Eating Healthy While Pregnant

• Good nutrition is important throughout the entire prenancy in order for your baby to grow and develop healthily, and this includes not only prenatal vitamins, but a balanced diet. Pregnant women need more of a variety of several nutrients. Recommended daily servings include 6 to 11 servings of breads and grains, two to four servings of fruit, four servings of dairy products, four or more servings of vegetables and three servings of protein such as meat.
  
  Despite cravings and an unusual sweet tooth, eat fats and sweets sparingly, or you will balloon more than you want and will have to lose that weight later. Your extra 300 calories a day can go a lot further on snacks like wholegrain crackers, strawberries or nuts, rather than ice cream bars and Snickers. It is important to figure out your normal calorie intake before became pregnant, and then after the first three months, increase your originally intake to 100 to 300 calories per day.
  
  Gaining weight is natural when you're pregnant. But gaining a healthy amount will help your baby grow and develop properly, will help you have a more comfortable labor and will give you fewer pregnancy complications, such as high blood pressure, constipation and backaches.
  
  

How Much Weight to Gain During Pregnancy?

• The average weight that women gain during pregnancy is 25 to 35 pounds, but this varies greatly depending on if you were underweight, normal weight or overweight when you became pregnant.
  
  According to WebMD, underweight women gain about 28 to 40 pounds during pregnancy and overweight women gain about 15 to 25 pounds. The general rule of thumb is to gain about two to four pounds during the first three months and a pound a week throughout the rest of your pregnancy. Naturally, this is all different if you are expecting twins. With twins, expect to gain 35 to 45 pounds during your pregnancy, which equals about 1 ½ pounds per week after the first three months
  
  It is never OK to loose weight during pregnancy. Both you and your baby need those extra nutrients in order to be healthy. Don't worry if you gain a few too many pounds in one week, as the next week you might not gain quite as much. And if you gain a little bit more than the average woman, just console yourself that once you deliver the baby, if you have eaten healthy and kept up a reasonable exercise regimen, you will be able to get rid of you baby fat in no time.