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During pregnancy, it’s important to eat a well-balanced and nutritious diet, in order to provide your baby with the nutrients it needs to grow. Your diet should also give you energy for the changes taking place in your body.

However, your metabolism and circulation changes when you are pregnant and your reaction to bacterial food poisoning might be more severe, so you do need to be very selective and carefull of what you eat during pregnancy.

Here’s a list of things to avoid eating during pregnancy:

Raw Meat:
Avoid Raw meat because of the risk of contamination with coliform bacteria, toxoplasmosis, and salmonella.

Unpasteurized Milk:
Unpasteurized milk may contain bacteria called listeria.

Soft Cheeses made from unpasteurized milk:
Because of the way these cheeses are made, they may contain harmful bacteria. Unpasteurized cheeses include: Roquefort, brie, feta, Camambert, bleu cheese, queso blanco, queso fresco, blue-veined cheeses, Blue Wensleydale, Danish Blue, Pont L’Eveque , Chaumes, Pyramide, Cambozola, Torta del Cesar, Chèvre, Taleggio, Vacherin-Fribourgeois, Bergader, Bleu d’Auvergne, , Shropshire Blue, Dolcelatte, Gorgonzola,  Stilton and Chabichou and pâté are also not recommended because of the possible risk of transmission of infectious diseases such as Listeria. unless they clearly state that they are made from pasteurized milk.

Unpasteurized JUICE or cider (including fresh squeezed):
May contain E. coli, Drink only pasteurized juice. Bring unpasteurized juice or cider to a rolling boil and boil for at least 1 minute before drinking.

Raw / Half boiled Eggs:
Salmonella is the risk from raw egg. Foods to avoid include: cake batter, raw cookie dough, homemade ice cream, custards, mayonise, egg nog or Hollandaise sauce. Should be avoided because of the potential exposure to salmonella

Fish: Mercury:
Mercury can be harmful to you baby because it can lead to developmental delays of baby’s nervous system and brain damage. The bigger and older the fish is, the higher levels of mercury it has. E.g. tilefish, king mackerel, shark and sword fish.

Fish: PCBs:
Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB) is associated with memory difficulties and lower IQs. Fish included in the PCB warning include: bluefish, stripped bass, salmon, pike, trout, walleye. Also remember to cook seafood properly – avoid raw seafood completely.

Smoked Seafood:
Refrigerated, smoked seafood often labeled as lox, nova style, kippered, or jerky should be avoided because it could be contaminated with Listeria.

Deli Meats:
Due to the risk of listeriosis, contaminated with listeria which can cause miscarriage, you will want to ensure that all deli meats are thoroughly reheated until it is steaming, this includes hot dogs. The internal temperature of the meat should be 165 degrees. E.g. Hot dogs, luncheon meats, cold cuts, fermented or dry sausage, and other deli-style meat and poultry.

Vitamin A:
Don’t take:
high-dose multivitamin supplements
fish liver oil supplements
Any supplements containing vitamin A
Liver – Excessive amounts of vitamin A in non-beta-carotene form can cause birth defects. The food in this category is liver.

Peanuts:
For some women, it is also important to avoid peanuts and foods that contain them. Avoiding peanuts during pregnancy and breastfeeding may reduce your baby’s chances of developing a potentially serious allergies in later stages of life.
 
Caffeine:
Too much caffeine can cross the placenta and affect your baby’s heart rate. Because of the potential effects on your developing baby, there are others that show that caffeine intake may be related to miscarriages.

Alcohol:
There is NO amount of alcohol that is known to be safe during pregnancy, and therefore alcohol should be avoided during pregnancy. Beer, wine, and spirits rob developing cells of oxygen – making normal development impossible, also it increases your risk of miscarriage and stillbirth. Too much alcohol during pregnancy may also result in foetal alcohol syndrome, which can cause facial deformities, heart problems, low birth weight and mental retardation.

What you need to take!

Vitamins, nutrients and minerals

During pregnancy your body needs extra vitamins, minerals and nutrients to help your baby develop. The best way of getting these vitamins is through your diet.

