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Pregnancy & Lactating / Breastfeeding Health

Summary

Omega 3 Fatty Acids

The fact is, recent scientific literature suggests that Omega-3 fatty acids play a key part in
pregnancy health - and in the healthy development of your baby. The benefits of Omega-3 fatty
acids are clear. To summarize recent research conclusions, Omega-3s...

 Offer critical nutrients for the neurological development of your baby.

 Promote the development of your baby's cardiac and respiratory systems.
 Support the development of your baby's brain and eyes (development of visual centers).
 Have been shown to increase the learning and cognitive function of your child, with effects
measurable to age four.
 Increase the attention span of your child (a measurable component of intelligence early in
life) .
 Support the pregnancy health of the mother, possibly reducing chances of toxemia (or pre-
eclampsia).
 May help prevent pre-term labor and premature delivery.

In the past decade or so, the importance of Omega 3 during pregnancy has been acknowledged. It
is now known that Omega 3 actually plays a large role in the development and growth of your
baby when it is in your uterus. Omega 3 helps to:

 build the brain

 form the retinas
 develop the nervous system

 Omega 3 is also necessary for your own pregnancy health and wellbeing. Omega 3 helps to:

 reduce your chances of developing preeclampsia

 reduce your risk for postpartum depression
 minimize the chance of preterm labor

Protein

A healthy diet during pregnancy is essential for the expecting mother as well as the
growing child. Because of the needs of the fetus a mother must increase the
amounts of certain food groups like dairy and protein. According to MayoClinic.com,
protein during pregnancy is essential to promote growth; they recommend 71 grams

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of protein per day. This seems like a lot of protein, but by adding protein sources to
each meal and snack it can be done.

Calcium

• Pregnancy - No matter what age a woman is when she becomes pregnant, calcium is very
important to both the mother and the baby. Calcium from the mother's body is used by the
developing baby, putting increased demands on the mother's supply. During pregnancy, calcium
transfer from mother to developing baby reaches 270 mg daily, on average, by the third trimester.
Additional calcium may be needed for both mother's and baby's health.

• Lactating / Breastfeeding - It is estimated that an additional 500 calories per day are
needed for women who breast feed. It is often recommended to continue the use of prenatal
vitamins during lactation. Since prenatal vitamins do not include the total recommended daily
amount of calcium, one must be aware of the need for additional supplementation of this important
mineral

Iron

Iron supplementation regimens in pregnancy vary depending on the characteristics of the

population. In developed countries most women enter pregnancy with normal hemoglobin
concentrations and variable amounts of stored iron. In contrast, large numbers of women in
developing countries are anemic at the onset of pregnancy (17). Prenatal iron supplementation is
not compulsory in many industrialized countries and the recommended dose is often small (30 mg
ferrous iron daily), but has been as high as 240 mg/d in developing countries, for example, India
(27). In 1989 the World Health Organization (WHO) recommended universal supplementation of
all pregnant women with 60 mg ferrous iron twice daily in populations where gestational anemia is
common and once daily in populations where overall iron nutrition is better (28).

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