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KEY POINTS
- When you are pregnant, you need to eat healthy foods to help you and your growing baby stay healthy.
- Eat a variety of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, milk products, and proteins. Drink plenty of water too.
- Try to limit fish that may have mercury, and limit caffeine.
- Don’t drink alcohol or use illegal drugs.
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When you are pregnant, you need to eat healthy foods to help you and your growing baby stay healthy. Eating right can also help you feel better.
The best time to start eating a healthy, balanced diet is before you get pregnant.
If it is hard for you to afford healthy foods, talk to your healthcare provider about it. He or she may know about government programs that can help.
What foods do I need to eat?
What you eat gives your baby what he or she needs to grow. When you eat healthy foods, you give your baby strong bones and teeth, healthy skin, and a healthy body. Eating right keeps you healthy, too.
Here's what you should eat every day.
- Protein: 5 and 1/2 to 7 ounces a day
- Grains: 6 to 8 ounces every day (Eat less processed food and more whole grains.)
- Fruits: 2 cups every day
- Vegetables: 2 and 1/2 to 3 cups every day
- Dairy (Milk) Products: 3 cups every day (It’s best to choose low-fat or nonfat dairy products.)
- Healthy Fats: Eat fats, such as canola and olive oils, avocado, soft (no trans-fat) margarines, mayonnaise, and oil based salad dressings in moderation.
- Liquids: Try to drink at least 8 cups of liquid each day. Drinks should be low in fat, sugar, and caffeine.
Your healthcare provider will most likely prescribe prenatal vitamins. This will help make sure you get the vitamins and minerals you need.
What can I do if I'm having trouble eating?
If you have nausea or vomiting, it may help to:
- Eat crackers, pretzels, or dry cereal before you get up in the morning.
- Eat small meals often.
- Stay away from greasy, fried, or spicy foods.
See your healthcare provider if you can't keep anything down.
If you are constipated, it may help to eat more fresh fruits, vegetables, high-fiber breads, and cereals. Do not use laxatives unless your healthcare provider tells you to.
If you have diarrhea, it may help to:
- Eat yogurt, rice, dry toast, applesauce, or bananas.
- Ask your healthcare provider about taking medicine for diarrhea.
If you get heartburn, it may help to:
- Eat 5 or 6 small meals a day instead of 2 or 3 large meals.
- Eat less spicy or fatty food.
- Bake or broil your food instead of frying it.
- Stay away from orange juice or grapefruit juice. Instead, drink water, milk, apple juice, or cranberry juice.
- Not lie down for 1 to 2 hours after you eat.
- Ask your healthcare provider if you can use an antacid.
Are there things I should not eat, drink, or use when I am pregnant?
To keep healthy and have a healthy baby:
- Stay away from wine, beer, and liquor.
- Don’t use tobacco or drugs.
- Check with your healthcare provider before you take any medicine.
- Use less caffeine. Caffeine is in soft drinks, chocolate, coffee, and some kinds of tea. Some doctors say you should not have any caffeine during the first 3 months of your pregnancy. They also say that you should have no more caffeine than is in one 12-oz cup of regular brewed coffee during the rest of your pregnancy.
- Don’t eat or drink:
- Any foods made with unpasteurized milk. (Read labels, especially on packages of soft cheese.)
- Raw sprouts.
- Meat, fish, shellfish, or eggs that are raw or undercooked.
- Shark, swordfish, king mackerel, or tilefish (also called snapper).
- Each week don’t eat more than:
- 6 ounces of canned white (albacore) tuna, tuna steak, or halibut
- A total of 12 ounces of fish
The best choices of fish are shrimp, pollock, salmon, cod, catfish, or light canned tuna.
- Keep following this advice while you are breast-feeding your baby.
If you don’t eat meat or you have a health problem like diabetes, be sure to talk to your healthcare provider about your diet.
Developed by RelayHealth.
This content is reviewed periodically and is subject to change as new health information becomes available. The information is intended to inform and educate and is not a replacement for medical evaluation, advice, diagnosis or treatment by a healthcare professional.
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