Nourishing Yourself & Baby Optimally During Pregnancy
36 weeks of nourishing & growing our little babe (and feeling amazing!)
I promised you in my last blog about our conscious conception journey, that I would share the details about how I have nourished myself & baby throughout this pregnancy, and dive deeper into the details about what I did to really ensure my body was in optimal state for growing our babe.
Being a holistic integrative nutrition coach since 2013, what I put on my body & in my body is something I take super seriously. Its what I preach & teach, and its why I have revolved my life’s work around The Healthstyle Emporium, my online holistic health program inspiring you to be the happiest healthiest & most inspired version of yourself.
In saying that, I also believe in the 80:20 rule - eat well 80% of the time & enjoy life and the yummy food that comes with it the other 20% of the time. I am not about extreme restrictions, diets, or deprivation & Im a huge foodie - one of my loves for life is exploring new foods, restaurants & cultures. HOWEVER, I am a huge huge huge advocate for nourishing your body & fuelling it to prevent illness, sickness & disease.
There are definitely items of foods, ingredients and chemicals that are a big hell no to coming anywhere near my body (eg: particular toxins in products, everyday home items like plastics, recreational drugs & things like microwaves are a big no in my world) & my hope for this blog is not to overwhelm you, or make you feel like you’ve been doing life incorrectly, but more so to empower you to become knowledgable on food that can fuel you, rather than flaw you (and baby) & of course inspire you to start taking small baby steps in the right direction. We all start somewhere.
Whether you are planning, expecting, nursing or just generally want to learn more about how to nourish yourself in a way that energises you & encourages optimal health & longevity, you will love this blog.
Maternal nutrition plays a critical role in fetal growth and development. This is critically important.
You’ve maybe heard me use this analogy previously but when you are pregnant, you are literally 3D printing your little baby human. You are in charge of the quality of nutrition and supplementation going into your body, to build your baby.
This not only means what you put in and on your body is making up the trillions of cells, the bones, eyes, brain, skin, organs, gut lining & central nervous system (just to name a few), but the quality of your babies health is conditioned by your food choices & has everything to do with the toxins you’re exposed to, your environment, how you manage stress, how you breathe, how you move your body, to even your thoughts and generally how you take care of yourself.
The way you nourish yourself during pregnancy quite literally shapes your baby’s health, and not just in their early life, but for the rest of their life.
What you’ll read in this blog is powerful & if you are in a pre-pregnancy stage, this is even more powerful for you, because what you do now will majorly impact your pregnancy journey & health. So the following is equally as important if you’re wanting to conceive. There’s no wrong time to embrace a real food & healthy lifestyle approach to optimize your health; it simply becomes exponentially more important when you’re creating and growing a new life.
It’s no secret that I began my conscious conception journey & intentional nourishment well before we fell pregnant, over a year before. I was already very “health conscious”, most would say I invest in my health more than the average person (ie - very passionate about having a toxic free home, investing in high quality nutritional support, organic food and investing in holistic health care like an acupuncturist, chiropractor, regular naturopathy care etc). You can read more about this here in this blog where I share how when we decided we wanted to start a family, I gave myself a year to really prepare my body.
I have had an incredible pregnancy & I put most of it down to the work I did the year beforehand. It has been non-eventful, low risk, morning sickness / spew free & I have seriously felt amazing throughout the entire journey.
Don’t get me wrong, there are a lot of things in pregnancy that are out of your control (your genetics, your age, your family history of disease, just to name a few). But, the things that are within your control—your diet, exercise, sleep habits, the way you handle stress, your exposure to toxins, and more—can have significant effects on your pregnancy and may leave a permanent imprint on your baby’s health.
Week 6 - 9 I napped & grazed a lot because otherwise I felt off, but that was it… after week 9 I was back to my normal self emotionally & physically - and I have been & felt like the normal Chani since.
Though most of us view our genetics as solid, researchers have found that genes can be turned on or off by certain exposures in utero, such as levels of nutrients, a mother’s blood sugar and insulin levels, exercise habits, stress hormones, toxins, and much more. That means that even if you think you have “bad genes,” you have the ability to minimize the impact of these on your baby with optimal nutrition and informed lifestyle choices.
