The best thing about the best foods you can eat, is it doesn't matter if you are pregnant, have diabetes, obesity, gout or any other ailment. The best foods are all the same.
That means that if we wanted a healthier world, everyone could just simply eat the same "diet" (lifestyle,...way of eating, not diet as in comes from a book).
So what is that?
Whole foods.
If you are pregnant and want to be as healthy as you can be, you would want to eat a diet rich in whole foods. What are whole foods? They are very simply foods that are not processed.
To see what foods would be the best, it really helps to look at some other things. For instance, prenatal vitamins. I think it's safe to say that in our society right now, taking prenatal vitamins while pregnant is something that any pregnant woman "should" do.
So what are prenatal vitamins? They are simply a multivitamin tailored for a pregnant woman.
So could you eat foods that have the same vitamins? Of course, and I think this would be a great and healthy place to start.
So what are some of these vitamins, and what could you eat to get them into your body?
Folate - You can get folate from a wide variety of foods. And as a great side-effect, these foods are so great for your overall health, so eating them on a regular basis for the rest of your life will do you wonders.
Foods with folate:
- Beans (kidney, lima, black, green etc)
- Lentils
- Peas
- Broccoli
- Asparagus
- Dark leafy greens (spinach, mustad greens, turnip greens etc)
- Citrus fruits
- Avocados
- Brussels sprout
- Sunflower seeds
- Beets
- Corn
- Celery
- Carrots
- Squash
Calcium - You absolutely do not need cow's milk for calcium. There are tons of sources to get calcium in our world.
Foods with calcium:
- Collard greens
- Kale
- Turnip greens
- Garlic
- Mustard greens
- Spinach
Hmm... looks like if you ate some spinach you would be getting 2 of the main vitamins in a prenatal vitamin. That's pretty cool, let's keep looking.
Iron - Iron is important to our health and life, so let's see if there are any foods high in iron
Foods with iron:
- Parsley
- Spinach
- Sun dried tomatoes
- Dried apricots
- Swiss chard
- Olives
- Nuts (cashews, peanuts, almonds, hazelnuts etc)
Vitamin C - We know that if we want to avoid scurvy we have to get our vitamin c right! So are there any foods with vitamin c that will also be healthy for you?
Let's see.
Foods with vitamin C:
- Apricots
- Bell peppers
- Blackberries
- Broccoli
- Cabbage
- Cauliflower
- Lemon
- Lime
- Kiwi
- Oranges
- Papaya
- Radishes
- Pineapple
- Tomatoes
- Watermelon
Zinc: Zinc is great for your immune system, so let's see if there are any good healthy foods high in zinc.
Foods with zinc:
- Palm hearts
- Lemongrass
- Green peas
- Pumpkin seeds
- Cashews
- Cacao powder (this is the raw version of chocolate. When people say "chocolate has antioxidants", they don't mean Snickers bar...they mean cacao which is unsweetened and unprocessed and delicious so you can add it to every single thing you want and it's awesome)
- Beans
- Mushrooms
Copper - Copper is essential for bone production and joint health.
Foods with copper:
- Seafood
- Kale
- Mushrooms
- Cashews
- Prunes
- Avocados
- Lentils
- Walnuts
- Lima beans
Vitamin B-6 - Vitamin B6 is responsible for our brain producing neurotransmitters and a ton of other great things for your health. Also, a lot of people are deficient in this vitamin because of terrible eating habits.
Foods with B-6:
- Tuna
- Turkey
- Salmon
- Potatoes
- Sweet potatoes
- Sunflower seeds
- Spinach
- Bananas
- Spinach
- Avocado
- Asparagus
I think you get the point here. To me it makes perfect sense to eat the foods that will supply your body with the same vitamins that come in a pill that you are supposed to take while pregnant.
Not only are these foods good for pregnancy, but for life. If you eat a diet very rich in these foods you would never have to worry about weight issues or much of any disease that so many people face in our society today.
I hope that helps a little.