Begin With the Basics
Lay the foundation for a healthy pregnancy by following the recommendations of Eating Well With Canada’s Food Guide:

• Choose a variety of different foods from each of the four food groups each day.
• Emphasize high-quality foods that are rich in the nutrients pregnant women need: whole-grain products, vegetables and fruits, lower-fat milk products, lean meats and lower-fat meat alternatives.
• Limit foods that are less nutritious and higher in fat, salt, sugar or caffeine.
• Drink plenty of water: you need more of it when you are pregnant.
• Get the extra nutrients you need: a woman’s need for iron, calcium and folic acid increases during pregnancy. Focus on choosing reliable sources of these nutrients every day.

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Getting Enough Iron

• Iron helps carry oxygen from you to your baby. Iron is also essential for the development of your baby’s blood system and brain. Iron-rich foods include red meats, seafood, dried fruits, iron-fortified cereals and pasta, dark green, leafy vegetables and legumes (dried beans, peas or lentils).
• When you eat vegetables, fruits and grains, eat foods rich in vitamin C to help your body absorb the iron in these plant-based foods.
• Iron-deficiency (anemia) is a serious but relatively common problem during pregnancy. Your doctor may recommend an iron supplement to make sure you get enough iron.

Getting Enough Calcium

• Calcium builds strong healthy bones and teeth.
• Aim to take in three to four servings of milk products (milk, cheese or yogurt) or fortified soy-beverage each day to meet your increased needs.
• Cheese is a good source of calcium, protein and other nutrients needed during pregnancy. However, it's important for pregnant women to read the labels on cheeses to be sure that the milk used to make the cheese has been pasteurized. Health Canada recommends that pregnant women not eat unpasteurized cheese. Although most cheeses sold in Alberta are safe to eat, make sure that the ingredient list clearly shows that the milk was pasteurized.

Getting Enough Folic Acid

•  Folic acid (folate) is a vitamin that is essential for the development of a baby’s brain and spinal cord during the very early stages of pregnancy.
• All women who are pregnant or planning to become pregnant should take a daily folic acid supplement.
• Folic acid is found in dark, leafy green vegetables, broccoli, dried peas and beans, oranges and orange juice, and breads, cereals and pasta made with enriched flour.

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Manage Morning Sickness
Morning sickness (feeling nauseous and perhaps even throwing up or vomiting) is a common problem that affects more than half of all women during pregnancy.

Try these ideas if you suffer from morning sickness:

• Try to eat regular meals and snacks to keep from getting overly hungry.
• Recruit a family member or friend to help with cooking, and stay out of the kitchen to avoid the smells of cooking food.
• Serve cold meals.
• Have drinks between meals, instead of with your meal.
• Avoid higher-fat and spicy foods.
• Eat crackers or dry toast as soon as you wake up.
• Give yourself time to get up slowly before you get going each day.
• Get plenty of rest.

Be Wise About Weight Gain
Gaining weight is a normal and important part of a healthy pregnancy. You will likely need to eat more than you did before becoming pregnant, but the notion that you’re “eating for two” isn’t true.

Gaining too little or too much weight can be harmful to both you and your baby, so you need to know the guidelines for weight gain.

To find your weight gain target, first determine your pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI). To determine your BMI use Health Canada’s Body Mass Index tool (you’ll see this in the Find out More section below).

• Women with a healthy weight before pregnancy (BMI 18.5 to 24.9) should gain 11.5 to 16 kilograms (25 to 35 pounds).
• Women who were underweight before pregnancy (BMI<18.5) should gain 12.5 to 18 kilograms (28 to 40 pounds).
• Women who were overweight before pregnancy (BMI>24.9) should gain 7 to 11.5 kilograms (15 to 25 pounds).

Teenagers or women with twins, triplets or more have special weight gain needs. They should ask their doctor for personalized advice.

You should gain weight slowly over the entire pregnancy:

• 1 to 3.5 kilograms (2 to 8 pounds) a week during the first trimester
• 0.3 kilograms (0.5 pounds) a week during the second and third trimesters

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Summing Up
Pregnancy is a time to make healthy eating a priority. Aim to choose high-quality, nutritious foods that are sources of iron, calcium and folic acid. Be wise about weight gain. Use this special time of life to lay the foundation for an active, energetic lifestyle once your baby is born.

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Learn More:
Eating Safely During Pregnancy
While most foods are safe to eat during pregnancy, some can pose health risks. Play it safe with information from the Calgary Health Region.

Healthy Eating for Pregnancy
Alberta Health and Wellness provides a comprehensive guide to eating well during pregnancy.

What Every Woman Should Know About Folic Acid
Find out more about the importance of folic acid during pregnancy and how to make sure you are getting enough of it.

Body Mass Index (BMI)
Health Canada provides a web page to help calculate your BMI. Do not use your weight during pregnancy, but use your pre-pregnancy weight.

Eating Well With Canada’s Food Guide
Designed to help Canadians make wise food choices, the food guide translates the science of healthy eating into a practical pattern of food choices that meets nutrient needs, promotes health and minimizes the risk of nutrition-related chronic diseases.

Healthy Pregnancy Quiz
Try this quiz from the Public Health Agency of Canada to learn more about a variety of pregnancy-related health issues.

Morning Sickness
Feeling sick? Throwing up? Take heart, morning sickness is a normal part of pregnancy. This Healthy Ontario website has information about the health effects of this common problem and tips to help you cope.

Take the Iron Challenge
Find out more about iron and the foods containing this nutrient by playing the Beef Information Centre’s interactive iron challenge game.