Healthy Eating During Pregnancy

A good and healthy well balanced diet is the best thing you do for yourself and your baby.  So that you'll only need to make a few adjustments during your pregnancy.

Your first trimester
If  it is getting tough  for you to maintain a balanced diet during your first trimester, you can rest assured that your not alone.  Due to nausea or vomiting, several women will eat all of the time and gain a lot of weight in the process. While other women have trouble getting food down and subsequently lose weight. 
 
It is very important that you work on you feeding habit to prevent manutrition or dehydration duing the first trimester

Calories
As a pregnant woman, you need to consume around 300 calories more than usual every day.  The best way to go about doing this is listening to your body when you are hungry.  You should try to eat as many foods as possible from the bottom of the food pyramid.

When it is observed that you gain weight too slow, try eating small meals and slightly increase the fat in your diet. You should always eat when you are hungry, as you are now eating for 2 instead of one.

Calcium
By the second trimester, you'll need around 1,500 milligrams of calcium each day for your bones and
your baby', which is more than a quart of milk. Calcium is something that's missing from many diets.  Along with milk, other great sources for calcium include dairy products, calcium fortified juices, and even calcium tablets.

Fiber
You need lots of Fiber, Fiber can help to prevent constipation, which is common pregnancy problem.  You can find fiber in whole grains, fruits, and even vegetables.  Fiber supplements such as Metamucil and Citrucel are safe to take during pregnancy.

Protein
Except you are a strict vegetarian, your protein intake is not normally a problem for women who eat a healthy diet.

Iron
A lot of women will start their pregnancy off with a bit of iron deficiency.  Good sources of iron include dark leafy green vegetables and meats.  Iron supplements should be avoided, as they can cause internal symptoms such as cramping, constipation,or diarrhea. 

Vitamins
Bearing in mind that it is always a big problem on how you get the majority of the vitamins you need in your daily diet, you may want to discuss prenatal vitamins with your doctor.  Folate is one of the most important, and if you are getting enough of it, you may be able to avoid vitamins all together - just ask your doctor to make sure you are getting the real vitamins that your body needed.
Try  by all means to avoid drug abuse, avoid taking vitamins and other drugs which  are not prescribed by the doctor.