Good Pregnancy Nutrition Includes Snacks. To support a baby's development, the average pregnant woman needs an additional 340 calories per day during the second trimester and 450 in the third trimester. That's the equivalent of one to two snacks.
Protein is crucial for your baby's growth throughout pregnancy. Good sources: Lean meat, poultry, seafood and eggs are great sources of protein. Other options include beans and peas, nuts, seeds, and soy products.
Porridge and fruit
Sprinkle sliced banana or berries onto your porridge. If you don't have much time in the morning, try making overnight oats the night before: Put the oats in a container and add milk, yoghurt and some sliced, frozen or dried fruit. Put in the fridge ready for the next morning.
Go sour. Marinate meats in vinegar, soy sauce, or citrus juices, as sour foods stimulate the taste buds and saliva production. Other ideas: Add lemons to water, drink lemon or lime seltzer and lemonade, or suck on citrus drops. Switching to plastic dinnerware from silverware can also help.
Bananas, which help remedy morning sickness for pregnant women, are a good source of potassium, vitamin B-6, vitamin C and fibre. The National Institutes of Health recommends for pregnant women to eat three to four servings of banana every day.
Eight participants provided detailed descriptions of increased activity around meals, with seven (37% 7 of 19) of these specifying increased fetal activity prior to meals or in the context of their own hunger. These movements were interpreted as a fetal demand for food often prompting the mother to eat.
Three small, but balanced, meals and three light snacks throughout the day are a good rule of thumb to ensure you and your baby's nutritional needs are met.
Tips for healthy lunches for pregnancy
Think a small smoothie for calcium, a salad for fiber and vitamins, and a sandwich on whole grain bread for protein and carbs. Throw in some good fat from olive oil, nuts or avocado and you've got yourself a perfect meal.
Water, milk, and herbal teas are all some of the best drinks to keep you and your baby safe during pregnancy. Part of your plan to stay hydrated can include drinks just for fun, too, as long as you're staying away from those listed no-nos.
A: By the time you're 13 to 15 weeks pregnant, your baby's taste buds have developed, and she can start sampling different flavors from your diet. The amniotic fluid she swallows in utero can taste strongly of spices like curry or garlic or other pungent meals.
During the night
If you wake in the middle of the night craving a midnight snack, choose something that's healthy and satisfies your hunger pangs. Try a milky drink, or something containing carbs and protein, such as a bowl of cereal with milk, toast with peanut butter, or a few crackers with cheese.
Try high fibre varieties - wholemeal bread, brown rice and pasta and high fibre breakfast cereals such as Weetabix, All Bran, Bran Flakes, Shredded Wheat. Choosing these foods, as well as fruit and vegetables and plenty of fluids (8 - 10 cups per day) will help to prevent constipation.
Lanugo is soft, fine hair covering a fetus while inside the uterus. It helps protect them and keeps them warm while they grow. Some newborns have lanugo covering their bodies at birth, especially if they're born prematurely. Lanugo can develop in people with eating disorders or certain tumors.
Munch on Fruits and Veggies
"Antioxidants protect the baby's brain tissue from damage," says nutritionist Elizabeth Somer, RD, author of Nutrition for a Healthy Pregnancy. Choose deep-colored produce—like dark leafy greens, papaya, blueberries, and tomatoes—for the biggest antioxidant punch.
Egg yolks are full of choline, (a recommended vitamin for pregnant women) which has been shown to improve learning and memory in babies when taken during pregnancy. Some studies have even shown that choline changes the structure of brain cells, making them more supportive for cognitive development.
Grapes. This one is a bit up in the air, but it is sometimes advised that women avoid grapes during their pregnancy. This is because grapes contain resveratrol, a toxic compound that could cause poisoning or other pregnancy complications.