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When pregnant, women who were of a normal pre-pregnancy weight should consume 30 Calories/kilogram/day, based on their current pregnant weight. Women who were obese prior to becoming pregnant can reduce this number by up to 33%. These women should consume about 25 Calories/kilogram/day based on their current pregnant weight. Remember – these are simply guidelines. A detailed discussion with your healthcare provider is important to arrive at a caloric recommendation that is right for you.  Purchase a food scale to measure your food. This will help you to know what one serving is. By reading food labels, you can estimate the calories and macronutrient content contained in each portion of food. Monitor your caloric intake by keeping a food diary. A food diary can be kept by hand in a small notebook. Write down what you eat then look up the calories either on the internet or in a calorie reference guide. There are also smartphone apps available that make calorie tracking easy, such as www.myfitnesspal.com. Combine the food diary with weighing yourself on a regular basis to determine if you are gaining or losing weight. If you are not gaining enough weight, try increasing your daily calories by 200-500 calories per day. Continue to track your weight to see if this gets you back on the right track. Carbohydrates are one of three macronutrients we must consume. The other two are protein and fat. There are three main kinds of carbohydrates – sugars, starches, and fiber. Sugars are the simplest type of carbohydrate. Sugars include fructose, glucose, and sucrose, and some other molecules. Starches are also known as complex carbohydrates, and are made up of many sugars linked together in a chain. Fiber is a type of carbohydrate that humans cannot break down. When a person eats sugars or starches, they eventually are broken down and turned into glucose. Sugars (glucose is a sugar) are converted to glucose more quickly than complex carbohydrates. Fiber is not converted to glucose, as it is indigestible.  There is no magic carbohydrate number that can be used for all pregnant women. Instead, consider discussing this matter with your healthcare provider. Track your carbohydrates along with your blood glucose. If your blood glucose is consistently high, reducing your intake of sugars and complex carbohydrates and increasing your fiber intake may help. It is not necessary to limit fiber. Recommendations are to consume 20–30 grams (0.71–1.1 oz) of fiber per day.  Monitor your carbohydrate intake by keeping a food diary. Smartphone apps can make tracking carbohydrates and sugars in particular an easy task. Reduce the amount of sugar you consume. Even though you’ll likely be eating low-glycemic index starches, such as barley, oatmeal, and quinoa, you should still eat them in moderation. Starch is processed into glucose within our cells. A good rule of thumb is to consume about one cup of total starch per meal. Even though you will likely choose low-glycemic index fruits, you should only consume 1-3 servings of fruit per day. Consume just one serving of fruit at a time.  Avoid high-glycemic index fruits like watermelon. Avoid fruits canned in sugary syrup. Avoid fruit juices with added sugar. Pair fruit with other foods such as containing fats, such as nuts, peanut butter, or cheese to reduce the impact fruit has on blood sugar. Eating too much at once can spike blood sugar. It is best to eat 3 meals and 2-3 snacks throughout the day.  Carry along quick snacks like nuts or cut vegetables for snacking on the go. Eat a variety of high-nutrient foods that contain healthy fat and protein, such as avocados, coconut oil, lean meats, nuts, and seeds.
Consume a recommended number of calories per day. Track your carbohydrate intake. Eat moderate portions of starch. Eat moderate amounts of fruit. Balance your eating throughout the day.