What to Eat While Pregnant...

HI T.,

There's a great book called Real Food for Mother and Baby that might be able to guide you. It gives recommendations, too, on what foods to eat by the trimester you're in. I read it before getting pregnant, and now that I'm finally over my nausea, it's time to take it out of the library again and re-read. Good luck and congrats!

Warmly,
S.

Yeah, I'm pregnant too & getting bored with my usual fare. I have begun cooking some things that I have in my recipe book but just haven't made in a while. Now that it is fall, it is easier to eat the heavier foods. I recommend soups. They are easy to reheat & a full meal so you don't need to think about much else besides some steamed spinach or other greens & you're done. It is easy to fall down the convenience slope which is often riddled with greater junk food selection. The baby needs lots of fiber too bc. that will not only keep you regular but one argument suggests that it is not the low protein amount that leads to preclampsia but the low fiber amount instead. Yesterday I made a bunch of food, chicken broth, tomato soup & twice baked potatoes & threw them in the freezer & I find that helps me eat nutritious when I am standing in front of the fridge and there is nothing made up already. Best of luck with the pregnancy, birth & the mothering.
K.

I remember doing the same with my pregnancy. Some things that made food seem more appealing to me were tangy foods. I got some kefir - a yogurt drink. It's a little expensive, but nutrient dense. I liked the unflavored (no added sugars) b/c the fruit flavors seemed way too sweet to me.

Another tangy food is a condiment sold at Vitamin Cottage, I think it's called tahina. It was not tahini, but was a tahini-based dip. It is next to the hummous in the refrigerated section. That tangy dip helped the raw carrots and cucumber slices go down and gave me some extra nutrients too.

A final tangy food is Annie's shitaake and sesame salad dressing. It is very yummy and the flavor always seems to help a salad seem less boring.

I also sprinkled the 'zen party mix' on top of salads. That's found at Vitamin Cottage or Whole Foods, it has peanuts, spicy crunchy rice crackers, and other yummy crunchy stuff.

Best of luck,
J.

I struggled with a lack of hunger for most of my pregnancy. The only thing I ever felt hungry for was ice cream, and I didn't need an MD to tell me I couldn't grow a baby on ice cream alone! What really helped me was getting a food check list. The one I got was part of the Bradley birth class I took, and it really helped! There were certain foods that they want you to eat every day, like leafy greens, eggs, and fruit, and you track your protein intake to make sure you are getting at least 100 grams daily. That way, when I wasn't hungry I just looked at my daily checklist and figured out what else I needed to eat that day. Even though it might not have sounded good, I felt good eating it because I knew it was helping me grow a healthy baby.

As a working mom, I know what you mean about the daily sandwiches. I enjoyed having a variety of veggie sandwhiches while peggers. My favorites were roasted peppers and cheese, roasted mushroom and cheese, and PB&J. I used almond butter instead of peanut butter because it had a little more protein per serving. I also sometimes made salmon salad sandwiches, using canned salmon, which is lower in mercury than canned tuna. We also cooked several turkeys while I was peggers, mostly to have the meat for sandwiches.

Other food staples while I was pregnant were: hummus, hard boiled eggs, whole wheat bread, beans, and salad.

Good luck with your pregnancy, birth, and mothering!

Get the book "What to Eat When You're Expecting". Great nutrition advice even if you're not pregnant. Tells you what to eat and why. Great recipes too.

I would talk to your ob/gyn and get an appointment with a nutritionist. The key is balanced meals that taste good! if you are a cookbook person, check out the Garden Bounty section of Garden Harvest Cookbook. Eat a variety of foods. You'll be fine, don't sweat it!

Look into website "SlimMomCoach.com". It a sister site to "SlimBodyCoach.com". They are both wonderful free websites that offer great support from others "in the same boat".

It's a plan to eat 5 mini meals a day (each meal contains of protein, carb, and color carb--fruits and veges). You should eat at least 20 grams of protein per meal. They have the best tasting protein shakes too, without the "bad" ingredients.

Sit down one day and come up with meals that sound good to you. Then you can look at the list to help you decide what to eat. I come up with a plan for tomorrow the night before. There's also great work-outs out there for pregnant women, but this site also has a guideline for that too. One of my favorite "snacks" is a corn tortilla with cheese and shredded chicken. Be creative and have fun!

I've heard to stay away from too much tuna and soy when you are pregnant too???

If you're looking for a lunchmeat fix, try Hormel Natural Choice, which has no nitrates or preservatives. It's a bit pricier than other lunchmeat, and obviously still salty and not your very healthiest option (may want to toast it well because of listeria, but I've been eating it my last 2 pregnancies with no problems), but it's great if you're really craving an occasional turkey sandwich, and it's widely available at normal grocery stores.

BIg plates of protein rich salad with a bit of carb- say half an onion bagel.

