Below are some examples of good nutrition before and during pregnancy as well some information on how to take care of yourself during the period.

- Folic acid has been found to be very vital before during the first trimester because it can help prevent what are called neural tube defects. These are defects in the way the spinal column is formed. Many medical authorities and institutions encourage women of childbearing age to take Folic acid supplements in addition to what is normally consumed as part of a healthy diet. This helps reduce the risk of birth defects.

- There have been studies recently which have shown that a mother’s eating habits can affect their unborn child’s health.

- If you are pregnant and you don’t know it, drinking alcohol or taking certain medications could be harmful for your unborn child. That’s why it’s important to plan your pregnancy so that you can change your eating habits and stop taking certain medications beforehand. Smoking during pregnancy is related to lower birth weight and could also affect the infant’s logical development and behaviour. This is in addition to the higher risk of cancer where either parents smoke.

- Studies conducted by the Institute of Brain Chemistry and Human Nutrition in London have shown that developmental disorders common to low-birth weight infants such as cerebral palsy, mental retardation and blindness are the result of the mother having poor nutrition during the first trimester.

- Women can reduce their risk of gestational diabetes by starting their pregnancy closer to their ideal weight and exercising regularly. Click here if you need information on how to lose weight.

- Government surveys have shown that the majority of women are not meeting the DRI (Dietary Reference Intakes) for calcium, iron, zinc, vitamin E and magnesium. The survey concludes that a large number of women become pregnant while they are malnourished!

Being overweight makes a pregnant woman more likely to lose her fetus (foetus) than a woman with normal weight. They are also likely to have a baby with neural tube defect than when they are not overweight.

But make sure you don’t become pregnant while on a weight loss diet because you may not be taking enough of the needed vitamins for early fetal development.

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