Eat well for the next generation
Eat well for the next generation
SOME SIMPLE DOS AND DONTS FOR MOTHERS-IN-WAITING
• Even several glasses of milk won’t meet your needs from the seventh month of pregnancy (until you stop breastfeeding): Take two tablets of Shelcal, Sandocal, Effcal, Calcimax Forte or Ocium daily.
IRON: Supplements (Dumasule, Autrin, and Ferium) are also a must.
• FOLIC ACID: deficit may cause birth defects. Take daily supplements (Folimax, Folinal, and Rinifol) from a month before you plan to conceive.
• Vitamin A: recommended: 3,000-6,000 IU a day) is a tricky one -both deficiency and overdose (10,000 IU upwards) can cause harm. So don’t supplement without the doctor’s say-so.
• Don’t cut all FAT for fear of post-pregnancy weight gain. It’s normal to put on 9-13kg - it means your baby is growing as he should. The good fats your baby needs come from your diet, so eat fish and Soya.
• No need to eat for two. In the first trimester, keep your norÂmal. In the second and third, you can go up 10 percent (just 145 Calories or so). But its quality, rather than quantity, that counts.
• Among the ills of SMOKING, sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) is more likely in babies whose moms lit up while pregnant. Giving up is the best gift to give your child - but even cutting down helps.
• We don’t yet know of a safe level of ALCOHOL in pregnancy. Say ‘no’.