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Nutritional Needs for Pregnant and Breastfeeding

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Nutritional needs for pregnant and breastfeeding

Pregnancy is that stage in one’s life that is quite demanding. Same goes for breastfeeding. Your body needs enough ingredients to support both your own bodily requirements and the need to support the growth of the baby. That would mean the mother needs to support the baby through the food she eats or the supplements she intakes. What are the nutrients that a woman who is pregnant or breastfeeding needs to take? Let us check in this post.

Nutritional Needs for Pregnant and Breastfeeding Women

You need to take enough healthy food when you are pregnant or breastfeeding. You should eat healthy food. The food that you take should contain the essential vitamins and minerals. What are these nutrients that you are expected to take as an expectant or a breastfeeding mother?

Here are the essential nutrients that your food should contain –

Calcium

Calcium helps you build stronger bones and teeth. Calcium is also much needed for the proper functioning of your nervous, circulatory and respiratory systems. You need at least 1000 mg of calcium on a daily basis. You get enough of calcium from dairy products, orange juice, spinach.

Fiber

Pregnancy is normally associated with constipation. Fiber helps you relieve the constipation issues. Whole grains and fruits, vegetables and legumes are the rich sources of fiber. Consume brown rice,peas, and lentils in enough quantity.

Iodine

Iodine is an essential ingredient that would help your thyroid gland to produce enough hormones. The thyroid glands secretions are essential for the proper functioning of the brain and general growth. If you fail to take enough iodine content in your diet, it can cause thyroid problems in the child or in severe cases, cause mental retardation. Eat enough of food rich in iodine like fish and dairy products. In case your natural diet does not have the content in enough quantity, talk to your doctor for a supplement.

Folic Acid and Vitamin B12

Lack of folic acid or Vitamin B12 can result in neutral baby defects. Ensure your daily diet has enough content of both these nutrients in enough numbers. The folic acid and vitamin B 12 are the essential factors of your diet and help in replication of DNA, cell divisions, and growth. Taking enough of these contents will help avoid the brain or spinal cord defects in the baby.

Vitamin D

Vitamin D is an essential vitamin that is needed for improved fertility levels. Lack of the Vitamin D during pregnancy can cause issues with respect to your pregnancy. Apart from the role it plays in your fertility, Vitamin D also has a bearing on the absorption of calcium. We have already described the effects of calcium in the above paragraphs.

Proteins

Proteins are the building blocks of life. It is one of the important ingredients of your diet and helps in building your baby’s bones, muscles, and other tissues. They are more important between fourth and ninth month. Ensure that you have at least 71 grams of protein intake daily during pregnancy and breastfeeding. Meat, fish, dairy products, eggs, and peanuts are the rich sources of proteins.

What To Do If You Fail To Get Enough Nutrients Through Diet?

Well, in such a scenario, you need to consult your doctor and start taking supplements. A supplement is what would add up to what you are already taking in through the diet.  Herbs of Gold Australia  is one of the best sources of these food supplements.

Mr.Vitamins is, incidentally the largest natural health retailer in Australia. The Herbs of Gold products from Mr.Vitamins are unique in their own right. They form a combination of herbs, vitamins, minerals and other nutrients. They form part of the range of herbal and nutritional supplements. If you are looking for the best retailers for the Herbs of Gold range of nutritional supplements, you need not look any further than  Mr. Vitamins.

Before We Conclude…

Pregnancy and breastfeeding are the two phases of a woman’s life wherein she needs to eat enough to take care of two lives – one her own and the other, that of the baby. Do ensure that the mother consumes at least 300 to 500 calories of food on a daily basis.

Eat enough of cereals, fruits, and vegetables, whole grains, nuts and leaner meat. Consume as much quantity as possible of dairy products and fish. That way you would be able to give a better life to the baby that you are holding in your hands. And if you do not get enough of the nutrients, you can check out the additional supplements from retailers like Mr.Vitamins.