There are seven other types of nutrients needed during pregnancy that are important for the developing baby: vitamin C foods, Calcium rich foods, vitamin A foods, zinc, selenium, magnesium, and iron rich foods. Some monitored fatty acids are important for baby’s development and mom’s health. Again, the amount of each nutrient is important to balance the diet, protect the mother, strengthen the baby and attempt to secure the most healthy start.
A Pregnancy Diet
As with a normal diet, vitamin C is important to many. For the pregnant mother, she needs 3 servings a day. This vitamin does wonderful things to promote healing, a healthy metabolism, and strong bones. Some examples of servings of vitamin C would be: half a grapefruit, a small orange, one and a half large tomatoes, one and one half cup of raw cabbage. Vitamin C foods are normally foods that can be eaten uncooked. So, most of our body’s ability to capture the most out of these type of foods would be to eat them raw.
Nutrients for a Growing Baby
The next nutrient develops several different functions for the fetus. It is important for enzyme activity which is the breaking down of foods, blood clotting to protect the body when injured, nerve development, the lifeline of the fetus or heart and muscle development. This is the infamous nutrient called calcium. If the mother doesn’t take in enough calcium, she could develop osteoporosis when she’s older because the baby will draw from her bone mass. The mother needs to take in 300 milligrams more of calcium than normal or four servings per day. Some examples of one serving of calcium rich foods would be: eight ounces of low-fat buttermilk, eight ounces of fat free milk, six to eight ounces of plain yogurt, one and one half cups of cooked kale, three and one half ounces of canned mackerel with bones, six ounces of calcium-fortified orange juice. For the vegetarian there are additional items that will help meet the calcium requirement. The vegetarian can substitute with soy milk, fortified rice milk, and tofu. However, the vegetarian should check the contents to be sure the intake of calcium is sufficient when purchasing to meet recommended amounts.
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