preparing for my baby

Healthy Eating
It is important to eat well. It isn’t necessarily about eating more but about eating the right things. You should eat a variety of different foods such as:

• plenty of fruit and vegetables
• lean meat or poultry, eggs, beans or pulses
• dairy food such as cheese, milk or yoghurt
• starchy food such as bread, pastas, rice, chapatis, breakfast cereal.

It is important that you wash fruit and vegetables well and that all meat, poultry and eggs (both the yolk and the white) are well cooked. Only drink UHT or pasteurised milk.

Avoid eating anything that contains:

• Pate
• Liver or liver products
• Unpasteurised milk or cheeses, you need to read the label or ask your midwife if unsure. Most soft cheeses are fine as they have been pasteurised.
• Raw shellfish as it can cause food poisoning which can be harmful to your baby.
• Shark, marlin and swordfish and limit the amount of tuna to no more than four tins a week as these types of fish contain high levels of mercury which can be harmful to your baby.

Do not take high dose multivitamin supplements or any supplement containing vitamin A as this can harm your baby.

You may find that you go off some foods and have cravings for other things instead. Cravings are quite normal.

Folic Acid is an important vitamin to take as it prevents birth defects. It is in some foods such as leafy green vegetables and is added to some foods e.g. certain breakfast cereals. These foods will have a mark on them saying ‘added folic acid’. Folic Acid is recommended three months before conception up to the 12th week of pregnancy. You can get it on prescription from your doctor or buy it in any chemist. If you are receiving certain benefits you are entitled to tokens for free milk from ten weeks of pregnancy. Ask your midwife for the form.