BabyGuideUK - Nutrition Expert

Ask the Experts - Nutrition

Healthy eating habits before pregnancy wil help prepare your body for the demands of pregnancy and good nutrition is a very important factor in the healthy development of your baby. The key to good nutrition is balance and paying careful attention to foods that will benefit you most. Research shows that what you eat during pregnancy affects your baby thoughout your childs life - not just at birth.

Nutrition Expert, Gail Goldberg
Gail Goldberg has been as a Senior Nutrition Scientist at the British Nutrition Foundation since 1999. Before this Gail was at the Dunn Nutrition Unit in Cambridge for over 16 years where she was involved in a lot of research into pregnancy and breast feeding women in the UK and overseas. She has a particular interest in the nutritional aspects of pregnancy and lactation because of its public health, clinical and scientific importance.

Q. While pregnant, am I really supposed to 'eat for two'?
A. The average non-pregnant women requires about 1,900 calories a day. An average, healthy pregnancy is estimated to cost about 80,000 calories, equivalent to 285 calories a day. The reference nutrient intake for energy during pregnancy is also 1,900 calories a day (not doubled!) and this amount does not change until the last trimester when an additional 200 calories a day are recommended. However the question of how much an individual pregnant women should be eating is very difficult to answer as it is impossible to predict how her metabolism, physiology or behaviour will change over the 40 weeks of pregnancy e.g. some women put on lots of weight, some save energy by doing less - giving up work, some use more energy but don't change their lifestyles and some women suffer from nausea and vomiting which alters their appetite. The best gauge, at anti-natal clinic, is if weight gain and the babies growth are appropriate, it is likely that the woman's energy intake is sufficient. (see below)

Q. How much iron should I be getting and do I have to take a supplement?

A. Even though recommendations suggest that women do not need to increase their iron take during pregnancy, this is assuming that their iron stores are good. We know that this may not be the case for all women. Although most pregnant women can obtain all the nutrients they need from their diet, women who develop anaemia may be prescribed iron supplements by their doctor. Iron deficiency anaemia during pregnancy can increase the risk of the foetus having a low birth weight and developing iron deficiency anaemia during the first year or two of life. These women may also be given dietary advice to ensure that their diets contain adequate amounts of all nutrients.

Q. Why is folic acid important and how much do I need?
A. To minimise the risk of neural tube defects e.g. spina bifida (birth defects caused by incomplete closing of the bony casing around the spinal cord), like many other governments, it is recommended in the UK that all women who may become pregnant should take a supplement providing 400µg/day of folic acid in addition to their typical intakes of 200µg/day from food. This is because high levels of the nutrient must be taken before and during pregnancy, the period during which the neural tube of the embryo is closing but when most women are not even aware that they are pregnant.

Although many very large and international studies have demonstrated the protective effect of folic acid, a recent Swedish study (July 1999) suggested that women who took folic acid were almost twice as likely to give birth to twins, the results of this study do not alter the recommendations of increasing folic acid intake before and during pregnancy.

Q. How much weight should I expect to put on during pregnancy?
A. An optimal weight gain of 12.5kg is the figure used for an average pregnancy. This is associated with the lowest risk of complications during pregnancy and labour and of low birth weight babies. In practice there is a wide range of weight gains in individual women who have normal and healthy pregnancies. Certainly pregnancy is not the time to diet because this may have adverse effects on the babies growth and development not only when it is in the womb but later on too. Pregnancy is also not the time to actively overeat. Either very high weight gains or energy intakes won't affect the baby's weight very much but it's the mother who put on too much weight and fat This can lead to problems such as diabetes during and after pregnancy. Being overweight or obese can also cause complications such as pre-eclampsia

Q. What foods should I avoid during pregnancy?
A. Vitamin A is important during pregnancy however liver can contain very high concentrations, which maybe teratogenic if consumed in high does in early pregnancy. Women who are pregnant or who may become pregnant should avoid foods made from liver and supplements containing vitamin A.

The Department of Health advises pregnant women to avoid eating dishes that contain raw or partially cooked eggs. Raw meat and poultry can also be a source of salmonella and so these foods should be thoroughly cooked. Listeriosis may cause miscarriage, stillbirth or severe illness in infants. As a precaution pregnant women are advised to avoid the foods in which high levels of Listeria have occasionally been found (e.g. pate, soft and blue veined cheeses) and not to keep cooked, chilled foods for too long.

Self diagnosis of food intolerance should be discouraged. Inappropriate and unnecessary exclusion of foods could prevent mother and baby from obtaining the nutrients they need.

For further information on nutrition and pregnancy contact the British Nutrition Foundation online.

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