The Right Foods Plus Nutrition Know-How Equal The Healthiest Mom And Baby

Learn these no-brainer "equations" and apply them to your prenatal diet often to keep you and your baby healthy.

With all there is to learn about being pregnant, it can sometimes feel like an enormous puzzle with a lot of missing pieces. Along the way, your doctor, friends, books and articles help fill in the gaps. Nutrition during pregnancy is an important part of the puzzle, and thinking in pictures rather than in words about the nutrients you need and the benefits they confer may help you remember them better (and it's a lot more fun than trying to memorize a bunch of nutrition rules). Learn these no-brainer "equations" and apply them to your prenatal diet often to keep you and your baby healthy.

Important Hints For Pregnancy Eating
• Choose items from all 5 food groups every day. According to the American Dietetic Association, moms-to-be need at least the following daily: 3 servings from the milk, yogurt and cheese group; 2-3 servings of animal protein or its equivalent from the meat, poultry, fish, beans, eggs and nuts group; 3 servings from the fruit group; 4 servings from the vegetable group; and 9 servings from the bread, cereal, rice and pasta group. Check food-label serving sizes.
• Use fats, oils and sweets sparingly. While you shouldn't eliminate fat from your diet during pregnancy (or at any other time), do focus on healthful sources of fat, such as olive oil, avocados and low-mercury, cold-water fish.
• Focus on fiber. Aim for about 25-35 grams daily. Eating, for example, 2/3 cup of bran cereal, a medium cooked sweet potato and a pear in a day will help prevent the constipation and hemorrhoids so common in pregnancy.
• Increase calories. Add about 300 high-quality calories per day to your diet during your second and third trimesters.
• Avoid unsafe foods. Steer clear of unpasteurized, uncooked cheeses such as feta, brie, Camembert and blue-veined or Mexican-style cheeses to reduce the risk of listeria infection. Never eat raw or undercooked animal foods, including meat, sushi, seafood or eggs.