Women's Health Series: Healthy eating and normal weight gain during pregnancy

How much weight gain during pregnancy is considered healthy and what are the do's and don'ts when it comes to eating the right type and amount of food in the lead up to child birth?

Healthy foods during pregnancy Source: Creative Commons

In our regular monthly segment dedicated to women's health, Bilingual Health Educator from Multicultural Centre for Women’s Health MCWH, Gagan Kaur Cheema, spoke about normal weight gain during pregnancy.

She said, "In a healthy pregnancy, a woman should gain about 1 to 3.5 kilos during first 3 months and about 0.5 kilos per week during next 2 trimesters."

"For most women, 11.5 to 16 kilos is an ideal range of weight gain throughout pregnancy."

"There are exceptions, such as women getting pregnant before 18 years, women starting pregnancy with a very low or large body weight etc., so always check with GP or midwife to obtain personalised advice," said Gagan.  

She spoke about the importance of the following elements in food which are critical for the developing baby:

• Folic Acid
• Iron
• Calcium and Vitamin D
• Omega 3s

She also went on to describe which foods are replete with these elements and how to consume these foods.

By way of special tips, Gagan said, "In order for iron to be absorbed well from food, it must be consumed with vitamin C. The best example is, that if a woman eats 'rajma' which is a good source of iron, it is best to consume it with a tomato chutney, since that will have vitamin C and will help with the absorption of iron."

Another tip was, "Don't consume tea or coffee within an hour of eating food, because caffeine curtails the absorption of essential elements from the food."

She added, "it is best to leave out alcohol during pregnancy." 

Gagan said," There are special circumstances where women must take advice from her GP or may benefit from accessing a dietitian’s support. For example, pre-existing conditions such as diabetes, multiple pregnancies, pregnancy within 2 years of previous pregnancy etc."

Please listen to the interview for details. And for further information about this topic in your language please visit the MCWH website www.mcwh.com.au or call 1800 656 421, or 03 9418 0999

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