I also chose my level of care to be completely natural and holistic the entire way through. I never engaged with a GP, OBGYN or hospital throughout my entire pregnancy (and of course no offence to the medical field, they do help and provide such incredible critical care in so many amazing ways for those who need it). The moment I found out I was pregnant, instead of the normal doctor appointment , blood test & 6 week scan thing, I just called my naturopath up, shared the amazing news and got straight to business - I wanted to know exactly what I needed to do to start growing this baby in the most optimal way and keeping myself as healthy as possible.
Having worked in the medical system for 6 years I just knew all along I was never going to need or want this pregnancy to be treated like a medical event. Pregnancy is, and has been for hundreds of thousands of years, a naturally occurring event & that was exactly my plan all along on how to treat our pregnancy. My belief is that this is nature doing its thing & we have the innate ability and knowing within us to do this without any medical intervention, unnecessary tests & scans, and without stress. A low risk pregnancy truely just needs one thing only - nourishment, trust & surrender. Some may call that a wild pregnancy, but to me thats what felt safe and good for me & our baby, and I let go of all control, the need to “know” and trusted my body and baby to do what it already knew to do best.
In saying this, please don’t take my approach as advice, I’m just sharing my journey. If you feel safer seeing a GP, or an OBGYN, to birth in a hospital or to have scans, please by all means mamma, you do you! Take what you love from this blog & leave what you don’t. There is no right or wrong way to bring life into this world - the right way is just the way that makes you feel the most supported & empowered.
My pregnancy and birth team consist of:
My naturopath who is also an iridologist and ayuverdic practitioner (I speak with her monthly)
My chiropractor (I get adjusted weekly, and twice weekly from 30 weeks onwards)
My private midwife who also doubles up as a lactation consultant (score!!)
My acupuncturist (linking this with chiro is MAGIC in pregnancy by the way, my biggest tip - start before you fall pregnant!)
My doula (who I only engaged with at week 33 but highly recommend having one, and earlier if you want too)
My hypnobirthing instructor (we did a in person 5 week course with her from week 30 - HIGHLY recommend to do this with your birthing partner - she has probably been the most empowering person we have learnt from & spoken to this entire journey. I wish I did it earlier, I would have done it from week 20 if I knew how next level amazing it would be.)
Thats it! The A team.
There’s something just so miraculous about pregnancy. The fact that we have the power to literally grow a new human is still mind-boggling to me & the fact that we get to turn food into a baby is even more incredible …
When it comes to your pregnancy, you have the power to lower your chances of developing gestational diabetes, preeclampsia, delivering prematurely, becoming anemic, and gaining too much or too little weight during your pregnancy, all by the way you live your life. How empowering is that?
Ask any pregnant woman and they’ll tell you the most important thing to them is to have a healthy baby and an easy pregnancy, so if you’re planning on starting a family soon, or falling pregnant again, NOW is the time to do everything in your power to have everything work out in your favor.
Most women turn to their doctors for advice when they fall pregnant, but aren’t aware that the majority of them receive very little education on the matter (more on the lack of accredited medical schools dedicating time to nutrition teachings here). If you were told to “just take a prenatal vitamin and avoid alcohol”, let me tell you: You can do more—a lot more—to stay healthy during pregnancy & give your baby the best chance at living a healthy life in utero, and out.
Taking a whole-food approach…
What is a wholefood diet / lifetyle?
Eating food as close to its source as possible and grown or raised in conditions that maximize nutrient density (high quality soil for example).
Eating food that is in its natural form, not wrapped in plastic, packaging, cans or with an ingredient label with additional additives
Fresh fruit & vegetables that are in-season, from your land and not imported, eaten soon after harvest and prefferably at the peak of ripeness, and grown without the use of pesticides ( these are more nutritious than canned or frozen versions)
Minimally processed, so it appears just like you would find it in nature.
Doesn’t have a label (like fresh vegetables or meat), but when it does, it is made with simple ingredients and no additives. When buying packaged foods, always check the ingredients. If it reads like a list of chemicals, it isn’t whole or real food.
