Pregnancy kilo counting
Piling on the pounds is the most obvious sign you're pregnant but what sort of weight gain should you expect and what foods are best for you and your baby?
- How is your weight monitored?
- So what's normal?
- What your body and your baby need
- What the experts worry about
- Where the weight goes
- Healthy alternatives
If you've decided that pregnancy is a great excuse to pork out, think again. Pregnancy experts calculate that you don't usually need to increase your calorie intake at all in the first six
months (although some women find that eating is the only way to stave
off nausea...) and after that, only by 200 calories a day - the equivalent to just one piece of toast and a banana!
Plus, being overweight - or seriously under - during pregnancy may increase your risk of complications, including high blood pressure and premature birth, so the ideal is to sort your weight out beforehand.
"Dieting is out during pregnancy because it can reduce your baby's
birthweight, which is not a good
idea," says Fiona Ford, research dietitian at the Centre for Pregnancy Nutrition in Sheffield.
"But that doesn't mean you can't restrict your calories a little if you were overweight at the start of
pregnancy."
How is your weight monitored?
Nowadays, midwives are far less concerned about weighing you at every antenatal appointment and will only weigh you if they think you're gaining too much or too
little, or if you ask to be weighed. "Weighing was done before scanning came in to check that the baby was growing
okay," explains Fiona Ford.
To check your 'start' weight, your midwife may work out your Body Mass Index (BMI) at the first
check-up. This is done by measuring your height and weight and doing a quick calculation with them. This gives
the midwife a number that shows if you are under/overweight or just right - a BMI for someone the right weight for their height is 20-25. Depending on your BMI, your midwife may suggest you aim to put on more or less weight during the pregnancy.
Your weight gain during pregnancy won't be steady either - most women put on around 1.8kg (4lb) in the first 12 weeks, then around
0.5kg (1lb) a week for the next three months (5.5-6.4kg or 12-14lb in total) and only around 4.6kg (10lb) over the last 12 weeks or so. But remember, these are average figures for large numbers of women so just because your weight gain pattern is different, it doesn't mean anything is wrong.
So what's normal?
You can expect to put on anything from 9-16kg (20-35lb)‚ but it could be more or less depending on whether you were over or underweight at the outset. Remember, though, everyone is different which is why you shouldn't worry if you're outside the 'average' figures quoted here.
Research from the US suggests that how much weight you gain should relate to your weight before pregnancy.
"It's known as the
one-two-three rule - one stone if you're overweight, two if you're normal and three if you're
underweight," says Fiona Ford.
Whatever your previous weight, now's the time to adopt a sensible approach by eating healthily and forgetting about jumping on the scales every week. Instead, speak to your midwife if you think you're gaining weight too fast or too slowly, and remember that your regular antenatal checks and scans will pick up any health problems related to your or your baby's weight gain.
What your body and your baby need
During pregnancy, your baby will take what he or she needs from the food you eat and your own stores of nutrients and vitamins... you get what's left over! That's why it's vital to eat widely from the main food groups."The more variety there is in your diet, the less likely you are to go short of
anything," says Fiona Ford.
The main food groups are:
- Starches - wholegrain bread, cereals, pasta, rice
- Proteins - red meat (except liver/pates), poultry, fish, pulses
- Dairy - steer clear of all unpasteurised products and blue veined/crusted cheese (read about listeria)
- Fruit and veg - aim for five portions a day, especially dark green veg and apricots packed with iron
- Fatty, sugary foods - limit your intake of these 'empty' calories and go for healthy options instead (see Healthy alternatives below).
What the experts worry about
The reason why experts recommend getting to your ideal weight beforehand is because being or becoming very over or underweight during pregnancy increases your risk of health problems.
- Being seriously overweight
It puts extra strain on your heart which is already working harder than usual and can also lead to back problems because the muscles and ligaments relax during pregnancy, making it easier to pull muscles. There is some evidence that being very overweight in pregnancy can increase your blood pressure and may put you at greater risk of the serious high blood pressure disease, pre-eclampsia. You may be more at risk of developing pregnancy diabetes and may have a harder birth if you're less mobile. Research has also suggested a link between excessive weight gain and having a Caesarean birth.
- Being very underweight
Women who are severely underweight during pregnancy and who are not eating enough are more likely to have a baby who is small and weak at birth, and this can have serious long-term effects on their health. Generally, restricting nutrients to the baby during pregnancy has far more serious consequences than over-indulgence so don't forget that dieting is OUT!
Where the weight goes
The following list shows roughly where the extra weight goes for a woman of average weight for her height, but you can expect to put on anything between 9-13kg (20-35lb).
| Baby: | 3.4kg (7.5lb) |
| Placenta: | 0.68kg (1.5lb) |
| Extra fluid: | 1.36kg (3lb) |
| Increased blood: | 1.25kg (2.5lb) |
| Amniotic fluid: | 0.8kg (1.5lb |
| Uterus: | 0.9kg (2lb) |
| Fat deposits: | 3.18kg (7lb) |
| Breasts: | 0.5kg (1lb) |
| TOTAL GAIN: | 12.02kg (26.5lb)* |
*These are only average figures and your own weight gain will probably differ due to various factors including the weight/size of your own baby, your own weight before you became pregnant and whether you're expecting twins. With twins, you might be carrying two placentas and amniotic sacs and the babies' combined weight will be greater.
Healthy alternatives
The following foods are all high in sugar and fat, so try these
options instead... your baby will thank you for it!
| High in fat | Healthy alternative |
| Salmon, beef or chicken cooked in pastry | *
Grilled salmon with lemon and a small spoonful of tartar sauce (fatty acids/calcium, zinc)
* Grilled steak with horseradish sauce (iron) * Grilled chicken in honey mustard marinade (high protein, low fat) |
| Roast potatoes/potato wedges | * Crispy, baked potato with low-fat fromage frais (vitamin C/calcium) |
| Sticky cream cake | * Malt loaf with low fat spread (various vitamins/iron) |
| Bag of crisps or chocolate biscuits | *
Dried fruit especially apricots and nuts (avoid peanuts) (iron/vitamin C/roughage)
* Bowl of muesli with semi-skimmed milk (calcium/various vitamins) * Slice of bread and Marmite (folic acid) |
Want to know more?
- Call Sainsbury's/Wellbeing Eating for Pregnancy helpline 0114 242 4084 or email: pregnancy.nutrition@sheffield.ac.uk
- NCT Book of Safe Foods, £5.99, to order call 0141 636 0600 or log onto www.nctms.co.uk
- Read The Baby Book, Sharon Maxwell-Magnus/Dr Mark Porter (Tesco, £10)
By Melanie Deeprose
Where to next?
- Are you worried about your weight during pregnancy? Tell us about it and talk to others on our General pregnancy discussion board
- From antenatal care to exercise, we've got everything you need to know about being pregnant
- Need help choosing a name? Use our fun tool
- Find out what's happening when with our personal pregnancy planner
- Worried about the birth? Check our expert information
- If you've got any pregnancy queries, take a look at previously answered questions from other babyworld members or ask a new question
