Top 10 Foods to Eat During Pregnancy

4. Avocados

Not only are they delicious, but they are rich in essential fatty-acids. A typical avocado contains 30 grams of fat, but 20 of these fat grams are health-promoting monounsaturated fats, especially oleic acid. You need the right kind of fat to help baby grow!

5. Coconut Oil

Extra-virgin coconut oil is a medium-chain fatty acid that is “absorbed directly for quick energy and contribute(s) to the health of the immune system” (Nourishing Traditions Cookbook).

It can be used to cook using high heat without turning into a trans-fat. That is why I especially love to bake with it! I use it without worries to make stove-top popcorn.

This is a powerful yeast fighter because is anti-fungal, anti-viral, and anti-microbial. I’ve seen it work wonders in our family when ingested internally as well as applied externally. Let it become one of the main fat sources in your family’s diet

Find out how I even use coconut oil as a safe diaper rash remedy!

6. Bee Pollen

This is nature’s multi-vitamin! I first learned about the advantages of bee pollen from my first raw food book Rejuvenate Your Life:Recipes for Energy.

In it, Serene Allison writes, “Bee pollen is high in protein RNA and DNA. Dr. Gabriel Cousins says, ‘Bee pollen carries the germ force energy and supports the power of the germ plasma in the parents and the generative force of the fetus.’

He suggests that a pregnant woman should take 1-3 Tablespoons of bee pollen per day.

It also contains adenosine, which aids our metabolism.” Every pregnant mama can use a little metabolism boost to help minimize weight gain.

This is definitely a super food! It contains live enzymes, multi-vitamins, minerals, carotenoids, bioflavonoids, phytosterols, amino acids, and fatty acids.

• TIP: Find Bee Pollen in the Refrigerated Section of Your Health Food Store

I put 1 Tablespoon of bee pollen in my morning nutritious power smoothie (which I drink even when I’m not pregnant!). I often give my children about 1/2 cup of this smoothie. The bee pollen helps to serve as a multi-vitamin supplement for them as well.

Caution: Bee products may cause an allergic reaction in some sensitive people. Anyone with a suspected sensitivity consult a nutritionist before taking it.

7. Green Lemonade

Folic acid, a B-vitamin, is crucial for optimal brain growth and the prevention of birth defects.

“Repeated studies have shown that women who get 400 micrograms (0.4 milligrams) daily prior to conception and during early pregnancy reduce the risk that their baby will be born with a serious neural tube defect (a birth defect involving incomplete development of the brain and spinal cord-the most common is spina bifida) by up to 70%. All of these defects occur during the first 28 days of pregnancy – usually before a woman even knows she’s pregnant.”

So, if there is even a slight chance of becoming pregnant, be sure to be getting enough folic acid regularly in your diet to help prevent birth defects.

You can find folic acid in prenatal vitamins. Better yet, make yourself a green lemonade first thing in the morning.

“The leafy greens provide the organic calcium and folic acid you need for the baby and to protect your own calcium stores. Spinach is the most valuable of the leafy vegetables, as it has the finest quality of obtainable organic iron.” (The Raw Food Detox Diet: The Five-Step Plan for Vibrant Health and Maximum Weight Loss).

Keeping up your calcium and magnesium intake during pregnancy is also important for avoiding uncomfortable leg cramps.

Find other life-giving juicing recipes here!

8. Probiotics

Because your diet might not be rich in lactofermented foods, taking a probiotic supplement daily is a good way to ensure the right balance of bacteria in the intestinal tract. Also, add yogurt and keifer rich in lactobacteria (be sure to check the ingredients on the  container) to your diet. Better yet, make your own at home!

During pregnancy, women are more susceptible to yeast infections caused by hormones and an overgrowth of bad bacteria. The habit of including probiotics in your diet at all times is good prevention!

9. Drink Plenty of Filtered Water

Okay. So it’s not really a food. But it is vital for a healthy pregnancy so I couldn’t leave it out!

Dehydration is one cause of the early onset of preterm labor. If you experience some early contractions, immediately drinking plenty of water can help. Also, contacting your healthpractitioner for added advice is a good idea.

Throughout pregnancy, it’s essential to keep you and baby well hydrated.

Not all water is created equal! Drink filtered tap water rich in mineral ions (calcium, magnesium, iodine, silicon and selenium) but void of chlorine, all heavy metals and other impurities.

10. Organic Grass-Fed Beef, Lamb and Chicken

Some Benefits of Eating Organic Grass-Fed Meat:

-No pesticides, antibiotics or hormones.

-100% certified organic feed and pasture, which means no genetically modified foods, seeds or feeds and raised without herbicides, pesticides or chemical fertilizers.

-Grass-fed meat has an Omega 3s content of 7% of it’s total fat content, compared to 1% in grain-only fed beef. It’s loaded with other natural minerals and vitamins. Plus it’s a great source of “conjugated linoleic acid”-a fat that reduces the risk of cancer, obesity, diabetes, and a number of immune disorders.

Women can easily become deficient in iron during pregnancy. “Iron from animal protein is more readily absorbed than iron from vegetable foods.” Make sure you are getting iron from meat as well as vegetables. It’s best to get your iron organically in eggs, fish, liver, meat and leafy green vegetables!

Beware of inorganic iron used to enrich processed foods like cereals and white flour.

“In this form, iron cannot be utilized by the body and its buildup in the blood and tissues is essentially a buildup of toxins…linked to heart disease and cancer” (Nourishing Traditions Cookbook).

Protein is the building blocks of the body so it is certainly crucial in the formation of our unborn babies.

“Protein is essential for normal growth, for the formation of hormones, for the process of blood clotting and for the formation of milk during lactation” (Nourishing Traditions Cookbook).

So keep up your protein intake while nursing your baby!

We need the best kind of protein! Animal protein is the only source of complete protein.

“(A)nimal protein foods-meat, eggs, and milk- always comes with fat and this is how we should eat them. Animal fat supplies vitamins A and D needed for the assimilation of protein…..Animal products are essential for optimum growth and healthy reproduction” (Nourishing Traditions Cookbook).

Sorry to challenge the vegetarians out there! During our reproductive years, it is essential to eat the right kind of protein and fats!

NOTE: I am not a Doctor or Medical professional. This information is intended to be informative only.  Please check with your medical professional before starting any Diet, Exercise or any other Medically related programs.

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