Vegetarian or Vegan Pregnancy 101
Here's how to ensure a safe and healthy pregnancy if you follow a vegetarian or vegan diet plan.
No matter why you choose to go meatless—health reasons, ethical considerations, or just personal taste—you may be wondering if following a vegetarian or vegan eating plan while pregnant is OK. The answer is a resounding yes.
You can get the protein, vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients you need without consuming meat or other animal products. Furthermore, your pregnancy diet doesn't have to be terribly complicated as long as you make sure that you eat a variety of healthy fruits, vegetables, beans, and nuts, and consider certain supplements if you are falling short on particular food groups.
Learn expert-sourced tips for eating right during a vegetarian or vegan pregnancy, from avoiding potentially unhealthy or unsafe protein sources to choosing the right vitamins to fill any nutrient gaps.
Related: 10 Nutrition Do's and Don'ts During Pregnancy
What Basic Nutrients You Need During Pregnancy
Before you consider vegetarian or vegan food choices, it's important to understand the basic requirements of any pregnancy eating plan.
First, all pregnant people need to be mindful of how many calories they are consuming from any food source since eating for two requires a little extra nourishment. According to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), during the first trimester of a singleton pregnancy, you probably don't need to take in too many extra calories. But most people should aim for an extra 340 calories per day during the second trimester and an extra 450 calories a day in the third trimester.
Getting the right amount of calories—a little more than normal, but not too many—can help you gain a healthy amount of weight during pregnancy. People who begin pregnancy at "normal weight" (a body mass index between 18.5 and 24.9) should gain about 25 to 35 pounds, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). If you are overweight, you'll want to gain a little less, and if underweight, a little more. Be sure to talk to your doctor about weight gain targets that are appropriate for your body type.
Of course, some calories are better than others. Regardless of your dietary preferences, aim to include these nutrients in your diet every day to ensure your baby's healthy development:
Calcium: 1,000 milligrams
Choline: 450 milligrams
Iodine: 220 micrograms
Iron: 27 milligrams
Folic Acid: 600 micrograms
Vitamin B6: 1.9 milligrams
Vitamin B12: 2.6 micrograms
Vitamin C: 85 milligrams
Vitamin D: 600 international units (IU)
Should You Take a Prenatal Vitamin?
While getting all the nutrients you need through healthy foods should be a goal, ACOG recommends that all people who are pregnant (or trying to get pregnant) take a prenatal vitamin to ensure they are covering all the important bases. Aim to take a prenatal vitamin with at least 600 milligrams of folic acid, which has been proven to help protect against birth defects.
Related: What to Eat in the First Trimester of Pregnancy
How To Have a Healthy Vegetarian Pregnancy
In most vegetarian (and vegan) diets, plant foods take center stage—and that's a good thing! To get a nice balance of all the vitamins and minerals that plant foods provide, the U.S. Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion recommends focusing on whole fruits like apples, berries, oranges, mango, and bananas, as well as a "rainbow" of vegetables, such as broccoli, sweet potatoes, beets, okra, spinach, peppers, and jicama.
What fruits and vegetables tend to fall short on are iron and protein, important nutrients for your health and your baby's. Between 45% and 80% of pregnant people have low iron, which can put a baby at higher risk for abnormal brain development. Meanwhile, research shows that 1 in 8 people in their second and third trimesters consume less than the recommended amount of 0.88 grams per kilogram of body weight per day of protein.
Related: The Best Foods for Baby Brain Development
Luckily, beans can provide much of what you need. "Beans are the magic bullet for vegetarians and vegans," says Dawn Jackson Blatner, RD, the author of The Flexitarian Diet . Along with packing lots of protein and iron in minimal calories, beans provide zinc, which is also necessary for cell growth and normal fetal development. Besides beans, other vegetarian iron sources include iron-fortified cereals, spinach, and nuts—which contain healthy fats, too.
To help your body absorb the iron contained in foods, eat vitamin-C-rich foods (such as red peppers, citrus fruits, and strawberries) and sprouted grains along with them. "Sprouting decreases the compounds that make it more difficult for your body to absorb iron," Blatner explains.
Vitamin D is another important nutrient that isn't often found in plant foods. For many vegetarians, eggs and dairy products serve as a major source of vitamin D as well as protein. Both are also naturally rich in vitamin B12, which comes only from animal or fortified foods.
Vegetarian Foods To Avoid
Cheese and eggs are popular (and delicious!) protein sources in many vegetarian diets, but they can sometimes carry harmful bacteria when improperly handled. Steer clear of uncooked, unpasteurized cheeses such as feta, brie, Camembert, and blue-veined or Mexican-style cheeses. Also, make sure to thoroughly cook eggs, and avoid sampling treats that may be made of raw eggs, like cookie dough, eggnog, and certain homemade sauces and dressings.
How To Have a Healthy Vegan Pregnancy
A smart vegan eating plan during pregnancy looks a lot like a vegetarian eating plan during pregnancy. Just like their vegetarian counterparts, pregnant people who follow a vegan diet can boost their intake of crucial vitamins, minerals, and protein by eating a colorful variety of fruits and vegetables, an array of beans, and plenty of nuts.
One difference is that people who eat a vegan diet don't consume animal products like dairy and eggs. Therefore they will have to turn elsewhere to boost their intake of calcium, vitamin D, and protein. Some dairy alternatives, like soy milk, are fortified with vitamin D, as are most brands of commercial orange juice. Other soy products contain plant-based protein. The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine suggests experimenting with recipes using tofu or tempeh if you are avoiding animal products during pregnancy.
Just don't rely too heavily on faux foods—like plant-based cheese and burgers—during pregnancy diet. Why? Veggie "meats" are usually laden with sodium, and cheese is very high in saturated fat, says Blatner. "Vegetarian and vegan diets are perceived to have a 'health halo' around them," she says. "But if you're not eating the right foods, these diets can be unhealthy, too."
Key Takeaways
With its emphasis on vitamin-packed (and naturally low-calorie) plant-based foods, vegetarian and vegan diets can be very healthy for pregnant people. But it's important to get extra iron, protein, and vitamins B12 and D from non-meat sources and prenatal vitamins. Speak with your doctor or a nutritionist as soon as you learn you are pregnant—or ideally, before—to make sure you are taking in all the body- and brain-boosting nutrients you and your baby need.
Related: 30+ Recipes for Your Pregnancy Meal Plan
For more Parents news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter!
Read the original article on Parents.
