Once you can enjoy food again, it’s time to focus on a diet that meets your nutritional needs. A balanced diet reliant on fresh produce supplies a broad range of nutrients that will support your baby’s development and your well being. Your vitamin and mineral requirements are generally higher in pregnancy than before, although you need to be sure to avoid megadoses, especially of vitamins A and D. In this second trimester it’s worth rechecking your vitamin and mineral intake.

Your Nutritional Needs

Laying the foundations for healthy weight gain in you and your baby now will give your baby the best start in life. It will also benefit your health throughout your pregnancy and after delivery.

Eating For Two

You need to eat more while your body supports the growth of your baby, but not twice as much as before pregnancy. Only 100-300 extra calories per day are needed throughout pregnancy to ensure optimal growth of your baby. All extra calories will be stored by your body as fat.

Just one to two extra servings per day cover your increased energy needs. For instance, one half cup of low fat cottage cheese has 90 calories, and 40z (100g) of skinless chicken breast 140. Take in to account that you may be snacking throughout the day. A small handful of peanuts supplies 160 calories. Energy bars can contain 160-300 calories. It’s easy to overestimate the amount of extra food you need. Find the caloric content of your favorite foods and snacks, and the number of servings that cover your additional needs. Only 5-9lb (2-4kg) of the weight you gain during pregnancy is typically body weight gain. The rest is accounted for by the weight of your baby and his or her support system (amniotic fluid, a larger uterus and placenta, and larger breasts in preparation for the arrival of your baby).

The average increase in weight may be 2-41b (1-2kg) during the first trimester, 12-141b (5.5-6kg) during the second, and 8-101b (3.5-4.5kg) in the last. Gaining enough weight during your pregnancy decreases your risk of delivering a low birth weight baby a baby that weighs less than 5½lb (2.5kg). However, gaining too much weight may leave you at risk of developing gestational diabetes of having a large baby. Excess weight gain often causes women remain over weight after the birth and the older you are, the harder it is to lose this excess weight.

Vitamin C

The recommended daily allowance of vitamin C for pregnant women is 70mg twice as much as in nonpregant women. Some of this can be obtained from a prenatal vitamin but you should still have enough in your diet. Vitamin C promotes the absorption of iron and calcium, both of which are important for you and your baby, and is also important in many processes in the body. The best sources for vitamin C are fruits and vegetables.

Food Cravings

Many women experience cravings during pregnancy. Chocolate and other sweets, ice cream, spicy foods, fruit, and fish come at the top of the list of must-haves, often in unusual combinations. No one knows why women have cravings. Experts have varying opinions. Some say that cravings are psychological part of our culture. They believe women learn to expect cravings and consequently have them. Some researchers feel hormonal changes in pregnancy, especially increased progesterone, cause cravings. Similar cravings in menopausal women support this opinion. it does not explain the variety in foods craved, however. Some propose that hunger for a certain food indicates a woman’s need for nutrients in that food. This may be true, but is questionable with cravings for sweets that contain little more than sugar.

Yet another explanation is that emotional factors contribute to cravings. Pregnancy greatly impacts on your life and indulging in a craving is emotionally gratifying, especially if your partner shows his devotion by hunting for the impossible food combination of your choice at midnight. The reality is that nobody knows what causes food cravings. Most women would insist they are both real and over whelming at times. The most probable explanation may be a complex interplay of physical changes, learned behavior and emotional needs.

• Substitute the food you crave with healthier choices, at least some of the time. For example, have nonfat frozen yogurt instead of ice cream.
• Eat breakfast every day. There’s some evidence that skipping breakfast increases cravings.
• Exercise regularly. Physical activity controls your appetite by elevating blood sugar levels. Exercise also takes you away from your kitchen and your thoughts away from your craving,
• Make sure you have emotional support. Pregnancy taxes your emotional resources, especially if you are juggling a changing relationship with your partner a career, and a full social life. This may cause you to reach for some comfort food when in fact all you need is a hug.

Unusual Cravings

Some women begin to crave nonfood items such as ice, dirt, paint, coffee grounds, chalk, cornstarch, cigarette ashes, soap, and toothpaste. This is known as pica and, even though none of the listed items contains iron, pica has been associated with iron deficiency. If you experience pica, you need inform your care provider right away. nonfood items may contain toxic substances that may be harmful to your baby.

Sources of Vitamin C

Your vitamin C requirements double in pregnancy. The best sources for this vitamin are as follows.

• Citrus fruits and berries such as raspberries and strawberries.
• Citrus fruit juices such as orange and grapefruit juice (one glass of fortified orange juice supplies all the vitamin C you need for a day)
• Papaya, guava, and kiwifruit.
• Vegetables such as cauliflower, broccoli, cabbage, and spinach.

Foods rich in folic acid include -

• Artichokes
• Asparagus
• Avocados
• Bran and granola cereals
• Broccoli
• Brussels sprouts
• Chili
• Fortified cereals and breads Liver
• Okra
• Orange juice
• Pinto, navy, and other dried beans
• Spinach

Overcooking will destroy the heat sensitive folic acid.

Recently, foods such as breads and cereals have been fortified with folic acid, although there was vigorous debate before this occurred. The main argument against fortification was that high folic acid intake may mask a vitamin B12 deficiency. Vitamin B12 deficiency, also called pernicious anemia, can cause neurological problems. Pernicious anemia is rare in people under the age of 50, however, so this is not an issue with folic acid supplementation or fortification in the childbearing age group.

Prenatal vitamins usually contain between 0.4 mg and 1 mg of folic acid. If you take a prenatal multivitamin read the label so you do not unnecessarily take an extra folic acid tablet.