{"id":3603,"date":"2014-01-04T11:35:07","date_gmt":"2014-01-04T19:35:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/medicalfitnessnetwork.org\/?p=3603"},"modified":"2021-05-14T09:44:33","modified_gmt":"2021-05-14T16:44:33","slug":"nutrition-pregnancy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/medfitnetwork.org\/public\/all-mfn\/nutrition-pregnancy\/","title":{"rendered":"Nutrition Before, During and After Pregnancy"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>Before Pregnancy<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Don\u2019t wait until after you\u2019re pregnant to start eating healthy. If you\u2019re planning to become pregnant, now is the time for you to optimize your nutrition. By adjusting your nutrition you can improve your chances of conceiving and give your baby the healthiest start possible.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/medfitnetwork.org\/public\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/01\/prenatal-diet-Depositphotos_3054607_xs.jpg\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-4384 alignright\" src=\"https:\/\/medfitnetwork.org\/public\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/01\/prenatal-diet-Depositphotos_3054607_xs-222x300.jpg\" alt=\"prenatal diet Depositphotos_3054607_xs\" width=\"222\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/medfitnetwork.org\/public\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/01\/prenatal-diet-Depositphotos_3054607_xs-222x300.jpg 222w, https:\/\/medfitnetwork.org\/public\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/01\/prenatal-diet-Depositphotos_3054607_xs.jpg 298w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 222px) 100vw, 222px\" \/><\/a>One of the important nutrients prior to pregnancy is folate, or folic acid. By consuming adequate folate pre-pregnancy you can decrease your risk of having a baby with a neural tube defect, such as spina bifida. The neural tube of the baby forms within the first two weeks of pregnancy, before most women know they\u2019re pregnant. As a result, consuming adequate folate leading up to conception is imperative<\/p>\n<p>By meeting with a Dietitian that specializes in prenatal nutrition, you can ensure that you\u2019re consuming adequate folate and other nutrients that are important for fertility and healthy development of the fetus.<\/p>\n<p><strong>During Your Pregnancy<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Some of the nutrition challenges you may face during pregnancy include:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Meeting increased calorie and nutrient needs<\/li>\n<li>Keeping food and fluid down when suffering from morning sickness<\/li>\n<li>Gaining an appropriate amount of weight<\/li>\n<li>Managing blood sugar if you have gestational diabetes<\/li>\n<li>Managing blood pressure if you have hypertension<\/li>\n<li>Reducing fluid retention<\/li>\n<li>Controlling common digestive issues such as heartburn or constipation<\/li>\n<li>Knowing which foods to avoid due to the high risk for foodborne illness<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>A Dietitian is an important part of your healthcare team and he or she can help you achieve nutrition excellence and tackle the above-mentioned challenges during pregnancy.<\/p>\n<p><strong>After the Pregnancy<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/medfitnetwork.org\/public\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/01\/happy-mother-with-smiling-baby-Depositphotos_4245753_xs.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright wp-image-4370 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/medfitnetwork.org\/public\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/01\/happy-mother-with-smiling-baby-Depositphotos_4245753_xs-300x232.jpg\" alt=\"Happy mother with smiling baby\" width=\"300\" height=\"232\" srcset=\"https:\/\/medfitnetwork.org\/public\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/01\/happy-mother-with-smiling-baby-Depositphotos_4245753_xs-300x232.jpg 300w, https:\/\/medfitnetwork.org\/public\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/01\/happy-mother-with-smiling-baby-Depositphotos_4245753_xs.jpg 393w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a>After the baby is born you\u2019ll want to hold on to your Dietitian for at least another year or two. He or she can help you enhance your nutrition for breastfeeding and achieve and maintain a healthy post-pregnancy weight. After giving birth you\u2019ll potentially lose about 15 lbs within the first week. During the following year or so, with a well-balanced nutrition and exercise plan, you should gradually lose the remaining pregnancy weight. Avoid fad diets, which can take off weight too quickly and result in a drop in breast milk production, and instead work with a Dietitian that specializes in postnatal nutrition.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Are You Looking for Expert Nutrition Advice?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>As mentioned above, a Dietitian can help you optimize your nutrition before, during and after pregnancy. <a href=\"https:\/\/medfitnetwork.org\/search\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Click here<\/a> to search for an MFN Dietitian who specializes in prenatal and\/or postnatal nutrition.<\/p>\n<p><em>References<\/em><\/p>\n<h6>Center for Disease Control and Prevention (2012). Folic Acid. Retrieved December 20, 2013, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/ncbddd\/folicacid\/index.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">http:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/ncbddd\/folicacid\/index.html<\/a>.<\/h6>\n<h6>Sizer, F.S. and Whitney, E. (2014). Nutrition Concepts and Controversies (13th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.<\/h6>\n<h6>Women, Infants, and Children (2012). Tips for a Healthy Pregnancy. Retrieved December 19, 2013, http:\/\/www.helpmebehealthy.net\/docs\/Mothers_PreNatal_E.pdf.<\/h6>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Don\u2019t wait until after you\u2019re pregnant to start eating healthy. If you\u2019re planning to become pregnant, now is the time for you to optimize your nutrition. By adjusting your nutrition you can improve your chances of conceiving and give your baby the healthiest start possible.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":4384,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1],"tags":[73,90,257],"class_list":["post-3603","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-mfn","tag-dietitians","tag-pre-postnatal","tag-womens-health"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/medfitnetwork.org\/public\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3603","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/medfitnetwork.org\/public\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/medfitnetwork.org\/public\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/medfitnetwork.org\/public\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/medfitnetwork.org\/public\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3603"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/medfitnetwork.org\/public\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3603\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/medfitnetwork.org\/public\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4384"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/medfitnetwork.org\/public\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3603"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/medfitnetwork.org\/public\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3603"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/medfitnetwork.org\/public\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3603"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}