A Guide For Healthy Eating During Pregnancy

A diet plan has become a must in today's fast moving world. It's a time to be more health conscious and we often find it necessary to have some type of diet chart to follow to keep our eating habits and health under check. A daily diet chart can be planned under the guidance of a nutritionist or a physician, depending on your need. Having a diet plan in place has an added benefit: it makes grocery shopping easier and you do not have to worry about planning your next meal.

Types Of Diet Charts

Diet plans are tailored depending on an individual's needs, to suit their health status. Some examples of tailored diet charts are as follows: diet chart for diabetes, diet chart for gym enthusiast, diet chart after gym, diet chart after delivery, diet chart for heart patients, a diet chart to gain weight, diet chart for cholesterol control. Below is a diet chart that will be useful for expecting mothers:

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(Also read: Vegan And Pregnant? Here Is The Ultimate Diet Plan To Meet Your Nutritional Needs)

^{Your diet will help power your baby}

1. Diet Chart For Pregnancy

Having a nutritious, bountiful diet is one of the most important things for pregnant women in order to meet the additional requirements of the growing baby. A diet chart during pregnancy must include these foods:

2. Milk And Milk Products

The daily calcium requirement of a pregnant and lactating mother is around 800-1000 mg. Thus dairy products play an important nutritional role; whole or skimmed milk, yogurt, buttermilk, cheese, cottage cheese (paneer) should be included in the diet as they are rich sources of not just calcium, but also proteins and vitamin B12.

3. Pulses, Dals, Cereals, Whole Grains And Nuts

Proteins are your body's building blocks and are required for the daily wear and tear. This requirement increases during pregnancy. Thus include pulses, dals, cereals, nuts and whole grains in your everyday diet to make up for your body's requirement of protein.

4. Fruits And Vegetables

Include lots of fresh fruits and vegetables in your regular diet as it will help you gain your body's required amount of fiber, vitamins and minerals. Try to have about five servings of each on a daily basis.

(Also read: The Importance Of Maternal Nutrition For The Baby)

Vitamin, protein and minerals should be present in your diet equally

5. Fish Meat And Poultry

Including meat and fish in your diet provides your body with the required amount of proteins. Fishes like salmon and cod are also high on omega 3 fatty acids which are heart friendly and equally important for your growing little one. Eggs are a great source of healthy fats present in the yellow and high proteins hidden in the egg white. You can have 2 eggs each day during pregnancy.

6. Liquids

During pregnancy, additional liquids are needed to keep you hydrated all the time. Drink as much as 3 litres of liquids throughout the day By way of water, juices, buttermilk, coconut water, beverages like tea, coffee and water used in cooking.

7. Fats

Fats provide the energy that is needed to support the growing baby as well as prepare the body for delivery. Vegetable oil is a good source of fat as it has unsaturated fats. Butter and ghee (clarified butter) are high on saturated fats; limit their intake to small amounts only.

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