Pregnancy Diet During Winters: What You Need To Know

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Being pregnant is an amazing feeling, isn’t it?

At first, you may feel a lot of discomfort or nausea, but as you settle in your second trimester, you slowly start getting your tastes and appetite back. In fact, as your pregnancy term progresses, you also start to feel cravings for different kinds of food!

You must have heard that in pregnancy, you eat for two, but that isn’t literally so. It only means that your body needs more energy and quality calories to develop that tiny being inside of you and to prepare your body for childbirth and lactation. But there are a lot of other factors that contribute to your healthy eating. And one of them is the climate during pregnancy.

It is believed that a winter pregnancy is better than a summer one; this is because the cool climate during the winter season forms a perfect balance with your internal temperature, which is naturally hotter due to pregnancy (1).

There are certain dietary requirements, however, that need to be taken care of during winter pregnancies. During seasonal changes, the instances of viral infections, cold and flu rise. It is thus important to have a healthy diet during winters, to give your immunity a special boost. Also, you have to prevent dryness in your body and skin and keep yourself optimally hydrated.

Here, we are providing you with some great dietary ideas to keep yourself healthy and glowing during your winter pregnancy.

In This Article

1. Boost your Immunity

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Eat healthy and eat natural is the mantra to keep cold, flu and diseases at bay. Include lot of fresh fruits and vegetables to give your body enough power and immunity. Opt for fresh seasonal produce and especially those food items that are naturally high in Vitamin C.

Vitamin C contributes to your immune system by fighting against infections. It also works as an anti-oxidant that prevents the activation of free radicals responsible for cell damage (2).

One of the most commonly found food items that is extremely rich in Vitamin C is the Amla or Indian gooseberry. Try to include it in various recipes like juices, homemade sauces, dips, chutneys or jams. It is excellent for your pregnancy taste buds too!

2. Stay Hydrated

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Winter months can cause considerable dryness and dehydration. So don’t forget to keep up with your fluid supply. Carry a bottle with you and keep sipping water at regular intervals, even when you aren’t feeling thirsty. And when we say fluid, we just don’t mean water.

You can have fresh fruit juices, smoothies, shakes, soups, broths or fortified drinks. Consume a variety of foodstuffs that not only have high fluid content but also carry excellent nutrients to keep you healthy.

You can also try adding a few strands of Saffron to your regular warm milk to enhance your immunity levels and added glow to your skin, because saffron is a great antioxidant (3). Try to avoid caffeinated drinks like tea, coffee and soft drinks as they aren’t good for you or your baby (4).

3. Healthy Snacking

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There are those spaces between meals when you feel incredibly hungry and can gobble anything that you might fancy, but it is equally important to pay attention to your snacking as much you pay attention to your main meals.

Winter days are shorter, and if you pile up more calories than you actually need, you may end up gaining unnecessary weight. Festivals (and the resulting sweetmeats and confectionaries) can also add to such binging.

We’re not asking you to give up on your snack cravings completely, but do ensure that you add healthy touches to it. A multigrain toast with a thin layer of Nutella, baked apples and pears with a dash of honey and little cinnamon, roasted vegetables in your whole-grain burger, a sprinkling of nuts and seeds into sweets made of jaggery, dates, and figs, etc. could be a few healthy options that you can go for.

These were a few diet tips for your winter pregnancy. Do follow them and share the ideas so that you eat healthy, opt for healthier cravings and keep yourself fit and radiating all through the winter months!

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