Here is our best foods to eat during pregnancy if you live in Nigeria or love Nigerian. food. Pregnancy is a beautiful time of care, control and self discipline. Considering that another little human being is depending on you for supplies. Depending on you to make it to this world. There are foods to eat during pregnancy. Not every food or consumable is safe for a pregnant woman.
There are so many foods sold at the markets, not all are great for a pregnant woman. During pregnancy, a woman craves or begins to dislike some foods. Some food cravings during pregnancy are not healthy and not good for the unborn child. Some foods a pregnant woman cannot stand may be the best for her and her growing baby.
Aside processed foods and alcohol, every other food is ok for the pregnant woman. However, carbohydrates should not top the list. On top of the list of foods to eat during pregnancy should be protein and vitamins. Foods rich in proteins and vitamins should come first on your budget list. After that others can follow and if you can, I ‘ll advise that carbohydrates come last on the list of foods to eat.
Why? Carbohydrates give us energy, we all need a little bit of carbs for energy not too much as too much of starchy foods can increase baby’s size while still in the womb. It’s best for baby to be born with normal birth weight and then to grow big outside the womb after birth.
Below is a list of the best food to eat during pregnancy…
LIST OF FOODS TO EAT DURING PREGNANCY:
These are foods to eat during pregnancy…
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Proteins:
For proteins, eat Nigerian foods like boiled eggs, fish, beans porridge, eat boiled beans, chicken and meats in your stews and soups. For all my five pregnancies, I made sure that I ate foods rich in proteins. I ate homemade foods cooked the way I wanted. During pregnancy, I remember adding raw eggs to my pap (Ogi, akamu) because for some reason unknown to me. For every pregnancy that I carried, I was anaemic.
This made me eat proteins a lot. I can’t remember any first antenatal I attended and got good results. My first antenatal results always showed that I needed more blood. My PCV never reached even 30% until after all the blood tonics, supplements and green juices. After consuming my proteins in the form of eggs, chicken, snails, fish, shrimp, crayfish, lobsters and other sea foods. Plus the recommended medications, my PCV increase like magic so, I know firsthand what proteins can do to any woman during pregnancy.
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Eat Vitamins during pregnancy:
Vitamins are very important and we get them to our system and to the unborn babies by eating vegetables and fruits. Different green leafy vegetables like ugu (Fluted pumpkin), green amaranth, water leaf, spinach, tomatoes, peppers, garden eggs, water melons and others are great for vitamins. Sat fruits too daily during pregnancy. You must have a balanced diet at least once every day during pregnancy.
The baby needs the vitamins in oranges, tangerine, pawpaw, berries, apples, pear, avocado, onion, garlic, turmeric, spring onion, cabbage, carrots, green beans, green peas and other fruits and vegetables that we may not remember now.
You get these vitamins when you eat cooked foods like Nigerian vegetable soups, Nigerian tomato stews, vegetable sauces, fruit salad, vegetable salad and other foods rich in vegetables and even fruits. Eat bananas too, they are high in potassium and that’s good for your pregnancy. Don’t forget to eat pineapples during pregnancy if you are like me. For pineapples. I eat them from early pregnancy but some women feel discomforts when they consume pineapples during early pregnancy.
I’ll advise that you leave pineapples out if you are not sure, or you can eat them at late pregnancy because research has shown that some pregnant women have used pineapples to induce labour naturally. Enjoy fruit salads with a combination of different fruits but do not eat too much of fruits at a time.
Why? too much vitamin can cause some discomforts or a runny stomach and that’s not good for your pregnancy. When you eat fruits and vegetables, take care not to eat too much at a time. Eat these foods in moderation.
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Drinking Water is good during all stages of pregnancy:
Drink lots of clean potable water to keep your pregnancy and yourself hydrated and nourished. Drinking water helps the baby, helps flush the system and flush out toxins from the system. Don’t leave your body thirsty, Carry water with you at all times and drink. Pregnant women sometimes urinate a lot especially during the third trimester of pregnancy. You need water to replace the lost content. Aside drinking your
own clean water, we also get water in our system by eating fruits rich in water, like cucumbers and watermelons. These are rich in water and can help keep hydrated and nourished. -
Foods rich in good fats and Oil are also great to eat during pregnancy:
They do not make the baby grow big. It’s carbohydrates that increase your baby’s weight in the womb or sometimes hormones. Foods rich in natural Fats and Oils, like avocado, fish and even chicken are the best. Avoid trans fats. Avoid vegetable oils that are made by bleaching palm oil. Eat foods rich in oils like groundnuts (peanuts), catfish, salmon, croaker, sardines, mackerel, eat soya beans. Eat fish pepper soup, ,make fish stews and enjoy. Chicken soup, chicken pepper soup is good too.
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FIBER is one thing to consume daily during pregnancy:
No pregnant woman wants to feel bloated or unable to have a bowel movement. It’s a very uncomfortable feeling to be unable to go to toilet freely. It’s not even healthy too. What really helps me is intentionally eating fiber in the form of tiger nuts, coconuts and other edible nuts. Some Nigerian foods we enjoy during pregnancy, like papa and akara, pap and moi moi, pounded yam with white soup.
These foods contain no fiber. They are so smooth and enjoyable but do not help with going to toilet. Even bread and beverage that’s loved by Nigerians for quick breakfast. Pregnant Women are encouraged during hospital visits to eat bread and beverage (Nigerian tea).
This breakfast food has no fiber at all unless we eat whole wheat bread. Before or after enjoying these foods, take some fiber into the system to help put some pressure in the anus when you use the toilet. Eat vegetable stew and soups for fiber. When you eat oranges, eat everything except the skin. Eat pineapples with the core. The pineapple core is a great form of fiber too.
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Do not completely leave out carbohydrates during pregnancy:
Eat carbs in moderation to avoid gaining too much weight during pregnancy. Eat carbohydrates in moderation to also help control the unborn baby’s weight till birth. You don’t pray to push out a very big baby. Eat foods rich in carbs because you need energy daily. Foods like bread, rice, beans, swallow fufu and soups, eba, amala, semo, plantain, yam, cassava, garri. These foods will provide all the energy needed during pregnancy and beyond. You don’t have to eat carbs for breakfast, lunch and dinner but enjoying them at least once a day is beautiful.
We wish you a safe delivery as you eat healthy Nigerian food during this beautiful pregnancy. Eat fried rice,
Jollof Rice, egusi soup, ogbono soup, Sesame seed soup, Rice and stew, bread and egg sauce, beans and plantain and all other nutritious Nigerian foods except foods cooked with alcohol and kanwu (limestone).
check out our post on HOW TO GET PREGNANT. AND our FOUR NIGERIAN FOODS TO AVOID DURING PREGNANCY…