by Lisa Neal, author of Feeding The Bump.

Dads-to-be can feel at loose ends as to how they can support their partners during pregnancy. Well, heading for the kitchen could be the best and most important stride you take.

Diet is one of the most important factors in pregnancy. It’s also the only factor expecting parents have control over. Not only does a healthy, well-balanced diet help grow a healthy baby, it can also help to avoid, relieve and overcome the common complaints of pregnancy for the mums-to-be.

FEEDING THE BUMP: NUTRITION & RECIPES FOR PREGNANCY is a best-selling book covering everything you need to know about diet during pregnancy. Its unique trimester/chapter format, follows both mother and baby’s development, targeting growth and complaints with dietary tips and recipes.

Don’t believe any claims that “I’m eating for two!” This is a myth. What is true however is ‘eating the nutrients for two’, and so it’s imperative that every mouthful is nutritionally rich, with little or no junk and processed foods in the diet.  All the recipes in the book have been specifically devised to deliver a double dose of nutrients, each and every time.

We’ll be posting monthly extracts from FEEDING THE BUMP with tips to enhance the development of your growing baby, as well as those to help your partner’s pregnancy be complication-free! And yes, this can all be encouraged with nutritious, delicious food, from which the whole family benefits.

BUMP 1: TIPS FOR THE FIRST TRIMESTER (WEEKS 0 to 13)

FOR BABY: Central Nervous system, spine & brain

The First Trimester is the one most influenced by diet. The foetus is at its most vulnerable and is affected by everything that it is exposed to during the first six weeks of pregnancy. In addition, the most important phases in the development of all major organs and external structures kick off.

Essential Nutrients:

• Protein and complex carbohydrates are needed for energy. Your partner will be tired and fatigued as her body prepares for the next nine months.
  
• You may have heard the word folate being tossed around. This is one of the most crucial nutrients during the First Trimester as healthy levels are crucial to proper development reduce the risk of birth defects by up to 70%.

Include at least one of these best food sources in each and every meal:

Broccoli

Asparagus

spinach and other green leafy vegetables

Avocado

Wholegrain products

Nuts & seeds

Papaya, bananas & berries

FOLATE-RICH RECIPES:

Folate-Friendly Omelette

Eggs are natures multi-vitamin capsule, and when combined with leafy greens and fresh herbs you have an incredibly nourishing meal.

3 eggs, preferably organic

Cracked black pepper

2 shallots, finely chopped

½ cup spinach or rocket, finely chopped

½ cup fresh parsley, finely chopped

2 tbs parmesan cheese, grated

2 tbs chopped chives (optional)

Crack eggs into a bowl, add 1 tablespoon of water, season with black pepper and whisk together. Heat 1 tbs of olive oil in a non-stick frying pan over medium-high heat. Add egg mixture and tilt the pan to spread evenly over the base. Immediately scatter all remaining ingredients evenly over the omelette base. Keep at medium heat to prevent burning underneath.

When the omelette edges begin to curl up, use a spatula and gently fold in half and cook for another 2-3 minutes, or until cooked through.  Serves 1.

Berry Blast

Serve for breakfast or between meal snacks. Rich in antioxidants, folate & calcium and a complete meal in itself.

1 banana

½ cup berries

1/3 cup low fat milk/ soy milk

1 tbs skim milk powder

½ cup plain yoghurt

1 tbs wheatgerm

3 – 4 ice cubes

Place fruit and ice into blender and process for 30 seconds

Add remaining ingredients and blend until smooth. Serve immediately.

FOR MUM: Nausea

Nausea is a common complaint of the First Trimester. It usually subsides after 13 weeks, but, for a few unfortunates, it can be 3 very long months.

We’re not sure why it’s referred to as Morning Sickness as it can strike at anytime during the day. There’s no known cure, but what is known is the best way to avoid it is to prevent it. Studies show women with diets rich in the B-Group vitamins have lower instances of nausea.

Here are some other proven remedies, but be warned, a nauseated woman will resist you, but you must persist. Both mum and bub need the nourishment and many find these DO help:

• Eat every 2-3 hours. Believe it or not, food will help prevent and relieve nausea, although those suffering need often need alot of convincing.  Regular snacks maintain consistent blood sugar levels, low levels is one of the main triggers of nausea. Your role, have healthy snacks on hand, especially when you go out. Grab a banana, small bag of natural nuts or cheese cubes, even a vegemite sandwich.
• Take control in the kitchen. Often the sight and smell of food sends a woman off so dads, prepare or pre-cook meals when she is not at home or out of range of cooking aromas. Many women suffer aversions to foods essential to pregnancy, like protein. Again your role, to cleverly disguise these foods without her even knowing. There are lots of these recipes in FEEDING THE BUMP but cheese in omelettes, or creamy fish pies are great options.
• Keep hydrated. In extreme cases many women cannot keep any food down. Fresh vegetables juices provide instant nutritional boost which is quickly absorbed. A glass of fresh carrot and ginger juice (small knob of fresh ginger root) every morning has been proven to ward off nausea. Your role – go buy a juicer!
• Be compassionate. You have no idea how horrible she’s really feeling.

