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The Vegetarian Diet During Pregnancy and Lactation
How can you meet these increased needs by following a vegan diet? Read how a vegan diet can be adapted to meet the higher nutritional needs associated with pregnancy. Although recommendations for many vitamins and minerals are higher in pregnancy, the increase in energy (calorie) requirements is relatively small. For this reason, some care and thought are needed by all pregnant women to insure that nutritional needs are met. Your pre-pregnant weight and height You should decide if you are underweight or overweight (use BMI (body mass index) table in the end of the text to determine). If you have a moderate BMI, a weight gain of 25 to 35 pounds during pregnancy is recommended. If your BMI is low or very low, you should gain more weight, 28 to 40 pounds. If your BMI is high or very high, you still should gain at least 15 pounds. The pattern of weight gain is different for each woman. However, a general trend is to have little weight gain for the first 12 weeks. Then in the second and third trimester, a weight gain of a pound a week is common. If you are gaining weight very slowly or not gaining weight at all, you will need to eat more food. If your weight gain seems high, consider the types of foods you are eating. Perhaps eating more often or eating food somewhat higher in fat and lower in bulk will help. If you are eating a lot of sweet or fatty foods, replace them with fruits, vegetables, grains and legumes. Get more exercise - walk or swim daily, for example. Of course, you should discuss your exercise regimen with your health care provider. Remember, each woman, and more precisely, each pregnancy, is different in terms of weight gain. In order to support the recommended weight gain, you will need about 300 calories more than usual in the second and third trimesters. There is little, if any, increase in calorie needs in the first three months of pregnancy. Three hundred calories is a fairly small increase compared to the increases seen for other nutrients, so it is important to use those calories wisely. In other words, instead of drinking two cans of soda (300 calories, but not good nutritionally) you could eat 300 calories worth of fruits and vegetables and meet your needs for many vitamins and minerals. Your best guide for how much you should be eating is your own body. If you select healthy foods, exercise moderately, and eat regularly, your feelings of hunger should let you know when and how much to eat. Your usual pattern of eating For example, do you skip breakfast and lunch and eat a big dinner, or do you nibble all day? Insure that you are getting enough food. Many women find that it works best to eat small meals frequently especially during the last months of pregnancy when there just doesn't seem to be enough room for food. This is especially true for vegans as their diets are higher in fiber and bulk, which makes it hard to eat a lot at one time. Small, frequent meals can also help with low weight gain. How "good" is your diet? Do you eat grains, legumes, fruits and vegetables every day? Decide whether your current diet meets the nutritional recommendations for pregnancy. The newest recommendations for protein needs in pregnancy are lower than previous recommendations. The current RDA for protein in pregnancy is 60 grams per day. This is 10 grams above the recommendation for non-pregnant women age 25-50 and 14 grams above the recommendation for non-pregnant women age 19-24 years. If your diet is varied and contains good protein sources such as soy products, beans and grains, you can relax and not worry about getting enough protein in pregnancy. Making sure you have enough calories insures that the protein you eat is used for tissue synthesis rather than meeting energy needs. Other important nutrients in pregnancy include calcium, vitamin D, iron, vitamin B12, zinc and folic acid. Calcium and vitamin D both are needed for bone and tooth development. Calcium absorption is high in pregnancy, so if your diet is slightly low in calcium, your body may automatically compensate for it. There is little evidence of calcium loss from the mother's bones during pregnancy and no adverse effects of diets low in calcium during pregnancy have been reported. However, since low calcium intakes are not recommended during the years when women are accumulating bone mass, an intake of 1200 mg per day is recommended for women under age 25. Intakes of between 600 and 1200 mg per day of calcium are recommended for pregnant women age 25 and older. Vegans may need less calcium than omnivores because the vegan diet may result in lower losses of calcium due to the lower protein nature of the diet. During pregnancy, eating four or more servings of calcium-rich foods daily is recommended. Ideas for these foods include greens, tofu processed with calcium sulfate, and blackstrap molasses. Calcium supplements represent another option for those days when your appetite is poor or you don't have time to prepare foods. You should be aware, however, that calcium supplements can cause constipation. Vitamin D, which is produced following exposure of skin to sunlight, is not normally found in foods eaten by vegans. Pregnant vegans should be sure to get at least 20 to 30 minutes of summer sun on their hands and face two to three times a