In a nutshell, a well-balanced wholefood & real food diet for pregnancy includes lots of vegetables, fruit, meat, poultry, fish and seafood, nuts, seeds, legumes and plenty of healthy fats. Most women benefit from also including dairy products, but they are not required. And, if they agree with your body, your real food diet may also include whole grains.
Things I ate a lot of were:
Ghee. Ghee on EVERYTHING. Cooked with everything, I pretty much bought a 2kg tub every few weeks. I like this brand. If you dont like Ghee you can purchase a high quality cold pressed organic olive oil and use that instead.
Lots of eggs (2-4 eggs per day) for protein, choline, DHA & iodine (ps. the odds that an egg contains Salmonella are estimated to be between 1 in 12,000 to 1 in 30,000, despite what traditional “foods to avoid in pregnancy” lists would say. Also the odds are 7-fold lower if you eats eggs from an organic farm or from chickens raised on pasture)
Avocado like it was going out of fashion
Salmon and other fatty fish like snapper weekly
Vegan Essential Fatty Acid Omegas x 4 the recommended daily dosage (more on supplementation below & what I use)
Sunflower Lethecin, I buy this brand and sprinkle it on everything. It also tastes yummy on popcorn :) try to aim for 450mg per day on the days you don’t eat eggs
Dark leafy greens every day for my (both of our) liver… things like silverbeet is HIGHLY nutritious. We made lots of veggie broths so we could just pour a bowl up for lunch or leftover dinners. Think: beet, collard, dandelion, mustard, spinach, kale, chard, turnip greens, spinach, watercress, bok choy, arugula, etc.
7-10 serves of non starchy vegetables per day (think lots of raw veggie wraps with capsicum, cucumber, tomatoes, lettuce, spinach etc … I use a home made aoili or mayonaise and add some cheese - so yum). Make a habit of eating salad with your dinner every night. This is a great source of fibre especially because your digestion will slow down. Think:
Artichoke
Asparagus
Bell pepper
Broccoli
Brussels sprouts
Cabbage
Cauliflower
Celery
Cucumber
Eggplant
Garlic
Tomato
Green beans
Leek
Lettuce: endive, escarole, iceberg, romaine, “baby” greens, etc.
Mushroom
Onion (all types)
Radish
Squash
Zucchini
Turnip
Beet
Carrot
Parsnip
Snap peas, snow peas
My morning smoothies have frozen banana, dates, nut milk, a JP+ vegan chocolate complete protein (more on this product below under supplementation) & I add collagen to it to help with babies skin, bone, tendons & ligament development (and also amazing to help with your own skin, especially stretch-marks for you mamma). I like this brand
Heaps of fruit (especially berries and slightly under-ripe bananas), nuts, seeds (especially chia seeds), and legumes. These foods are rich in prebiotic fiber, which serves as food for the probiotics in your gut
Dates (and 6 per day from week 36 onwards to help with labour & birth)
I ate a high alkaline diet throughout to eradicate any acidity in my body
Celtic sea salt on EVERYTHING to keep your electrolytes up. Use a high quality one thats derived from your land if possible
Fermented foods to introduce probiotics, such as yogurt, kefir, sauerkraut, kimchi, kombucha, and naturally- fermented “pickled” vegetables
Bone broth, the gelatin these foods contain helps maintain a healthy gut lining and improves your resilience to foodborne pathogens
TIP: Avoid the grocery stores (especially the isles where everything in packaged, in boxes and full of additives - rule of thumb is stick to the outside where all the fresh produce is) and go to famers markets instead. Theres something powerful about knowing your farmer. Choose meat, poultry, dairy, and eggs from organic and pasture-raised sources to avoid exposure to antibiotic residues and pathogens.
These are just some of my absolute musts. I was vegetarian before falling pregnant but I just listened to my body and what it was craving so adding some extra animal products that were strictly organic and high quality was something extra I introduced, so throughout my pregnancy I was more pescatarian but in my third trimester my body was really craving red meat (which I haven’t eaten in over 10 years, and dont even like) from my low Iron, so I introduced a small amount in my last few weeks of pregnancy. Crazy how your body intuitively knows what it needs, this is a sign your body is smarter than you think & knows what you and baby need. I’m not sure if I will continue to eat red meat after baby is born... In a normal world I hate the smell and taste of it so we will see!
