Overview	Food habit during pregnancy	Appetite during pregnancy
Multi-vitamin supplements during pregnancy	Things that should be avoided during pregnancy

Pregnancy is the period from conception to birth. It usually lasts 40 weeks, beginning from the first day of the woman's last menstrual period. In many societies’ medical or legal definitions, human pregnancy is somewhat arbitrarily divided into three trimester periods. Healthcare professionals name three different dates as the start of pregnancy:

• the first day of the woman's last normal menstrual period,
• the date of conception (about two weeks before her next expected menstrual period), and
• the date of implantation (about one week after conception).

Since these are spread over a significant period of time, the duration of pregnancy necessarily depends on the date selected as the starting point chosen.

• Eat lots of vegetables, legumes (chick peas and lentils) and fruits.
• Eat cereals, breads, rice, pasta and noodles.
• Eat lean meat, fish, and poultry.
• Include milks, yoghurts, cheeses (varieties with reduced fat) in your diet.
• Drink plenty of water.
• Eat foods containing low amount of salt.
• Eat moderate amount of sugar.
• Restrain from having food containing high amount of saturated fat.

An average pregnant woman needs an extra 300 kilojoules in her diet per day for the first trimester, 600kJ during the second trimester and 900kJ in the last trimester.

Appetite may fluctuate throughout your pregnancy:

• In the first few weeks of pregnancy, there may be a loss of appetite.
• During the middle time of pregnancy, appetite may remain the same as it was before the pregnancy or it may be slightly increased.
• Towards the end, appetite may increase.

It is always better to get the necessary vitamins and minerals directly from food. However, a vitamin-mineral supplement can be a good way of ensuring that a pregnant woman will be able to meet her nutritional needs.

• Folic acid is particularly important to take before conceiving and for the first three months of pregnancy.
• B vitamin deficiency can lead to neural tube birth defects such as spina bifida. Supplements can be taken from before conceiving and for the first three months of pregnancy.
• Iron or calcium supplements may be needed to ensure the presence of main minerals.
• Iodine is very important in baby's brain development and thyroid function. It is sometimes difficult to get the required amount of iron from meals and supplements may be required.

High amount of vitamins and minerals can be harmful to a developing baby. So, such vitamin and mineral supplements should never be taken without consulting the physician.  

• Raw seafood, such as oysters or uncooked sushi. Fish is a good source of protein, vitamins and minerals. But they also contain high amount of mercury, so it is better to reduce consumption of these fish during pregnancy.
• Cheeses with a white, 'mouldy' rind, such as Brie and Camembert, blue-veined cheeses like Stilton, uncooked ricotta and feta.
• Raw or undercooked meat, poultry, and eggs. Raw meat and poultry is a possible source of bacteria.
• Liver and liver products (pate, liver sausage).As they can contain large amounts of the retinol form of vitamin A and too much retinol can be harmful to a developing baby.
• It is better to cut down caffeine consumption during pregnancy,200mg of caffeine per day is considered to be safe.
• Alcoholic drinks.
• Smoking.