Our top tips for meeting your nutrition requirements during pregnancy

There are many factors to consider when supporting a healthy pregnancy, including ensuring you meet your nutrition requirements. In addition to regular visits with your doctor, using MyNetDiary can help you easily track all of your health metrics in one place. Read on to learn how to track nutrients, calories, and weight gain needed during pregnancy.

Adjusting nutrition requirements during pregnancy

Pregnancy has higher-calorie and nutrient needs to support the growing fetus while also maintaining the pregnant mother's health. The default settings in MyNetDiary are for non-pregnant people, so you may need to adjust specific nutrient targets to meet your needs. If your doctor has not provided you with specific nutrition goals, use this evidence-based calculator from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine to help determine your individualized plan. This calculator allows you to specify needs for each trimester.

Adjust your vitamin and mineral targets in MyNetDiary in the My Weight Goal & Plan tab under Nutrients. This brief article walks you through how to personalize your nutrient goals.

In addition to following a well-balanced diet, it's important to take a daily prenatal vitamin. This can be logged the same way you log foods. Some people create a separate meal called Supplements to keep this separate from meals.

Taking care of yourself and the growing baby is no easy task! Remember to set small, reasonable goals for yourself to keep things manageable. Adding one to two simple snacks during the day can help you easily meet your increased nutrition requirements during your pregnancy without adding a lot of meal prep.

Tracking weight gain during pregnancy

Healthy weight gain can be important in monitoring your nutritional requirements during pregnancy. While eating enough to support the developing baby is vital, weight-gain recommendations are based on pre-pregnancy body weight. Unless your doctor recommends otherwise, use the guidelines below from the Institute of Medicine to help you determine your individualized goals.

Record your weight weekly to ensure you are on target. If before pregnancy you were overweight or had obesity, your weight-gain goals will be less than for someone at a normal weight or underweight. Aim for gradual weight gain, with the slowest weight-gain goals during the first trimester, increasing to approximately 0.4-1.3 pounds per week in the second and third trimesters.

Calories during pregnancy

Setting your weight-gain goals in MyNetDiary can help to automatically adjust your calories based on your needs. Focus on a consistent weight-gain goal during the second and third trimesters and set this as your new weight plan. To change this in the app, go to Me > , My Weight Goal & Plan > Weight & Calories. In Weight & Calories, change your Target Weight to your weight-gain goal and your Projected Target Date to your due date. Select the appropriate weekly weight-gain goal based on your pre-pregnancy weight.

Here's to you and your baby's health!

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