This is my fave salad at the moment.
Chop it up and mix together.
1 big tomatoe, half cup of olives. 5-6 squares of feta chesse, handful of fresh spinach, cup of fresh soya beans( or an egg/ or bit of chiken- whatever protein source you like best that is safe), 1 shallot.

olive oil drizzled on top.

sometimes i put a bit of pasta in instead of the bagel- it is so filling you don't need to eat again till supper.

or 2 mini pitta breads with houmas and a big plate of salad.

im 8 months pregnant and most of my friends,relatives tells me to eat green vegetables as much as often, also put in there fruits and protein products such as egg,meat, milk. and if you are likely to have your baby breast feed you should take plenty of soups...
healthy soups to develop your milk production.. congrats!!!!

T.,

They do sell some lunch meats made by Hormel called Hormel Natural Choice. They are 100% natural No Nitrates or Nitrites added, no artificial ingredients, minimally processed, no MSG, and Gluten free. My husband has to eat them and really likes them. They are pretty affordable. I pay under $3 for 8 oz package at Walmart. They are quite a bit more at King Soopers, Safeway, and Albertson's. They sell Salami, Turkey, Chicken Breast, Ham, and Roast Beef.

I am not sure where you live, but Sunflower Market and Sprouts also carry some Nitrate free deli meats. Costco has nitrate free hot dogs too.

When I was pregnant I enjoyed Lean Cuisine meals or bought bagged salad and added craisins, cucumber, tom., croutons, and anything else. You could also by a rotiserre chicken to top on your salad or make chicken salad sandwiches with. I am not sure if you like egg salad, but that would be another option. Sorry for babbling, hopefully you can get some appealing options.

I got the book eating for pregnancy and I love the recipes i have made from there. Maybe not the quick fix you are looking for, but its good. PLus every recipe tells you what healthy nutrients your are getting.

Dear T.,
Congratulations!!! It is sometimes hard to find healthy options that are also easy. Staying away from deli/lunch meet is very important as it also harbors listeria. Great job! I would make for lunch, dinner or breakfast a healthy blintz. You can make your own crepes or buy the premade ones without preservatives (fridge section). Make the inside "cheese" concotion with cottage cheese, silken tofu & a bit of milk to make to desired consistency. Then wrap in crepe. Add fresh berries masserated (sp?) in just a tsp. of organic sugar. You can add soy "whipped" topping, or regular whip cream for a treat. I don't recommend alot of soy though. WHile a little is good alot can wreak havoc on hormones. This is a yummy HIGH-protein, healthy meal, high in antioxidants. Enjoy :)

I am 17 weeks along and I hear you. Sometimes, I can't find anything good to eat. I really like deli foods also, as long as there is no chicken. I have an aversion to chicken currently. So, what I did was left my two children with my husband and wandered a supermarket for food that I would like. I also did at a time I was hungry. Then I was able to find like yogurt and other foods. I found I really like steak at the moment, which is rich in protien. I also have cheated with deli meat, but I nuck it in the microwave for at least a minute before I eat it. Or, I get a sandwich from Subway and have them put it in their toaster. Quiznos is great because they do that will all of their sandwiches. Or, I stick the whole sandwich with out the vegies into the oven for 10 minutes. I figure if pizza is ok, then why not cook the deli meat. The other thing is if I buy deli meat. I have the actual deli cut the meat for me so that it is fresher than the meat on the shelves. Anyhow, good luck it isn't easy to be pregnant with these different kinds of cravings.

I also suggest 'WhAT To eat while your expecting'.

Hi T.,
Congratulations! You are on the right track staying away from nirtates while pregnant! They are not only bad while pregnant they have been linked to a 20% increase in colon cancer per serving. Boar's Head (found at Sunflower Market) of Applewood brands do not contain nitrates. The University of Califonia did a study, Children eating 9 or more hotdogs per month were 12 time more likely to get luekemia! Why is this stuff allowed in our food!
Anyway, back to the topic at hand.....
Nutrients from whole foods, fruits and veggies are so important in general, but even more important during pregnancy. Nutrients from whole foods are the building block for healthy cells, repairing and maintaining healthy DNA, supporting our immune system, reducing oxidative stress,etc. The recommendations are 9-13 servings of fruits and veggies each day and more during pregnancy. So healthy veggie soups, lots of raw fruits (smoothies are an easy solution) and salads, for omega 3's nuts, avacados, salamon too. I definately fell short of these recommendations, so I supplemented with a whole food supplement called Juice Plus(discover more at www.denverjuiceplus.com) in addition to my pre-natal. I have had many conversations with my OB/GYN about the topic of nutrition and it just blew me away when I was told he wasn't require to study nutrition. This is a VITAL part of growing healthy babies! I couldnt beleive what I was hearing. Anyhow, If you'd like to know more or pick my brain a little, I'd love to chat. ###-###-####
I hope that helps!
L.

Try shopping at Whole Foods - nitrate free lunchmeat for example - just heat to steaming to ard of lysteria. But even if you didn't want to do that, bake a chicken, and debone it. Voila! Lunch meat, no nitrates. I lived at Whole foods when I was pregnant. Nuts were my very best friend, and fruit. I ate salads off the salad bar every day & they have soups and even mac and cheese there too. I was craving spicy foods so I made spicy lasagne, thai dishes, and Indian. All healthy. Maybe it's a matter of changing what you usually eat? Not sure.
Good luck!