Pregnancy Nutrition & Wellness

What to Eat & How to Stay Healthy

During pregnancy, its really important to eat a healthy balanced diet and look after yourself more than you would usually do. However, now that you have a tiny human growing inside your body, you need to be mindful about what you can eat and how you exercise.

Photo by Matilda Wormwood

What to Eat & What Not to Eat In Pregnancy

Foods to be mindful of:

• High mercury fish e.g. swordfish, mackerel and tuna.
• Undercooked meats, unpasteurised dairy and raw eggs.
• Excess caffeine e.g. no more than 200mg a day or one cup of coffee.
• Alcohol

Certain cheeses are often not advised during pregnancy, due to them not being pasteurised and not having the harmful bacteria in them, destroyed. These include:

-Soft, mild-ripened cheeses e.g. Brie, Camembert, Chevre (goats cheese).

-Blue-veined soft cheeses. E.g. Roquefort, Gorgonzola, Danish blue.

Photo by Alexy Almond

So, Which Cheeses Are Considered Safe During Pregnancy?

• Hard cheeses, even those made with unpasteurised milk. E.g. Cheddar, Parmesan, Gruyere
• Pasteurised soft cheeses. E.g. Cream Cheese, Mozzarella, Feta, Halloumi, Ricotta.

Healthy Balance Diet

It’s really important that you eat a healthy balanced diet during pregnancy. Certain vitamins and minerals are going to be needed to keep you and your baby healthy. That means eating foods that are high in vitamin C, D,  calcium, protein, fibre, folate, iron and omega 3 fatty acids. You can get all of these vitamins and minerals from the foods that you eat, but sometimes you might need to take pill supplements to give you the required dosage.

Food suggestions that help to boost your vitamin and mineral requirements.

Vitamin C – Fruit and vegetables. E.g. citrus fruits, peppers, strawberries.

Vitamin D – Sunlight, vitamin D mushrooms, oily fish and fortified foods. E.g. fortified cereals.

Calcium – Milk (cows or nut based), pregnancy safe cheese, yoghurt, butter.

Protein – Lean meat, poultry, beans, nuts, eggs and fish. E.g. beef, chicken, turkey, cod, salmon, tofu, seeds, chickpeas.

Fibre – Starchy vegetables and whole grains. E.g. wholemeal bread, brown rice, oats, sweet potato, corn, butternut squash.

Folate – Fruit, vegetables, beans, eggs, nuts and seeds. E.g. citrus fruits (oranges, mandarins), bananas, green peas, spinach, broccoli, asparagus, kale, peanuts, sunflower seeds, beetroot. It is also important to take folic acid supplements that are suitable during pregnancy. This is to reduce the risk of your baby developing conditions such as spina bifida.

Iron – Red meat, beans, leafy greens and fortified cereals. E.g. Beef, cabbage, kale and spinach.

Omega-3 fatty acids – Oily fish and seeds. E.g. salmon, chia seeds, walnuts and flaxseeds.

Photo by Amina Filkins

Along with eating healthy foods, it’s also important that you drink plenty of water and stay well hydrated. Drinking more fluids when the weather is warmer and during and after exercising is really important too.

Exercising During Pregnancy

It’s important that you listen to your body during pregnancy and only do what feels comfortable. However, getting gentle daily exercise is going to really benefit you and your baby not only during pregnancy, but during labour too.

Do not start any new exercise routines in pregnancy, unless your midwife or doctor says it is safe to do so. If you have always been a runner, dancer or weight lifter, then there is no harm in continuing the exercises that you are used to doing and love. You just need to be mindful that you do not overdo it or do anything that feels too strenuous. However, if you’ve not worked out in the gym before or done it in quite some time, do not start now that you are pregnant. There are lots of gentle exercises that you can do that are safe and have plenty of benefits.

Safe Pregnancy Exercises

• Yoga (Great for the mind and for relaxation. Look out for your local pregnancy yoga class to meet others who are also expecting and learn safe yoga positions for pregnancy.)
• Walking (This can be a gentle or brisk walk around your housing estate or a gentle hike in the countryside. Great for getting fresh air and for your mental health).
• Swimming (A great gentle exercise for any stage of pregnancy).
• Pilates (Great for strengthening the core and toning muscles. Join a pregnancy Pilates class to ensure you’re only doing pregnancy-safe exercises and enjoy a wonderful way to meet other mums-to-be).

Photo by Gustavo Fring

Exercises to avoid during pregnancy are anything that could involve you falling, are high impact or contact sports. E.g. horse riding, kickboxing, rugby, skiing, heavy weight lifting or hot yoga/hot pilates (overheating risk).

Always remember to listen to your body and never doing anything that feels too much. If you feel dizzy, short of breath or in pain, STOP!

Just because you are pregnant, this doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy exercising or eating food. You just need to be more mindful about what exercises you do and what foods you eat.

If you’d like any support during your pregnancy, labour, birth or postpartum, please get in touch.

Main – Photo by Anna Hecker on Unsplash