When you hear the news that you are carrying another little soul in your tummy you may be overwhelmed with happiness, joy, sometimes shock and fear (don’t worry its natural) and more often than not a wave of nausea which doesn’t cease until week 12! Now, the first thing that you do is googlize how to eat during pregnancy. But be weary, a lot of mistruths may pop up on your screen. We are here to eradicate the myths and anxiety around what to eat during this time.
There is no doubt that nutrition is incredibly important and it acts as a link between you and baby. Pregnancy is the one time in your life when your eating habits directly affect another person. Your decision to incorporate delicious brightly coloured vegetables, whole grains and legumes, lean protein into your eating plan during pregnancy will give your baby a healthy and strong start in life.
Here are some of the best Superfoods you can have when you’re pregnant. Add these foods into your diet, and you’ll be doing a world of good for yourself and your baby.
Avocados
Avocados contain healthy monounsaturated fats, fibre, B-vitamins (especially folate), vitamin K, potassium, copper, vitamin E and vitamin C. The healthy fats help build the skin, brain and tissues of the foetus, and folate may help prevent neural tube defects, such as spina bifida.
Dark green leafy veg
Spinach, kale and other green leafy vegetables are loaded with vitamins and nutrients, including vitamins A, C, and K, as well as the all-important folate that helps protect against neural-tube defects.
Berries
Berries are packed with vitamin C, fibre and potent phytonutrients. The vitamin C helps the body absorb iron and is also important for your own skin health and immune function. Berries have a relatively low glycaemic index value, so they should not cause major spikes in blood sugar. This is a little gem of advice in pregnancy eating.
Beans
There are so many beans to choose from, lentils, black beans, pinto beans, chickpeas … Beans are very high in fibre and protein as well as iron, folate, calcium and zinc. When you’re pregnant, your gastrointestinal tract slows down, putting you at risk for constipation and haemorrhoids. Fibre can help prevent and relieve these problems.
Eggs
Not only are eggs an excellent breakfast or snack option they provide iron, protein and vitamin B12, which is essential for the healthy growth of all the new cells in your body, which will be developing is weird and wonderful ways for the next few months. Very importantly, eggs are also rich in choline, which promotes your baby’s overall growth and brain health, while helping prevent neural tube defects.
Wazoogles shakes often feature in our pregnant mom’s diet plans. It is a great protein source and packed with a whole host of antioxidant superfoods. This makes for a perfect meal replacement when the morning sickness strikes.
Here are some delicious smoothie recipes you can incorporate into your meal plan that contain the food discussed and always remember you can add in your Wazoogles 🙂