Diet hacks for pregnant women
RANDBURG – A pregnant dietitian shares her secrets with other pregnant women.
RANDBURG – Monique Piderit, a registered dietitian, visited the Danone Day One event at Bordeaux Primary School grounds where she shared her tips and advice on how pregnant women can maintain their figure during and after their pregnancy.
Piderit who is currently pregnant herself said, “It’s so difficult when you are pregnant because your brain goes, ‘well I should eat more but how much more’? So it’s natural to get a little confused.”
According to her, the first thing to understand is that in the first trimester a woman doesn’t need to eat any more than she already does. The foetus is still quite small and there aren’t any ‘demands’ coming in that time. Technically you should just eat what you’ve always been eating. The second and third trimester is when your energy needs go up, because of the baby growing so much and they manage to do that by using the food we give them.
She added, “Contrary to popular belief, you do not need to eat a lot more food during pregnancy than before falling pregnant. You do, however, need to pay more attention to your food choices to ensure that you supply your body with the additional nutrients required for the growth of your baby.
“Attention should be given to your additional requirements for basic energy– macronutrients (carbohydrate, protein and fat) and micronutrients (vitamins and minerals). The requirements for the different stages of your pregnancy can vary.
“The best way to ensure that your needs for essential vitamins and minerals are supplied during all three trimesters is to make certain that you eat a variety of healthy foods.”
Piderit revealed that you will only be eating a little bit extra, roughly 1 500 kilojoules extra. “In the first trimester you don’t need any more energy from food than if you weren’t pregnant. In the second trimester, the extra energy of about 1 500 kilojoules is the same as eating an extra serving of yoghurt, one fruit, and 5–6 nuts.
“In the third trimester, you need an extra 500 kilojoules over and above this, about the same as adding in a full tin of tuna.”
She just eats double snacks at a time in-between her breakfast, lunch and dinner. She’ll eat a fruit and nuts in the morning and in the afternoon a yoghurt and another fruit compared to what was eaten before.
According to her, if pregnant women just eat what they want they stand a chance to gain too much weight, too much weight gain for you, means that the baby gets too big.
“We don’t want a big baby nor a too small baby, because then there are risks during birth.”
Piderit gives the following tips and advice to pregnant mothers:
n Monitoring and moderating weight gain is important. There are a lot of pregnancy weight-tracking Apps out there, which are really nice and will help you know if you go overboard.
n The second thing is knowing that you are not eating for two, knowing that it is not an excuse for going ‘mad.’ “I think it’s one of the biggest motivations for eating healthy.”
n Learn to manage your appetite, drink a lot of water, it helps you feel fuller for longer. Roughly a glass for every kilogram you weigh and more if you are active. Make half of your plate vegetables and salads, it helps fill you. Regular eating also helps with appetite.
- Eat nutrient-rich foods that meet your growing baby’s needs.
- Give preference to fresh, nutrient-rich foods with fewer additives and limit junk food and takeaways
- Avoid undercooked/ raw foods as well as unpasteurised dairy products to minimise your risk of getting ill.
- Reduce your risk of food poisoning by storing your food at the correct temperature.
- Limit caffeine-containing drinks (aim for <200mg caffeine/ day).
Piderit concluded, “The last thing I want women to know is that it is important to gain weight during pregnancy. It is part of the process and there needs to be some weight gain, it’s completely normal.
“However, if you are gaining too much weight, that’s where we want to be careful. A woman who started out at a healthy weight should gain between 11.5kg and 16kg, an overweight woman between 7 and 11.5kg, and no more than 9kg if obese.”
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