I put a high emphasis on my micronutrient intake, eating high quality carbohydrates, fats and proteins only & a big focus on my fluid intake daily. The Bottom Line: Vegetables are an important source of vitamins, minerals, fiber, and antioxidants. Eat them liberally. Also when you’re pregnant, your fluid needs go up. Your baby is literally swimming in amniotic fluid inside your uterus and your blood volume increases significantly starting in the first trimester. Water is essential for maintaining good circulation, which brings nutrients to your baby and removes waste products. Your body requires more fluids while pregnant; aim for 100 oz / 3 Liters per day.
Foods to avoid that really don’t build a healthy baby…
Here are some foods that don’t offer optimal nutrition for you and your baby, or may increase your chances of certain pregnancy complications. At the end of the day, these foods/ingredients are simply not essential to your health, do not provide a rich source of nutrients to support your baby’s development, and at a certain amount of intake, could be harmful.
The choice to limit / strictly avoid the following foods is up to you. I’ll just provide you with the information, so you can make an informed decision.
Limit your intake of sugar, its linked to suppressed immune function and imbalanced gut bacteria.
Think junk food, take away, deep fried anything, cookies, lollies, ice cream, frozen yogurt, cake, pastries, doughnuts, pie, popsicles, jam/jelly, etc.
Ingredients to look out for: white sugar, brown sugar, raw sugar, evaporated cane juice, molasses, honey, agave nectar, syrups (like corn syrup, maple syrup, or brown rice syrup), date sugar, coconut sugar, maltodextrin, sucrose, dextrose, fructose, maltose, etc. (if an ingredient ends in “-ose,” it’s a type of sugar).
soda, punch, lemonade, fruit juice (even 100%, fresh- squeezed juice), sweet tea, flavored milk, aguas frescas, etc.
sauces made with a lot of sugar: ketchup, BBQ sauce, teriyaki sauce, honey mustard, etc.
(In saying this, I’ll be surprised to meet anyone who has abstained entirely from sugar while pregnant. I certainly wont claim I did! There’s the perfect world, then there’s reality. So, when you do have a little sweet treat, remember to keep your portions small. Funny story…our babes nick name is Hot Chippie because in that week 6 - 9 window all I wanted to eat was hot chips & Matt made a joke he was worried we’d birth one big hot chippie the way I was going. I just limited my intake and still kept up all the good things with the items above and supplements below. )Artificial Sweeteners to Avoid (stevia is a great replacement):
Aspartame
Sucralose
Saccharin
Acesulfame potassium
Neotame
Alcohol. It doesn’t matter what anyone says no amount of alcohol is ok while pregnant
Caffeine
Refined carbs
anything made from white flour or “enriched” flour (bread, bagels, pizza, pasta, noodles, crackers, pretzels, chips, etc.)
Breakfast cereal (even the ones with whole grains & no added sugar)
“Instant” products, like instant rice (or quick-cooking rice), instant noodles, instant potatoes, and instant oatmeal (quick oats)
White rice
Vegetable oils
canola (rapeseed), soy, corn, safflower, and cottonseed
Man Made Trans Fats (known to contribute to adverse pregnancy outcomes)
eg: margarine, fried foods, fast food, doughnuts, cakes, store-bought frosting, cookies, and pastries
Soy
If you choose to consume soy during pregnancy, opt for fermented soy products, like soy sauce, miso, natto, and tempeh made from organically grown soybeans and include them in your diet occasionally
Lastly, pharmaceuticals & over the counter drugs even if stated to be safe during pregnancy.
All my knowledge and information above is collated from a mixture of my professional background & studies, my own research, the guidance of my holistic health care team and some amazing books I read before & during pregnancy. If you’re looking for a great book to read I recommend “Real Food for Pregnancy: The Science & Wisdom of optimal prenatal nutrition by Lily Nichols”.
