Pregnancy Diet

Diets are typically undergone during pregnancy to keep expectant mothers and their fetuses healthy. A healthy pregnancy diet consists of eating nutritional foods (whole grains, vegetables, and fruits) along with generous amounts of water, essential for the health of the mother and development of the baby. The healthy diet should be coupled with de-stressing pregnancy exercise such as walking or other light cardio activity.

An expecting mother should be aware of certain foods in her pregnancy diet that should be avoided. While some fat is necessary in the diet, an excess amount of animal fat should be excluded. Artificial additives should be avoided, particularly chemicals such as aspartame, an artificial sweetener that is linked to cancer and immunotoxicity. Foods that are non-pasteurized may contain the bacteria, listeria, which causes a small number of infection-related deaths each year and may cause lead to miscarriage. Fish containing mercury, shellfish containing bacteria harmful to developing babies and farmed fish with PCBs (Polychlorinated biphenyls) should be avoided. Certain teas such as ginseng or green tea may stimulate premature contractions in expecting mothers.

Before beginning any pregnancy diet or exercise plan, an expecting mother must consult her physician or OBGYN to ensure the health of her body and that of her child.