Do you need some real and practical suggestions for healthy breakfasts, snacks, meals and drinks to avoid excessive weight gain during pregnancy? Look no further, we’ve even given you a shopping list!
PREGNANCY NUTRITION: THE TOP FOODS TO EAT AND AVOID!
Nutrition during pregnancy: BREAKFAST IDEAS
Fresh Fruit Smoothie: Blend any fresh fruit (with a little unsweetened live plain yogurt (soy, goat, or cow) and a handful of mixed seeds (for example, pumpkin, sunflower, sesame, and flax).
Tip: If you’re in a hurry, add fresh orange or apple juice to thin your smoothie for easy drinking, then put it in a beaker and take it with you.
Boiled, scrambled or poached egg with buttered oatcakes or rye toast. – Whole wheat rye toast spread with nut butter (almond, cashew, hazelnut or peanut)
Mix a handful of oats into a bowl of plain live yogurt and top with a few pieces of chopped fresh fruit and a handful of chopped walnuts.
Spread some cream cheese on corn cakes or wheat-free bread/crackers and top with organic or wild-caught smoked salmon.
Porridge cooked in water with grated apple and a teaspoon of cinnamon. Tip: Soak oats in water for 10 minutes before cooking; this will bring out its creamy flavor, so it is not necessary to use milk. Add some hot stewed apple and berries.
An omelette (filling ideas: grated cheese and red onion, fresh herb mix, diced tomatoes and peppers, garlic mushrooms and watercress, smoked salmon).
Baked beans on rye toast.
Nutrition during pregnancy: DRINK IDEAS
Herbal teas instead of caffeinated tea. Now there are so many varieties, experiment until you find one you like. Rooibosch (red bush) tea is the closest to “regular” tea and can be drunk with milk.
Caro, Barleycup, and Dandelion coffees are caffeine-free coffee alternatives. Teeccino is a delicious coffee substitute that is made in a coffee maker (comes in different flavors eg mocha, vanilla walnut, almond amaretto)
Instead of alcohol, mix fruit, elderflower, or ginger cordials with sparkling water.
The SEEDS are rich in proteins, essential fats, vitamins and minerals; grinding them helps release their nutrients. Try to take a heaping tablespoon each day and add it to cereal, yogurt, soups, or salads.
Buy some fresh, unsalted seeds: pumpkin, sunflower, sesame, and flaxseeds (also called flaxseeds; the golden variety is higher in essential fats than the brown variety). Using a coffee grinder or food processor grinding attachment, grind a mixture that is 50%. flaxseed and 50% a combination of pumpkin, sunflower and sesame. Grind enough to fill a small glass jar (choose glass over plastic, as plastic can damage the essential fats in the seeds). Store your jar in the fridge. Ideally, store your seeds underground in a dark cupboard to protect them from light or oxygen damage (essential fats can be easily damaged).
Nutrition during pregnancy: ENERGY BOOSTING SNACK IDEAS
An apple and a handful of pumpkin or sunflower seeds
One pear, peach, or other seasonal fruit with 10 fresh almonds
Three oatmeal pancakes with nut butter (almond and hazelnut butter is a delicious alternative to peanut – buy at herbalists).
Mackerel, salmon or mushroom pâté in two ryvita (be careful with pâté in pregnancy unless it is homemade and without mayonnaise/fresh egg).
Carrot and celery sticks with hummus.
Scrambled berries in a small pot of plain yogurt.
Nutrition during pregnancy: QUICK AND EASY MEAL IDEAS
Roasted Vegetables with Pesto Crusted Chicken or Fish: Add an organic chicken breast or fish fillet covered in pesto (organic salmon or cod works well) to a baking sheet of partially roasted vegetables (for example, new potatoes , cherry tomatoes, zucchini, onions, garlic red and yellow peppers) and cook for another 10-20 minutes. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper.
Chickpea and Apricot Tajine: To a basic tomato sauce (meaning a can of diced tomatoes added to an onion and a clove of garlic softened in olive oil), add half a finely chopped chilli, a pinch of cumin ground, a handful of apricots and three handfuls of chopped mixed vegetables (for example, carrots, zucchini and baby corn). Add water if necessary to achieve a good sauce consistency, then season and simmer for 15 minutes. Add a can of chickpeas and cook for another 10 minutes, then add a handful of chopped fresh cilantro and serve with couscous, quinoa, or brown rice.
