 Nutrition During Pregnancy-Beginnings Guides 2011 Update What is known? “What should I eat when I’m pregnant?” is a vastly complex
and much debated question. Nutrition during pregnancy affects outcomes for both
mother and infant. What a mother
eats may affect her child’s health as an adult. Findings from
studies are inconsistent and difficult to synthesize. On one hand, it is possible to find a reason to avoid
almost any food. On the other
hand, normal pregnancy is a healthy condition, and obsessing over nutrition is
generally unnecessary. There is consensus on guidelines. What is new?
Best Resource:
My Pyramid for Moms from the US Department of
Agriculture is a Web-based interactive
resource for health educators and consumers. It converts the current Dietary Guidelines for Americans and
the Dietary Reference Intakes from the National Academy of Sciences into practical
guidance for individual mothers based on pre-pregnancy weight, height, age and
activity level. It is based on
food groups and uses lots of terms and measures that are unfamiliar to many;
and few disadvantaged parents have computers; so direct assistance may be
required to access and personalize the information and help mothers and
families apply it their real life circumstances.
Notes
A WorldCat search on Nutrition and Pregnancy turned up well
over 1000 article published 2010 to date.
I did not read them all. I focused on reviews in major journals. I also
reviewed guidelines from ACOG – American Congress of Obstetrician and
Gynecologists and the American Dietetic Association. Both endorse My Pyramid
for Moms. I see no dramatic
changes since 2007. Now reviewing the details.
Recommended Reading
Abu-Saad, K &
Fraser, D. (2010). Maternal Nutrition and Birth Outcomes. Epidemiological Reviews 32: 5-25.
Barger, MK. (2010) Maternal Nutrition and Perinatal
Outcomes. Journal of Midwifery and
Women’s Health 55: 502-511.
Widen, E & Siega-Riz, AM. (2010). Prenatal Nutrition: A
Practical Guide for Assessment and Counseling. Journal of Midwifery and Women’s Health 55: 540-549.
Have you used
MyPyramid for Moms? Please
share your experience; post a comment. Thanks ahead ss
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CategoriesBeginnings GuidesBreastfeeding Health Education Health Literacy Parenting Education Prenatal Education |
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