IMPORTANT FRUITS AND VEGETABLES DURING PREGNANCY

Fruits and vegetables are an important part of any healthy diet, especially during pregnancy, because they are packed with essential nutrients and full of fibre.

Have a slice of cantaloupe or a bowl of strawberries for a snack, and you’ll provide your baby with vitamins and minerals for growth while keeping yourself healthy too. Pair the fruit with a little protein, like cottage cheese, and you’ll get a sustained energy boost to get you through a long afternoon.

Key vitamins supplied by this food group include beta carotene, needed for your baby’s cell and tissue development, vision, and immune system; vitamin C, crucial for your baby’s bones and teeth, as well as the collagen in your baby’s connective tissue; potassium, which helps control blood pressure; and folic acid, which helps prevent neural tube defects and promotes a healthy birth weight.

The fibre content of fruits and vegetables also provides a number of benefits, including keeping your bowels moving. This helps prevent constipation and hemorrhoids, two common problems during pregnancy.

How Much You Should Eat

As often as possible, try to eat 2 cups of fruit and 2 1/2 to 3 cups of vegetables a day. Here’s what counts as a cup:

1 cup raw or cooked vegetables
2 cups raw leafy greens (or 1 cup of leafy greens and 1/2 cup of other vegetables)
1 cup raw, canned, or frozen fruit
2 small bananas (less than 6 inches) or 1 large (8 to 9 inches)
1/2 cup dried fruit
1 medium to large piece of fruit (1 large orange, 1 medium pear or grapefruit, 2 large plums, 1/2 large apple)
1 cup 100 percent fruit juice, vegetable juice, or fruit-vegetable juice

For maximum nutrition, include plenty of leafy greens, and vary the colour of the produce you choose, making sure to include dark green and deep yellow, orange, purple, and red. (Also try to include legumes on the menu two to three times per week.)

Fresh is best, but frozen and even canned are good (as long as you avoid fruit packaged in sugary liquid). Think beyond apples, oranges, and bananas, too. Here are some other tasty and nutritious possibilities.

Some excellent fruit choices; - See more at: http://planbwellness.com/important-fruits-vegetables-pregnancy/#sthash.GVo41X8r.dpuf