You may have been living on Diet Coke and Starbucks Lattes in the past, but now your baby is depending on you to take in key vitamins and minerals to prevent birth defects, ensure proper brain development, and to just make sure that your little one gets everything he or she needs to be a healthy, happy baby! Not getting enough of certain minerals can also wreak havoc on your own good looks and raise your potential for stretch marks, lifeless hair, and blemished skin. Yikes! To make this process a little less daunting, I’ve made a list of key vitamins and minerals, how much you need while pregnant, and where you can get them. Either add this list to your grocery list or check your multi-vitamin to make sure that you are getting everything you both need.
Vitamins and Minerals For Hot Mamas
Folic Acid- 600 mcgs/daily
Fortified breakfast cereals
Lentils
Pinto beans
Asparagus spinach
Wheat germ
Orange Juice
Iron- 30mgs./daily
Fortified breakfast cereals
Lean red meat
Dark meat of poultry
1 egg
Boiled soybeans (edamame)
Zinc- 25mgs/daily
Lean red meat
Whole grains
Legumes
Nuts
Sunflower seeds
Pumpkin seeds
Calcium- 1,000-1,300 mgs/daily
Nonfat or low fat dairy products
Tofu
Almonds
Broccoli
Vitamin C – 500mgs/daily
Red peppers
Green peppers
Strawberries
Oranges
Mango
Tomato
Broccoli
Baked potato with skin
Vitamin A- try to get from food, supplements can be toxic, high doses can cause birth defects
Sweet potato with skin
Carrots
Collard greens
Dark green lettuce
Egg with yolk
Fortified cereal such as cheerios
