Overview

Healthy eating when you are pregnant is important for you and your baby. It can help you feel well and have a successful pregnancy and delivery. During pregnancy your nutrition needs increase. Even if you have excellent eating habits, your doctor or midwife may recommend a multivitamin to make sure you get enough iron and folic acid.

You may wonder how much weight you should gain. In general, if you were at a healthy weight before you became pregnant, then you should gain between 11.5 and 16 kilograms. If you were overweight before pregnancy, then you'll likely be advised to gain 7 to 11.5 kilograms. If you were underweight before pregnancy, then you'll probably be advised to gain 12.5 to 18 kilograms. Your doctor will work with you to set a weight goal that is right for you. Gaining a healthy amount of weight helps you have a healthy baby.

How can you care for yourself at home?

• Eat plenty of fruits and vegetables. Include a variety of orange, yellow, and leafy dark-green vegetables every day.
• Choose whole grain bread, cereal, and pasta. Good choices include whole wheat bread, whole wheat pasta, brown rice, and oatmeal.
• Include protein foods each day. Try foods like eggs, beans, fish, poultry, lean meat, peanut butter, milk, fortified soy beverages, yogurt, and cheese.
• Limit how much liver and liver products (such as liverwurst or liver sausage) you eat. Liver is high in iron, folate, and vitamin A. Too much vitamin A may cause birth defects. If you eat liver, ask your doctor or midwife about how much is right for you.
• Choose foods that are good sources of calcium. Good choices include non-fat or low-fat milk, yogurt, and cheese. If you cannot eat milk products, you can get calcium from calcium-fortified products such as orange juice, soy or other plant-based beverages, and tofu. Other non-milk sources of calcium include leafy green vegetables, such as broccoli, kale, mustard greens, turnip greens, bok choy, and Brussels sprouts.
• Limit how much high-mercury fish you eat.
  • Do not eat more than 150 g (5.3 oz) of high-mercury fish in a month. These include fresh or frozen tuna (not canned "light" tuna), shark, swordfish, marlin, orange roughy, and escolar.
  • Do not eat more than 300 g (10.6 oz) of canned (white) albacore tuna each week.
• Choose fish that are lower in mercury. These include salmon, rainbow trout, pollock, herring, shrimp, mussels, clams, oysters, and canned "light" tuna.
• Do not eat raw or undercooked eggs, meat, poultry, or seafood. Heat all deli meats, hot dogs, refrigerated meat spreads, and refrigerated smoked seafood to 74° C (165° F) before eating. Do not eat or drink raw or unpasteurized dairy products and fruit juices. Thoroughly wash all vegetables and fruits. Avoid all sprouts, even if cooked.
• Do not eat pasteurized or unpasteurized soft, semi-soft, or blue-veined cheeses, such as havarti, brie, camembert, or Mexican-style cheeses (like queso fresco or queso blanco). They have a bacteria that could harm your baby.
• Limit caffeine to less than 300 mg per day. This is about 2 cups of coffee.
• Do not drink any alcohol. No amount of alcohol has been found to be safe during pregnancy.
• Do not diet or try to lose weight. For example, do not follow a low-carbohydrate diet. If you are overweight at the start of your pregnancy, your doctor or midwife will work with you to manage your weight gain.
• Tell your doctor or midwife about all medicines and natural health products you take.