week. Vitamin D supplementation should be undertaken only with the approval of your physician. Extra iron is needed in pregnancy to provide for increased maternal blood volume and for the formation of the baby's blood. If the mother does not have enough iron in her diet, she will draw on her iron stores and can become anemic. If you feel that you are not able to get this much iron from diet alone, you should consider using a low-dose iron supplement. Also, if you have a history of anemia your iron stores may already be low, so you will need more than 30 mg of iron daily. The iron supplement that you take should only be taken in combination with a good diet. High doses of iron will actually interfere with zinc and copper absorption and so should be avoided if possible. Vitamin B12 needs are higher in pregnancy due to vitamin B12's role in tissue synthesis. If you are planning to breast feed, you will also need to make sure that you have enough vitamin B12 stored so that your milk vitamin B12 will be high enough to meet the infant's needs. The RDA for pregnancy for vitamin B12 is 2.2 micrograms daily. A rounded teaspoon of yeast powder or 2 teaspoons of mini-flake yeast or 2-1/2 tablespoons of large-flake yeast provides 2.2 micrograms of vitamin B12. Of course, since vitamin B12 is stored, you could consume larger amounts of nutritional yeast less often. Another alternative source of vitamin B12 is fortified cereal. Nutri-Grain cereal contains vitamin B12 at this time. Other sources of vitamin B12 are fortified soy milk, vitamin 12 fortified meat analogues (food made from wheat gluten or soybeans to resemble meat, poultry or fish), and vitamin B12 supplements. There are vitamin supplements that do not contain animal products. Zinc is a mineral which is necessary for growth and development. Good sources of zinc include grains and nuts. Folic acid is another nutrient whose requirement appears to be substantially increased in pregnancy. Dark leafy greens are the richest source of folic acid for vegans. Other good sources include whole grains, nuts, legumes and oranges. Drinking alcohol, caffeine, smoking Moderate to large amounts of alcohol during pregnancy can cause fetal alcohol syndrome, which impairs mental and physical development. Even one or two drinks of alcohol are associated with greater risk of spontaneous abortion and low birth weight. Cigarette smoking has been clearly linked to low birth weight, which increases the infant's chances of having a variety of health problems. Drinking and smoking should be avoided during pregnancy. Caffeine is more controversial. Large amounts have, in some cases, been associated with various problems in pregnancy. Caffeine does not appear in the fetus' blood in the same concentration as in the mother's blood. It is probably wisest to limit or avoid caffeine-containing beverages. Diet Plans Several diet guides have been produced for pregnant vegans. While our recommendation is generally to eat a varied diet containing foods high in the nutrients needed during pregnancy, some people feel more comfortable with a more structured guide for daily eating. Here are two different diet plans for pregnant vegans: PLAN I Nuts, Seeds or Legumes 2 servings (a serving is 2 TB nuts or seeds or 1/2 cup cooked legumes) Milk or Meat Analogues 3 servings (a serving of soymilk is one cup) Vegetables 4 servings (a serving is 1 cup raw or 1/2 cup cooked). We suggest emphasizing high calcium vegetables such as greens and broccoli. Fruits 5 servings (a serving is 1 fruit or 1/2 cup canned fruit) Grains, Cereals or 6 servings (a serving is 1 slice of Breads bread or 1/2 cup cereal or grain) PLAN II Legumes 4 servings Milk or Meat Analogues 4 servings Vegetables and Fruits 8 servings We suggest emphasizing high calcium vegetables such as greens and broccoli. Grains, Cereals or 6 servings Breads Lactation and the Vegan Diet The best diet for breastfeeding is very similar to the diet recommended for pregnancy. Calories, protein, and vitamin B12 recommendations are higher while the recommendation for iron is lower than during pregnancy. If you eat too little while breastfeeding, you may not produce as much milk. Although the recommended caloric intake is 500 calories above your usual intake, you may still lose weight because of a loss of calories in breast milk. It is safe to lose about 1/2 to 1 pound a week while breastfeeding but more thorough dieting is not recommended. Since you do need extra fluid while breastfeeding, use nutritious beverages like juices, soy milk, soups and smoothies to provide calories. The recommendation for protein is only 5 grams higher than it is in pregnancy and can be obtained easily from the extra food you are eating. You should still eat good quality food because you are providing all nutrients to your infant. Requirements for most other nutrients are similar to those in pregnancy and should be obtained from a varied, healthy vegan diet. BODY MASS INDEX (table) Step 1. Take your prepregnant weight (in pounds) and divide it by your height (in inches) squared; then multiply by 700. BMI = lb/in squared x 700. (for example, if I weigh 110 pounds and am 60 inches tall, my BMI is 110/3600 x 700 = 21.4). Step 2. Use your BMI to find your pre-pregnancy weight for height status and the amount of weight you should try to gain in pregnancy.
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