Supplementation Support
I get so many DM’s asking exactly what supplements I have been taking throughout my pregnancy. These are not designed to supplement or replace anything. These are designed to compliment your high quality diet with my tips above. So here they are.
Juice Plus - Fruit, Vegetable & Berry Blend
Obviously, having been a partner of JP+ now for over 6 years I am a huge advocate for this product. It’s the backbone to my business and how I help my clients to nourish their bodies, by bridging the gap between what they should be eating and what they actually are eating.
I am obsessed with the quality control, the research behind it, how it has supported my health and my clients health and how its 100% safe for planning, expecting & nursing mothers. I’m proud to be a partner & have my name linked to this company!
No warning labels, no recall in over 25 years since the product was established, over 35 peer reviewed medical journals and literature written on them plus, no additives to the product - just whole food nutrition at its finest.
I have made an entire guide here on my instagram with information about them.
Its pretty simple - just fruits, vegetables & berries (over 33 types) picked at the peak of ripeness, dehydrated at a low heat so the enzymes stay intact, powdered down and encapsulated into a vegan tapioca capsule. No added anything - just 33 varieties of high quality, nutrient dense wholefoods straight down the hatch daily. JP+ have their own farms & all is ethically sourced.
If you would like more information just send me a message on IG here. I gift all my JP+ customers my online holistic program, The HSE, for free for a year. An extra added bonus for you to learn more about holistic health and lifestyle habits to implement.
If you have children between the ages of 4-18, they also get these for free or the gummy version for every order you make.
Juice Plus - Vegan Omega Blend
There are over ten thousand medical journal studies that show that omega fatty acids have helped just about every organ in the body stay healthier, especially your brain, eyes, and heart (and baby’s too!). Studies have shown that people who have the highest blood levels of omegas live healthier, happier, and longer lives than those with the lowest.
Juice Plus+ Omega Blend is a plant-based combination of the omega-3, 5, 6, 7, and 9 fatty acids, made from fruits, algae, and seed oils. The omega-3 fatty acids in Juice Plus+ Omega Blend are sourced from a pure, sustainable and vegan source - algae - while the other fatty acids are derived from cold pressing seeds and berries. Even the capsule shell is vegan.
While most omega products provide only omega-3, Juice Plus+ Omega Blend provides a base of other plant extracts containing various naturally occurring omega fatty acids. The benefits of omega-5 and 7 range from digestive to skin health. Omega-6 and 9 have long been recognized for qualities in relation to cardiovascular health and anti-inflammation.
If you would like more information just send me a message on IG. Like with the fruit, veggie & berry blend, I gift all my JP+ customers my online holistic program, The HSE, for free for a year (or however long you are on them for after a year).
Juice Plus Vegan Complete Protein Powder
Im so obsessed with these, they are not only amazing nutritional support but so yummy! You maybe see me make my morning smoothie on my IG stories… this is what I’m using! They come in vanilla and chocolate.
Complete by Juice Plus+ is a natural whole food based shake mix that provides a delicious, healthy burst of balanced nutrition in every serving. I love the quality of macronutrients in them because I prefer my carbs, fats and proteins to be close to nature, low processed sources and one serving of Complete contains roughly half as much sugar as an apple.
All of the ingredients are identity preserved non-GMO. This means that their non-genetic identity has been preserved from the seed all the way through to the finished product.
These are a high fiber food: its 8 grams of fiber per serving constitute roughly a third of your recommended daily intake.
It is plant based and gluten free (tested and validated by NSF to attest that it is gluten-free).
They are also classified as low glycemic because they comfortably fall within the low range of the Glycemic Index (55 or less). This means that Complete won’t cause a spike in insulin levels, which create a cascade of negative events in your body. Low glycemic foods allow the body to maintain a more steady level of insulin for a longer period of time, which is more healthful for the body.
less than 1 gram of fat
20 grams of carbohydrates
13 grams of protein
140 calories
If you would like more information just send me a message on IG. Like with the fruit, veggie, berry & omega blend, I gift all my JP+ customers my online holistic program, The HSE, for free for a year (or however long you are on them for after a year).
