You’ve probably heard you should stay away from raw fish, soft cheeses, deli meats, and runny eggs during pregnancy – but is this really the case? Does avoiding these foods keep you from getting the nutrition you really need for your health and your baby’s development? Today we’re taking a closer look at nutrition during pregnancy, and Lily Nichols has answers. Check it out!
Listen directly through our website player, or however you usually listen to podcasts.
What we talked about:
- Risk of getting sick vs. risk of not getting the nutrients you need
- What is the true risk of being infected by salmonella or listeria?
- Eggs or green vegetables: what has a higher chance of getting you sick?
- The micronutrient benefits in eggs
- Do you need those yolks to be runny?
- What you can do to lessen your risk of getting sick
- That sushi craving may be your body’s way of telling you something important
- Understanding raw food safety
- What about the high mercury levels?
- The benefits of eating fish during pregnancy
- Use your nose!
- The importance of fats
- Not all fats are created equal: saturated, unsaturated, monounsaturated, hydrogenated
- Omega-3 to Omega-6 ratios
- Having some protein with your fat
- Having some fat with your veggies
- Having some protein with your carbs
- Mindful eating experiment: how does it make your feel?
- A note on supplements
Helpful resources & links*:
- Real Food for Pregnancy, book by Lily Nichols
- Is it safe to eat sushi during pregnancy?, from the British National Health Service
- Micronutrient Needs During Pregnancy and Lactation, from Oregon State University
- Cheesemongers Over Fearmongers: Toward Data Driven Cheese Recommendations for Pregnant Women, from the Graduate Association for Food Studies
- 5 Reasons Why You Should Eat Fat During Pregnancy, from Modern Alternative Mama
- Seafoodwatch.org – a great resource on best fish choices, from the Monterey Bay Aquarium
- 5 reasons to embrace real food nutrition for pregnancy, from Real Food Dietitians
Related Birthful episodes:
- Eating to Grow a Healthy Baby Brain, with Theresa Nesbitt
- Weight Gain & Nutrition, with Genevieve Howland
- Updated: Evidence & Eating During Labor, with Rebecca Dekker
Sign-up to for a FREE copy of my
BIRTHFUL POSTPARTUM PLAN WORKSHEET
Courtesy of Lily Nichols
About Lily Nichols
Lily Nichols is a Registered Dietitian/Nutritionist, Certified Diabetes Educator, researcher, speaker, and author with a passion for evidence-based prenatal nutrition (especially prenatal nutrition). Drawing from the current scientific literature and the wisdom of traditional cultures, her work is known for being research-focused, thorough, and sensible.
Her bestselling book, Real Food for Gestational Diabetes (and online course of the same name), presents a revolutionary nutrient-dense, lower carb approach for managing gestational diabetes. It is also available in Spanish, Alimentos Reales para la Diabetes Gestacional.
Lily’s second book, Real Food for Pregnancy, outlines the problems with current prenatal nutrition guidelines and provides the evidence—930 citations and counting—that supports a real food diet to optimize maternal and fetal health. Read the first chapter for FREE here.
In her website, lilynicholsrdn.com, Lily explores a variety of topics related to real food, digestive health, and pregnancy nutrition.
Learn more at:
Title music: “Vibe Ace” by Kevin MacLeod, from the Free Music Archive / CC BY (edited for length).
Sponsorship music: “Air Hockey Saloon” by Chris Zabriskie, from the Free Music Archive / CC BY (edited for length).
![[Best of Birthful] Tips to Advocate for Yourself During Birth](https://birthful.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/CristenP-400x250.jpg)
![[Birth Stories] How This “Freckled Foodie” Prioritized Mental Health During Her Pregnancy](https://birthful.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Cameron-Rogers-400x250.jpeg)