Dietary tips:

• Avoid fried, fatty, chilli-hot or sugary foods. Increase digestive spices ie: cumin, fennel & ginger
• Increase complex carbohydrate/protein foods ie: spaghetti bolognaise, chicken noodle soup, vegemite or hummus on toast
• Don’t rush out of bed, and eat a dry cracker or toast immediately on waking
• Increase foods rich in the B-group vitamins ie: wholegrain breads, cereals, oats, nuts, vegemite, eggs, green leafy vegetables.

This month’s PREGNANCY SUPERFOOD:

Dark Green Leafy Vegetables (esp. broccoli, spinach, rocket)

• Rich in folate to prevent birth defects
• Calcium for development of major organs & skeleton
• Vitamin C for immunity
• Dietary Fibre – prevent onset of constipation (very common during pregnancy)
• B-Group vitamins – best way to ward off nausea!!

Info & Recipes extracted from FEEDING THE BUMP RRP $29.95

Available in bookstores or online http://www.allenandunwin.com/default.aspx?page=94&book=9781741753714

NEXT MONTH:

Tips For Mum: Food Aversions

Tips for Bub:   Eye Development

Lisa Neal is the author of FEEDING THE BUMP: NUTRITION AND RECIPES FOR PREGNANCY. The book was released by Allen & Unwin in February 2008 and has been selling strongly ever since, selling 10,000 copies (best seller status) in Australia & New Zealand. Distribution has recently been picked up in the UK and USA. Lisa  currently provides many pregnancy-related websites with regular content.

In Lisa’s own words….FEEDING THE BUMP was born when I went to buy a male colleague at work a cookbook for pregnancy. He had just announced his wife was pregnant, and, as I knew he was the cook in the house, I thought a pregnancy cookbook – that advised of what food to eat and to avoid during pregnancy, specific nutritional needs, and recipes to support that – would be the ideal gift. How else would a dad-to-be know what to cook, why and how??  But absolutely nothing was available that fit this brief and so, with a passion for cooking and lifelong knowledge of nutrition, I set about writing FEEDING THE BUMP.

My research processed involved reading every single pregnancy related book available, interviews with obstetricians, dieticians, midwives, nutritionists, expectant mums, mums etc. etc. During this process I came across the idea of following the development of the foetus, identifying what nutrients could enhance each stage of development (ie: spinal tube, eyes, brain, central nervous system, hardening of bones, teeth and nails etc), and devise recipes rich in those nutrients to be eaten at the appropriate stage in the pregnancy. So in the first trimester foods/recipes rich in vitamin A for eyes, and folate for the spinal tube. In the second trimester foods rich in calcium when the bones harden, and in the third trimester lots of recipes loaded with omega 3, zinc and iodine for rapid brain development.  As you could imagine this involved an incredible amount of work, but this is one of the best steps one can make towards growing a happy healthy baby. And to make it easier for expecting parents, the book is divided into chapters which represent each trimester so all you have to do is work through the info and recipes for each trimester and know you are providing the right nutrients at the right time.

There are also major benefits to the mother. You would have heard the saying ‘food is medicine’ well this is never more true than during pregnancy. FEEDING THE BUMP provides food remedies and recipes to help overcome the common complaints of pregnancy specific to each trimester ie: nausea in the first trimester, digestive problems and anaemia in the second, and fatigue and fluid retention in the third. Again, these are set out in each trimester chapter for easy reference.

Australian and British scientists have evidence that the pregnancy diet can literally shape a child’s future health from the strength of its immune system and resistance to illness and disease (including cardiovascular disease), to its eating habits and risk of developing diabetes, obesity or other eating disorders, as well as influencing cognitive development, IQ scores and behavioural problems.

CSIRO research shows that the wrong intake of food such as saturated fats and alcohol can have detrimental affects on the genetic makeup. Nutrients influence DNA – inadequate diet can even damage DNA or the genes increasing the likelihood of cancer and Alzheimers. But it’s not all depressing; the right food can actually reduce DNA damage by up to 50 – 70% reducing the risk of these diseases.