Poached hake in tofu sauce with parsley and lemon: Mash half a block of silken tofu with a clove of garlic, the juice of half a lemon, a little chopped parsley, salt and pepper. Add to a pan with two haddock fillets and cook over low heat until the fish is poached (about 15 minutes, but keep checking). Serve with steamed broccoli or green vegetables and brown rice.
Baked Potato and Sweet Potato Stuffing Ideas:
Hummus (ideally homemade); Ratatouille or baked beans topped with shredded Cheddar; Cottage cheese with chives or spring onion, mixed with chopped red or yellow pepper, cucumber or shrimp; roasted vegetables and pesto; Canned or smoked salmon mixed with cottage cheese or crème fraîche; Cannelini or mashed beans with anchovy fillets and black olives, with lemon juice and black pepper; Steamed leeks, broccoli or cauliflower florets tossed with cheese sauce; Sliced hard-boiled egg mixed with cottage cheese or crème fraîche and chopped parsley; Guacamole (again, make your own or buy it in the deli section of your supermarket)
DELICIOUS SALADS (perfect for a light meal or takeout):
A simple salad of mixed leaves and chopped raw vegetables can be turned into a nutritious and delicious meal in no time if you keep your fridge stocked with delights like artichoke hearts, golden tomatoes, olives, hard-boiled eggs, bell peppers, sweet peppers, anchovies. , smoked fish and slices of lean white meat.
Smoked Organic Trout Fillet (a delicious alternative to smoked salmon that is packed with essential Omega 3 fats) with lightly steamed lima beans or lima beans tossed with lemon juice and black pepper.
Hot-smoked organic salmon or trout, or smoked organic mackerel, flaked with whole grains like quinoa, brown rice, millet, or couscous, with chopped raw vegetables. Season with lemon juice, balsamic vinegar, black pepper, and chopped fresh herbs.
Tofu chunks (marinated in tamari or soy, ginger, garlic, and sesame oil and brown rice syrup), sautéed for seven minutes or until golden and quite crisp. Mix whole grains as above or add to buckwheat noodles with thinly sliced cucumber and seaweed (packets of dried varieties can be found in the eastern section of supermarkets). Sprinkle with sesame seeds and serve warm or cold. – Mixed bean salad with peppers, cherry tomatoes, red onion, sweet peppers and chopped hard-boiled egg, with tomato and basil dressing.
Chickpeas seasoned with paprika, lemon juice, black pepper, and a pinch of sea salt or low sodium Solo salt and parsley, with quinoa.
Warm potato salad with passata (sifted and chopped tomatoes – buy at the supermarket), with a dressing made of olive oil, paprika, chillies and crushed garlic.
Taboulleh of couscous, Bulgarian wheat, millet or quinoa with chopped cherry tomatoes, spring onions, cucumber, parsley, mint, olive oil, lemon juice and dressing.
Whole radishes, crumbled feta, lima beans and alfalfa sprouts.
Blueberries and apricots on leafy greens like lamb shanks or spinach, with crumbled feta on top.
EASY PUDDING
Raspberry Sorbet: Blend frozen raspberries and bananas until smooth.
Apricot Whisk: Puree a handful of apricots (fresh or dried) with a half cup of low-fat cottage cheese or lightened silken tofu with two beaten egg whites.
Nutrition during pregnancy: SHOPPING LIST: NEW FOODS AND BRANDS TO WATCH FOR!
Nairns oatcakes (wheat and sugar free) Terrance Stamp wheat free breads Boridinsky rye bread Whole wheat rye style rye bread (e.g., thinly sliced whole wheat bread) Sugar free peanut butter (I like the Whole brand Earth) Cashew, almond, and hazelnut butters Fresh, unsalted (pumpkin, sunflower, sesame, and golden flaxseed) Smart Diet or Columbus eggs (rich in essential Omega 3 fats) Fresh unsalted nuts (eg, almonds, walnuts, hazelnuts, brazil, cashews, or mixed nuts) Frozen Berries: Be careful with blueberries, summer berries, berries, and raspberries. Organic oats: If you take them cold, look for baby oats instead of jumbo (you should also find them at a health food store). Rooibosch tea (Tick Tock is a good brand) Elderflower or Ginger Quinoa Cordials
It is important that YOU COMMIT TO EATING BETTER QUALITY FOOD TODAY! Pregnancy is only 9 months long and your precious little one needs those nutrients for proper growth and development, not to mention for strength and energy.