During pregnancy, your baby is counting on you for the nutrients she needs to grow healthy and strong. You can’t eat all the junk food you want, but you also don’t have to give up all the foods you love when you’re pregnant. You just need to eat smart and make sure that most of your choices are healthy ones.

Try to eat foods from each of the five food groups every day. The five food groups include grains, vegetables, fruits, milk products and proteins. Also, be sure you’re getting the right amount of vitamins and minerals you’ll need to keep you and baby healthy.

Folate:

Folate is a B vitamin and is added to food or supplements as folic acid. Folate is important for your baby’s development during early pregnancy because it helps prevent birth abnormalities like spina-bifida.

The best way to make sure you get enough folate is to take a daily folic acid supplement of 400 to 600 micrograms (μg) one month before becoming pregnant and during the first three months of pregnancy.
It is also important to eat foods that have added folic acid or are naturally rich in folate. Foods with folic acid added to them (fortified) include most breads, some breakfast cereals, and fruit juices. Foods naturally rich in folate include green leafy vegetables such as broccoli, spinach and salad greens, chick peas, nuts, orange juice, some fruits and dried beans and peas.

Iron:

Pregnancy increases your need for iron. Your baby draws enough iron from you to last it through the first five or six months after birth so it’s vital that you consume more iron while pregnant.
Good sources of iron include:
lean beef and lamb
poultry
fish and shellfish
breakfast cereals fortified with iron
eggs
cooked legumes such as chick peas, lentils, kidney and lima beans
dried fruits
green vegetables such as broccoli, cabbage and spinach

Eating foods high in vitamin C will also help you to absorb iron if you consume them at the same time. Try drinking a glass of orange juice when eating green vegetables or legumes. You also need to watch out for caffinated drinks like tea, coffee and cola because caffine reduces the body’s absorption of iron.

Your iron levels should be checked in the first trimester and then periodically during your pregnancy, and your doctor or midwife should advise you about your individual needs.

Calcium:

Calcium is essential to keep bones healthy and strong. During the third trimester of pregnancy, your baby needs a large amount of calcium as they start to develop and strengthen their bones. If you’re not getting enough calcium in your diet, the calcium needed by your baby will be drawn from your own bones. To prevent this and the risk of osteoporosis later in life make sure you are getting enough calcium in your diet for both of you.
Two serves of dairy foods, such as milk, hard cheese, yoghurt and calcium–fortified soy milk, should meet your daily requirements.

Iodine:

Iodine is important for everyone, but particularly for pregnant and breastfeeding women. Mild to moderate iodine deficiency during pregnancy can result in the baby having learning difficulties and affect the development of motor skills and hearing.

Most women need around 300 extra calories per day during pregnancy. For example, one healthy snack like four fig bars and a glass of skim milk will provide these extra calories. However, the exact amount of extra calories you need depends on your weight before pregnancy. Talk to your health provider to learn more about a healthy eating plan that’s right for you.

A well-balanced diet should contain something from all the food groups: dairy products, fruit, vegetables, fish, meat, eggs, fat and carbohydrates. A pregnant woman needs to eat something from all these food groups every day in order to get the proper amounts of energy.
Approximately 10 per cent of calories should come from protein. Protein is mainly found in meat, fish, eggs, dairy products and beans.
Approximately 35 per cent of calories should come from fat, which is mainly found in butter, oils, margarine, dairy products and nuts.
Approximately 55 per cent of calories should come from carbohydrates, which are found in bread, pasta, potatoes, rice, corn and other grain products.

How the kilos add up?
Have you wondered why women gain an average of 11 to 16 kilos during pregnancy when the newborn baby weighs only a fraction of that?
Although it varies from woman to woman, this is how those kilos may add up:

3.5 kilos: average baby’s weight
3 kilos: extra stored protein, fat, and other nutrients
1.8 kilos: extra blood
1.8 kilos: other extra body fluids
0.9 kilos: breast enlargement
0.9 kilos: enlargement of your uterus
0.9 kilos: amniotic fluid surrounding your baby
0.95kilos: placenta

So never try to lose weight during pregnancy! Most of the weight will be gone once you give birth.