The importance of Protein in Pregnancy!
Pregnancy is considered to be the most important phase in a woman’s life. It is the foundation to future generations literally. When a woman is pregnant there is a lot of advice provided on what to eat and how much to eat and what’s good for the mum and baby and what’s not. Pregnant Moms need to eat every 2-3 hours which means six meals. Three would be main meals and three are considered as snacks. Let’s start with the basic concept of making a food plate. These would be your main meals. Each of your main meals must contain all the five food groups – Carbohydrates, Vegetables/Fruits, Protein, Milk Protein and Fats. All of these nutrients work in tandem with each other and hence there is maximum nutrient absorption
In this article we will look at the importance of protein in a pregnant mum’s diet.
Protein is considered the building block of life. It helps in repair and growth of cells. At the time of conception the baby is tinier than a tiny dot and at birth is about 20 inches. This kind of phenomenal growth happens only in the womb. The baby starts life as a single cell and at birth is composed of trillions of cells and protein is responsible for this healthy cell division. On an average a pregnant mom needs to consume about 7-grams of protein per day.
One egg has about 6 grams of protein, a bowl of dal would have about 4 grams. A good trick to follow is that every time you eat make sure you have a protein food as well. Some of the foods which are a good source of protein are :
Non-vegetarian : Eggs, Chicken, Meat, Fish.
Vegetarian : Pulses, legumes, nuts, seeds, soy, sprouts.
Milk protein can be best got from dairy products. You do not need the full cream variety. Rather opt for skimmed or toned milk and milk products. This will provide you with calcium and protein which will work towards bone growth, teeth development, muscle growth and a healthy nervous system for your baby. You need approximately 500 ml of milk and milk products every day. Some healthy choices are skimmed plain milk, yoghurt, lassi and cottage cheese.