Baby relies on mum to give them all the nutrition that they need during pregnancy! So it’s important for a pregnant mum to eat a healthy, well-balanced diet that includes a ton of fruits and veggies.
Benefits of fruits and vegetables!
Empty Calories, they’re something that you should avoid during pregnancy. What do I mean by ‘empty calories’? It’s pretty much junk food and snacks that don’t have any form of benefit for baby and mum.
Fruits and vegetables are chock full of nutrients! When you add a variety of them to your diet, it’s pretty much guaranteed that you’ll get most of the vitamins, minerals, and fibre that you and your baby need. Eating fruits and vegetables also helps prevent constipation, a common symptom during pregnancy.
Now let’s get down to the fruity business:
1. Oranges
When you’re pregnant, your sweet tooth might become a lot bigger than usual, but try not to grab some cake or chocolate to satisfy it! The healthier alternative would be to eat some sweet fruits instead – it’ll appease your sweet cravings while still being nutritious.
Firstly, we have the fruit named after a colour – oranges! They’re yummy and juicy, and help you stay hydrated. What’s more, they’re a great source of folate, a B vitamin that helps prevent brain and spinal cord defects (aka neural tube defects).
They’re most well-known for their richness in vitamin C too – an antioxidant that helps prevent cell damage and helps your body to absorb iron.
2. Mangoes
Also quite orange, but not as orange as oranges, the mango is another sweet fruit that contains a lot of vitamin C. One cup of mangoes will give you 100% of your recommended daily allowance of vitamin C.
They’re also high in vitamin A, and vitamin A deficiency at birth is associated with lower levels of immunity and a higher risk of complications such as diarrhoea and respiratory infections.
However, it’s rare but it’s possible to get an overdose of vitamin A. Even though mangoes are a great addition to your pregnancy diet, eat them in moderation as they’re also very high in fructose (sugar)!
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3. Bananas
Bananas are a great source of potassium, vitamin B-6, C, and fibre! Constipation is very common during pregnancy, and could be caused by a number of things, such as:
So adding fibre-rich bananas could help out with constipation.
4. Avocados
Avocados are a powerful fruit that contains a good amount of healthy fat, as well as a LOT of nutrients such as:
5. Apples
The humble apple is high in fibre, and is a good source of vitamin A, C, and potassium. A study found that children of mums who ate apples regularly during pregnancy were less likely to have childhood asthma and allergies.
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