11/06/2025
Eating for two!!!
Eating for two has been expanded.
The amount of healthy weight gain in pregnancy varies. These are general guidelines:
🤰Normal total weight gain for a healthy woman is 25 to 35 pounds (11 to 16 kilograms).
🤰Overweight women should gain only 10 to 20 pounds (4 to 9 kilograms) during pregnancy.
🤰Underweight women should gain more (28 to 40 pounds or 13 to 18 kilograms) during pregnancy.
🤰Women with multiples (twins or more) should gain 37 to 54 pounds (16.5 to 24.5 kilograms) during pregnancy.
Eating for two does not mean eating twice as much food. Pregnant women need about 300 extra calories a day. But, where these calories come from matters.
🤰If you eat sweets or junk food, the extra calories do not provide the nutrients your baby needs.
As a result, your growing baby will get the vitamins and minerals it needs from your own body. Your health could suffer.
Instead of junk food, choose foods that are:
🤰High in protein
Rich in omega-3 polyunsaturated fats and lower in trans fats and saturated fats
Low in sugar (sugar provides only empty calories) or refined carbohydrates high in fiber
Other nutrients your baby needs are:
🤰Calcium, for healthy growth.
Iron, for the baby's blood supply. It also prevents anemia in the mother.
Folic acid, for reducing the risk for spina bifida (incomplete closing of the spinal column), anencephaly (defect of the brain), and other birth defects.