Things To Remember For Your Diet During Pregnancy

Pregnancy is a time when all your perspectives change----some in small ways and others in a really radical shift. Eating is one of those that falls into the radical sphere, because you have one faction of do-gooders telling you to "go ahead, eat, eat,--after all you're eating for two now"; and then you have the other side saying "Oooooh nooooo---watch what you eat, don't eat too much, don't gain too much weight, you must diet during your pregnancy".

Well, a lot of that is just baloney. Years ago, when our grandmothers and their mothers were having kids---did they diet during pregnancy?? I don't think so. They walked a lot more, ate homegrown and fresher foods, were physically much more active than we are, and they weren't afraid to put on a few pounds just to be sure that they had some ammunition in case they got sick.

To them, pregnancy was just another fact of life, and yes it was celebrated, but not with the materialistic carryon that goes on today with rounds and rounds of showers, sonograms and what have you. Their lives were far more simple than ours with their limited technology----but with lots of advantages that we don't regard as advantages. There was no greasy, fat-laden burgers and fried chicken on every corner just begging to be eaten so they could clog up our under used hearts; no cardboard tasting TV dinners in the supermarket. They worked hard, did much more manual labor than we do today, walked a lot more, and ate fresh foods usually grown locally.

So, as a result of all these factors in their lives, they really didn't give much thought to a diet during pregnancy. Today, we are genetically not ready to live the technologically advanced lifestyles we enjoy today---our DNA has not evolved fast enough to keep up with all the new advances---so what is the end result? Lots of fat people with heart problems and almost everyone who is having a baby is now worrying about their diet during the pregnancy and how to stay healthy and keep the baby healthy too.

So, what to do. Those of us that look at food and it jumps from plate to thigh in an instant, are the ones who seriously consider a diet during pregnancy----but those who are eternally slim, regard the word diet as an eating plan, and not a weight loss plan. They strive to eat normally, balance out everything that goes into their mouths, don't eat a lot of fatty foods or salt, drink lots of water, take vitamins, eat fresh fruits and veggies, and make sure they get plenty of fiber. They don't even think about calories, they just make sure they are eating right and that they feel good.

I guess, for all of us as a mixed bag of body types, and metabolisms that run the gamut of the scale; the answer lies in the middle area of a little of both ways of looking at things. A good diet during pregnancy for the good of the average female would be one that is well balanced nutritionally, includes lots of water, a goodly amount of fiber, lowered calorie intake, almost no intake of fast foods or prepackaged drivel from the grocery store, and daily exercise to keep the calorie furnace burning at maximum efficiency.

If you are at all a thinking person, this is not rocket science nor is it difficult to remember. What you have been hearing all your life about how to stay healthy and keep your weight within recommended limits also applies when you are pregnant. Why should it be any different? You are growing a tiny life inside you that needs the same nutrients and care as your own body does, so by adhering to a healthy mode of diet during pregnancy, you can take care of both of you just fine.

Dawn Eastman puts forth information and articles on the subject of Weight Gain During Pregnancy. For more information on Weight Loss After Baby visit our site.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, December 16th, 2009 at 1:29 pm and is filed under Weight Loss. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.