Thinking of Getting Pregnant? Part 4
Taking vitamins including Folic Acid? Check
Working Out? Check
Drinking lots of water? Check
What’s next?
The fourth and final pre-pregnancy step ( I could go on forever, but I’ll stop at 4 for now) I recommend is checking on your fiber intake. Pregnancy is going to alter your body on the outside and on the inside. Where do you think all your insides go that are all comfy and cozy with no baby? They get squished and rearranged. Not a lot of extra room for anything.
There are many reasons to have enough fiber in your diet pre-pregnancy. It can help reduce your risk of getting Gestational Diabetes, constipation, and hemorrhoids. Getting your body used to more fiber pre-pregnancy will be more comfortable for you. It is not fun to get “stopped up” and then try to pump in enough fiber to make you feel better. Most people do not regularly consume enough fiber. Therefore, your body will have to be eased into it. Again, this is easier if you aren’t already going through hormonal and physical changes with a pregnancy. Be sure to keep drinking plenty of water as you increase your fiber. You need the water to help the fiber through your body.
How much fiber do I need?
The USDA recommends people consume 14 grams of fiber for every 1,000 calories. That’s 28 grams of fiber per day, based on a 2,000-calorie diet. Most studies say that women, age 50 years and younger, need 25 grams of fiber per day. Pregnant women need even more than this (an additional 5-10g) to help speed up digestion and slowed-down intestines. So I would shoot for 25-30 grams and see where you land.
In reality, you probably don’t want to sit around and count your fiber intake all day long. What I did was take a fiber supplement, and snacked on high fiber foods as much as possible. It doesn’t have to be perfect every day, but the closer you can get the better.
Where do I find fiber in my diet?
Fruits, vegetables, grains, and legumes all have fiber in them. A day where you have whole grain cereal for breakfast, fruit in your morning snack, perhaps a salad at lunch, some veggies at snack time, and some whole grain pasta at dinner would have a lot of fiber. Add that to your supplement and you should be just fine.
Grab some fiber and keep things moving!