Nutritionist What can pregnant women eat?

What pregnant women are allowed and should eat
In pregnancy, women should pay close attention to their diet. Because certain foods, such as raw meat or too much caffeine could harm the baby. The news agency "dpa" spoke with experts about a balanced, healthy diet during pregnancy.

Pregnant women should eat foods rich in calcium and folic acid
Pregnant women have an increased need for nutrients. For example, your body needs a lot of calcium and folic acid. Calcium is part of the bone substance. If the body does not have enough of it available, it resorts to the reserves in the bones. In this way, the development of osteoporosis is favored. For the development of the baby calcium is important to build strong bones and teeth, a healthy heart and nerves and muscles. In addition, calcium plays an important role in normal heart rhythm and blood clotting ability. Folic acid is of particular importance in the prevention of neural tube defects such as open back and brain developmental disorders.

The diet in pregnancy should follow some rules. (Image: Anatoly Tiplyashin / fotolia.com)

During pregnancy, women should therefore be careful to eat enough dairy products containing calcium. Eggs and egg dishes provide the body with iron and folic acid. Both should not be eaten raw. "That means no unpasteurized dairy products like raw milk camembert and neither raw nor half-cooked egg, nor foods like tiramisu that contain it," explains Margret Morlo of the Nutrition and Dietetics Association. Such foods could be contaminated with pathogens that are dangerous to the baby.

Pay attention to a lot of fresh fruits and vegetables during pregnancy
During pregnancy, a lot of fresh fruits and vegetables should be on the menu as they provide essential vitamins, minerals, fiber, phytochemicals and antioxidants. According to current scientific findings, every type of fruit and vegetable is allowed. "You often hear that expectant mothers should not eat legumes and leeks such as onions," says Susanne Schäfer, board member of the Federation of Freelance Midwives in Germany. They are difficult to digest and cause bloating or nausea. "Whoever tolerates them, but can still access."

Only in the product selection and preparation pregnant women should pay a lot. So packaged ready salads, precut fruits and unheated sprouts are taboo, because they could be contaminated with harmful germs. Fruit and vegetables that are eaten raw should be washed well.

Never eat fish and meat raw during pregnancy
Meat and fish contain proteins, iron and iodine. They are therefore on the diet of pregnant women, unless they are consumed raw, cold-smoked or insufficiently heated. So are sushi, smoked salmon, raw sausage products such as salami and Tatar taboo. Even pregnant women should abstain from red meat. "These foods can be contaminated with dangerous germs that can lead to illness, labor and miscarriage," warns Christian Albring, president of the Professional Association of Gynecologists. Offal such as liver can also contain pollutants. Even heavily contaminated with mercury fish species such as swordfish or Merlin should be omitted.

For fast food and finished products, the experts agree as well. They often contain artificial additives such as flavor enhancers, sugar substitutes or dyes that pollute the mother's organism. Professionals fear that they are also harmful to the unborn child and, for example, increase the risk of allergies. In addition, the products are usually very high in calories, which can result in a health-damaging increase in weight. "Obesity can lead to diseases such as hypertension. In addition, overfed babies are more likely to experience complications such as premature birth, "says Albring.

It is best to drink water and unsweetened drinks during pregnancy
Pregnant women should drink two to three liters of fluid daily. Water and unsweetened drinks are best. "The highest priority is the renunciation of alcohol, as this can demonstrably severely damage the unborn child's central nervous system," warns Morlo. Also on quinine-containing drinks, such as bitter lemon, should be omitted, as they act in a large amount breeze stimulating. This also applies to excessive consumption of caffeine. But coffee and tea are not generally prohibited during pregnancy, as long as no more than about 300 milligrams a day - one to two cups of coffee - are consumed daily.

Shepherd advises pregnant women not to let themselves be unsettled by the variety of nutritional tips that pounce on them from all sides. "There are always new recommendations that sometimes contradict each other. I watch that skeptically, "said the midwife. The differences to a normal, balanced mixed diet are not that big. (Ag)