Extra Immune Boosting Supplements
I love the packaging from Vitable, its biodegradable and comes in individual daily packs with your name & dosage on the bundle you make for yourself. So handy for travelling or if you’re on the go.
Extra’s I add to support my immune system are are :
Zinc
Vitamin C
I get these supplements from Vitable. You can take a quick quiz on their website here to see what would be best for you or you can bundle up what you want instead.DISCOUNT CODE: CHANI35 - gives you 35% OFF 1st month 🥳 here’s why I take them…
💊Zinc
Antioxidant/Reduce free radicals formed in the body
Maintain/support collagen formation & health
Maintain/support general health and wellbeing
Maintain/support nail health/strength/thickness
Maintain/support healthy immune system function
Maintain/support immune system to fight illness
Helps enhance/promote skin health
Maintain/support skin health
Enhance/improve/promote skin repair/healing
💊Vitamin C Plus
Maintain/support joint cartilage health
Maintain/support healthy liver function
Maintain/support healthy immune system function
Maintain/support brain function
Maintain/support wound healing
Naturopath Grade Supplements
The following supplements I take are from the brand Metagenix (incredibly high quality) and you can only purchase / have prescribed by a qualified practitioner, like a naturopath. I recommend investing in a naturopath who specialises in fertility and pregnancy health. The advice you will get is priceless and you will be able to purchase the metagenix brand products rather than your low quality shelf store bought products (and yep I have taken all of this since I was 5 weeks pregnant).
I did not take a traditional store bought / over the counter prenatal because their bioavailability is pretty much rubbish due to the high level of synthetics in them that your liver cant recognise and cannot absorb / break down :) instead the below is what I used instead.
Please consult your own practitioner for advice on what you should take, this is just my individualised care and not advice on what to also take yourself.
Metacholine
Digestive Enzymes
Iron
Super Mushroom complex
CalmX
Ultraflora Probiotic Specialised for Mother and Baby
Vitamin D3 Liquid
Extras:My naturopath made me natural herbal tonics throughout my journey, pre-pregnancy, during pregnancy & for post partum to take twice daily. They’re individualised herbs for me & my composition, so this is something your naturopath will create for you according to whats going on for you & your specific situation, but some of the things my herbs supported me with daily are:
Fertility
Hormones
Iron support
Adrenal support
Immune support
Energy
Respiratory
Liver support
Anti fungal
Anti inflammatory
Birth & labour
Recovery
Milk supply
Summary
Don’t forget also that a nutrient dense diet during and after birth also means nutrient dense breast milk.
There are so many more things I could write about like toxins, parabens, plastics, chemicals in the home, phthalates, BPA’s, Pesticides, PFC’s (chemicals in things like non stick pans and utensils), Fluroide, Aluminium, Mercury and other harmful toxins in the home but I thought I would start with nutrition, and I could write another blog on these items another time with tips on how to eliminate them bit by bit.
Although food and exercise paired with reduced stress & mindfulness are so important for a healthy pregnancy, they aren’t a cure-all. You can eat all organic foods and take the best prenatal vitamins money can buy, but if you’re cooking your food in non-stick pans and using perfume everyday, you’re missing an important piece of the puzzle.
So I do promise to blog on this soon too.
The important thing to do is to take one thing at a time to focus on.
Gradually clean up your pantry and fridge items with what I have shared above, get picky about the quality of food you buy, think about the personal care products you rub on your skin, and know that with each of these little tweaks, you’re protecting your baby.
One of my favourite apps is called “chemical maze”. I think its $12 to purchase and you can put any ingredient on the back of food and product labels into the app and it will tell you if its safe or harmful to consume / put on your body / have in your home.
You can’t completely eliminate exposure to harmful ingredients, but you can lessen them, and that’s the most important point to focus on.
These practices are not just important during pregnancy. Babies and young children are still highly vulnerable to chemicals and additives in foods, so cleaning up your household now will protect your family for years to come.
I hope this has inspired you to take care of your baby as you grow that beautiful little miracle inside of you, if you are expecting or planning a family, I wish you all the very best on your journey & truely wish you a beautiful, smooth pregnancy like I have had the pleasure of having too.
All my love,
Chani x