There are so many changes taking place in our body when a baby shows up in our uterus! Once this little being is growing in its nest, our ordinary lives change. We have to think both about our needs and those of this little being.

Everyone should eat a balanced and varied diet, rest, exercise and do activities.

In this article:

• Diet While Pregnant
• Pregnancy Essentials: Proteins, Folates, Calcium, etc.
• Foods to Avoid When Pregnant
• Drinking Coffee or Tea When Pregnant

The Canadian Food Guide is the reference document to guide you towards a balanced diet. Here are its basic principles:

• Eat a variety of foods to get all of their nutritional values;
• Focus on consuming vegetables and fruits for their high nutritional values and low levels of undesirable impacts on health;
• Don’t forget foods rich in fibres that help intestinal transit and the elimination of the body’s waste;
• Eat as many fresh and unprocessed foods as you can;
• Fats consumed should be high quality (good fats mean unsaturated lipids);
• Limit foods low in nutritional value;
• Eat regularly three times a day without skipping meals to maintain your energy and stabilise your blood glycemia. Snacks can be added to meet the needs of pregnant women;
• Drink a lot of water since this will greatly contribute to the hydration of tissues, facilitate the transport of nutrients and help the elimination of the body’s waste;
• Eat slowly and enjoy your foods.

Ideally, to optimise fertility and improve general health even during the pre-conception period, women are encouraged to have a balanced diet, a healthy lifestyle, maintain a healthy weight and to avoid alcohol and drugs. Every woman who wants to become pregnant should start taking multivitamins who contain folic acid (0.4 mg base) and an iron concentration (16 to 20 mg) is indicated for all women, three months before pregnancy.

Please read the next part, Diet While Pregnant.

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