Vegan for Life - Jack Norris [54]
Calorie-counting during pregnancy isn’t an exact science, but your health-care provider will help you stay on track by monitoring your weight gain. Poor weight gain during pregnancy is associated with low-birth-weight babies, who are at risk for health problems.
NUTRITION CONSIDERATIONS IN VEGAN PREGNANCY
The table on page 139 shows changes in nutrient needs for pregnant and nursing women.
Protein needs increase by almost 50 percent in pregnancy. Most non-pregnant omnivore women consume enough protein to meet the needs of pregnancy, but that may not be true of all vegan women. It isn’t difficult to get enough, but it’s important to make sure you are including at least five to six servings of protein-rich foods from the food guide in your daily menus.
Iron absorption—especially of the nonheme iron found in plant foods—increases significantly during pregnancy while the lack of menstruation reduces iron losses. Even so, iron requirements nearly double during pregnancy. Some of the increased iron requirement is due to the manufacture of red blood cells in the growing fetus, but most of it is needed to support the expansion of the mother’s blood volume during pregnancy. Theoretically, vegans could be at higher risk for iron deficiency in pregnancy, but the truth is that all women are at risk. It’s difficult to plan diets for either vegans or omnivores that meet iron needs of pregnancy. For that reason, iron supplements are almost always recommended for pregnant women.
Pregnant women typically have zinc intakes that are lower than recommendations, unless they are taking supplements. The benefits of zinc supplements in pregnancy aren’t known, but they may be beneficial for pregnant vegans since zinc absorption from plant foods is lower than from meat.
Vitamin D requirements don’t change with pregnancy, but getting enough is important for both the mother’s and baby’s health. With the exception of vitamin B12 and iron and—depending on your diet—possibly vitamin D and iodine, it is possible to meet all of the nutrient needs of pregnancy on a vegan diet without the use of supplements. But most health professionals recommend a prenatal multivitamin and mineral supplement, particularly one that includes iron and folate, as sensible insurance for both vegan and omnivore women.
Pregnant vegetarians have lower blood levels of DHA (the long-chain omega-3 fatty acid) than pregnant nonvegetarians.2 We don’t know whether that’s a problem, but there is some evidence that DHA intake during pregnancy and breast-feeding improves visual acuity and brain function in the infant. Experts recommend that pregnant women consume 300 milligrams of DHA per day, so we recommend DHA algae-derived supplements for vegans.
Here are some tips for a healthy vegan pregnancy:
• If you are planning a pregnancy, now is the time to take a good look at your eating habits. Healthy nutrition in the early weeks of pregnancy—often before a woman knows that she is pregnant—is important. Make sure your diet includes plenty of foods that are rich in the B-vitamin folic acid. Good sources are legumes and leafy green vegetables. Think about cutting alcohol out of your diet, too, if there is any chance you might become pregnant, and if you are a coffee drinker, now is the time to cut back.
• Talk to your health-care provider about your weight-gain goals. If you have trouble gaining weight, emphasize foods with a little more fat, such as tofu, nut butters, and avocados.
• Use the Modified Vegan Food Guide for Pregnancy and Breast-feeding on page 140 in making daily food choices.
• Protein needs go up by about 25 grams beginning with the second trimester. It’s not difficult to meet those needs on a vegan diet, but it might require extra attention. Take a look at the list of protein-rich foods in Chapter 2. Aim for at least 15 to 20 grams of protein in each meal and choose a few protein-rich snacks as well.
• Eat plenty of iron-rich foods and include a good source of vitamin C at every meal to boost absorption. Most health-care