When you're pregnant, your baby depends on you to supply him with the nutrients he needs for healthy development. Your best bet is to eat a balance of the most valuable sources of vitamins and minerals: lean proteins, low-fat dairy products, fresh fruits and vegetables, complex carbohydrates and healthy fats. However, you may also need to take a supplement to meet your recommended daily value of certain nutrients.
Protein
Your doctor may recommend that you get 75 g to 100 g of protein each day during your pregnancy to support your increasing blood supply and help support growth of breast tissue, uterine tissue and fetal tissue, according to the American Pregnancy Association. Dairy foods, meat, chicken, fish and legumes are rich in protein. A 1 cup serving of 1 percent cottage cheese contains about 28 g of protein, ½ of boneless and skinless chicken breast contains about 26.7 g, a 3 oz. serving of fish contains about 16.8 g and lentils contain about 8.9 g.
Folic Acid
Folic acid, the synthetic version of the B vitamin folate, is especially valuable during pregnancy because it helps prevent brain and spinal cord defects and may reduce your risk of having a premature or low birth weight baby, according to MayoClinic.com. Your doctor will likely recommend that you take a prenatal vitamin that contains 400 mcg to 800 mcg of folic acid each day before you conceive and during your pregnancy. Eating folate-rich foods can also help fill in the gaps, but you should continue taking folic acid in supplement form because your digestive tract absorbs it better than folate. A ½ cup serving of boiled spinach contains about 131 mcg of folate and ½ cup of beans contains about 90 mcg. You may need up to 4 mg of it per day if your doctor determines you're at a higher risk of having a baby with brain and spinal cord defects.
Iron
Iron in your red blood cells helps to transport oxygen throughout your body and to your baby. You should take about 27 mg of iron per day during pregnancy to support your baby's growth and to supply your extra blood volume with enough iron. You can find about this much iron in prenatal supplements, but your body will better absorb a type of iron called heme iron, which you will find in red meat, fish and poultry. A 3 oz. serving of lean beef chuck contains about 3.2 mg of iron and the same serving size of dark turkey meat contains about 2 mg of iron, according to BabyCenter. Pair iron-containing plants and supplements with foods or drinks high in vitamin C to increase your absorption of non-heme iron. Orange juice is rich in vitamin C.
Calcium
Calcium is a vital nutrient because it helps to support healthy bones and teeth for you and your baby, and it aids in healthy functioning of your nervous, circulatory and muscular systems. You need about 1,000 mg of calcium per day if you're a pregnant woman and about 1,300 mg of daily calcium if you're a pregnant teen, according to the American Pregnancy Association. You will find some calcium in a prenatal vitamin, but you should consume about three to four servings of dairy or other high-calcium foods per day to meet your daily needs. One serving can equal 1 cup of milk, 1/3 cup of almonds and 1 and ½ cup of tofu.
