Essential nutrients during pregnancy

Vitamin and mineral supplements

Pregnancy significantly increases your requirements for nutrients such as iron and folic acid.

It is recommended that you start taking a multivitamin containing folic acid two or three months before getting pregnant, and that you continue throughout pregnancy and after giving birth. The prenatal multivitamin should contain at least:

• 0.4 mg of folic acid; AND
• 16 to 20 mg of iron.

Your needs may differ. Your prenatal care team will suggest an appropriate multivitamin for you.

A few tips

• Talk to your pharmacist or health professional before taking any vitamin or mineral supplements other than those that have been recommended to you.
• It may be easier to take chewable or gummy prenatal multivitamins. Make sure they contain the recommended quantities of folic acid and iron.

Folic acid

Folic acid is an important vitamin during pregnancy, especially at the beginning. It helps your baby’s brain develop and reduces the risk of a neural tube defect such as spina bifida and other birth defects.

Foods containing folic acid include:

• Legumes: lentils, Roman and white beans, soybeans (edamame), chickpeas
• Dark green vegetables: asparagus, spinach, broccoli, romaine lettuce, Brussels sprouts, okra, avocados
• Orange fruits: papaya, oranges
• Sunflower seeds
• Enriched pasta
• Enriched flour and bread made from enriched wheat flour

Iron

Iron is necessary for increasing blood volume and for the growth of the baby and placenta. Iron intake during pregnancy also allows your baby to build up important reserves for the first months of life. That’s why you need more iron during pregnancy than at any other stage of life.

Iron deficiency can cause health problems for the baby and lead to anemia in the person who is pregnant.

Here are some foods that contain iron:

Animal-based foods

• Meat: beef, lamb, pork, veal, game
• Poultry: chicken, turkey, ptarmigan
• Fish: sardines, salmon, trout (except lake trout), halibut, haddock
• Seafood: shrimp, oysters, mussels, clams
• Seal and other marine mammals, wild duck, moose, caribou
• Blood sausage

While liver is an excellent source of iron, it is not recommended during pregnancy because it is too high in vitamin A.

Plant-based foods

• Legumes: dried beans, lentils, chickpeas
• Medium or firm tofu
• Iron-fortified breakfast cereals
• Certain vegetables: pumpkin, green peas, potatoes, spinach, and other leafy greens
• Cashews, almonds, pistachios, and their butters
• Sesame seeds, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, and their butters
• Iron-fortified pasta and bread

Iron from animal sources is absorbed better than iron from plant sources.

To more effectively absorb the iron contained in plant‑based foods, add foods rich in vitamin C to the same meal: e.g. kiwi, citrus fruits, peppers, cloudberry, broccoli, strawberry, pineapple, Brussel sprouts, snow peas, mango, or cantaloupe. Also, avoid drinking coffee or tea with meals and in the hour that precedes or follows a meal.

Calcium and vitamin D

Calcium plays an essential role in building baby’s bones and teeth and keeping them healthy. To effectively absorb calcium from food, you also need vitamin D.

Here are

Calcium and vitamin D

• Milk
• Fortified soy beverages
• Yogurts fortified with vitamin D

Calcium

• Yogurt and cheese
• Tofu with calcium sulphate
• Canned fish with bones: sardines, salmon
• Calcium-fortified foods

Most legumes and dark green vegetables also contain small amounts of calcium, as do almonds and certain nuts and seeds.

Vitamin D

• Oily fish like fresh, frozen, or canned salmon, mackerel, herring, sardines, and lake whitefish
• Eggs
• Margarine

Omega-3s

Omega-3 fatty acids contribute to the development of your baby’s brain, nervous system and visual system. That’s why it’s important to make them a regular part of your diet during pregnancy.

Fish are the best source of omega-3s. Opt for oily fish like fresh, frozen, or canned salmon, mackerel, herring, sardines, and lake whitefish (see also Fish and seefood).

You will also find small quantities of omega-3s in other foods such as:

• Canola, flaxseed, and nut oils, and vinaigrettes and soft margarine (non hydrogenated) made with these oils
• Ground flaxseed, chia seeds, walnuts
• Foods fortified with omega-3s (e.g., some milks and eggs)

By regularly eating foods containing omega-3s, you can usually meet your requirements through your diet. However, if you decide to take an omega-3 supplement, consult a pharmacist or other health professional (see Natural health products)

Fibre

Fibre is necessary to ensure your intestines work properly. It helps regulate digestion and prevent constipation (see Constipation).

Fibre is found in various categories of foods:

• Whole grain foods
• Vegetables and fruits
• Legumes, nuts, and seeds

Try to make these foods a regular part of your diet. It is also important to stay well hydrated when you increase your intake of high-fibre foods.