Contemplating pregnancy? Nutritional and optimal health should be priority number one! Women contemplating pregnancy must keep in mind that healthy eating habits and healthy lifestyle behaviors should be established before pregnancy to make sure proper nutrient levels for early embryo development and growth.
Eating a balanced diet that includes the proper amount servings of protein, grains, fruit, and vegetables is key. Protein is essential to the very foundation of your baby’s growth. Eating enough protein ensures that your little one, from the very beginning, is getting adequate food stores to support cell growth and blood production. Regular exercise should also be incorporated in your daily routine to prepare your body for the demands of pregnancy. Habits such as drinking or smoking must be avoided to allow for optimal health and development of the child during pregnancy and after birth. Good habits should include taking a daily multivitamin or a daily prenatal vitamin. Even if you are consuming healthy foods daily, you can miss out on key nutrients. A daily prenatal vitamin — ideally starting three months before conception — can help fill any gaps. A quality, fast absorbing prenatal vitamin is necessary for all the basic micronutrients needed during pregnancy.
Through the course of pregnancy there is an increased need for nutrients and calories to make sure proper fetal growth. The increased need for vitamins and minerals such as folate, calcium and iron is necessary to prevent birth defects, ensure proper bone formation/retention, and to reduce the risks of preeclampsia or anemia. Folic acid intake increases to a daily amount of 800 mcg, calcium to 1200 mg, and iron to 30 mg. Your Vitamin D levels should be checked with your initial prenatal labs to be sure you levels are not insufficient or deficient. Fetal needs for vitamin D increase during the latter half of pregnancy, when bone growth and ossification are most prominent. Vitamin D travels to the fetus by passive transfer, and the fetus is entirely dependent on maternal stores. Your body needs vitamin D to maintain proper levels of calcium and phosphorus, which help build your baby’s bones and teeth. A vitamin D deficiency during pregnancy can cause growth retardation and skeletal deformities. It may also have an impact on birth weight. Therefore, maternal status is a direct reflection of fetal nutritional status.
Researchers believe that a vitamin D deficiency during pregnancy can affect bone development and immune function from birth through adulthood.
Blog by Shelia Kirkbride
WomanPlace , Inc. 
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