistent recommation from the U.S. Preventative Services Task Force suggests all women who are planning or capable of pregnancy should take dly supplements contning 400-800mcg of folic acid beginning at least one month before conception, in addition to consuming a variety of folate-rich foods like dark-green vegetables and legumes.
Iron: Iron is indispensable for fetal development. Heme iron found in animal-source foods is more bioavlable than non-heme iron from plant sources; however, vitamin C can enhance the absorption of non-heme iron. A resourceful list of iron food sources can be obtned through DietaryGuidelines.gov.
Iodine: Iodine plays a critical role in the baby's neurocognitive development during pregnancy. Women who do not regularly consume dry products, eggs, seafood or iodized salt might fall short on this nutrient. Encouraging their use is key to ensuring adequate intake of iodized salt.
Choline: Many women may struggle with sufficient choline intake during pregnancy. Meeting recommations for the dry and protein food groups including meat, eggs, some seafood, as well as beans, peas, and lentils can help meet needs effectively.
Supplements: It's recommed that most health professionals advise their clients to take dly prenatal vitamins and minerals in addition to a healthy diet. This is particularly crucial to cover the deficiencies of folic acid, iron, iodine, and vitamin D.
Alcohol Avoidance: Pregnant or potentially pregnant women should abstn from alcohol intake entirely.
Caffeine Management: The Food and Drug Administration FDA recomms that pregnant women consult with their healthcare providers about their caffeine consumption levels.
Food Safety: Given the heightened susceptibility of mothers-to-be to foodborne illnesses, guidance on minimizing these risks is paramount. FoodSafety.gov provides such guidance.
Supporting Women During Pregnancy
The journey of pregnancy brings unique nutrition challenges, yet a variety of resources are avlable for health professionals:
The DRI Calculator for Healthcare Professionals tool ds in calculating dly calorie and nutrient requirements.
Information about dietary supplements and food sources of essential nutrients can be found through National Institutes of Health's dietary supplement fact sheets.
DietaryGuidelines.gov offers resources specifically tlored to pregnant women, including a comprehensive handout on pregnancy nutrition.
To further support mothers during this life-changing period, it is recommed to also explore Nutrition During Breastfeeding: How Health Professionals Can Support Healthy Moms and Babies for guidance post-delivery.
Tags: Food and Nutrition
Categories: health.gov Blog
Last updated: February 16, 2022
This information is coordinated by the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion ODPHP, within the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health OASH under the Department of Health and Services.
This article is reproduced from: https://health.gov/news/202202/nutrition-during-pregnancy-support-healthy-mom-and-baby
Please indicate when reprinting from: https://www.903r.com/Healthy_Baby/Pregnancy_Nutrition_Guidelines.html
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