Being pregnant with more than one baby poses a special challenge with regards to your nutrition.
The nutrient requirements for multiples is more than for a single pregnancy
and it's incredibly important to focus on the quality of your food
so that you are getting in everything that you and your bubba's need in order to thrive.
Hello! If this is the first time you're watching one of my videos, let me introduce
myself. My name is Melanie McGrice and I'm a specialist fertility and prenatal dietitian.
I love educating new mums and dads about all the ways that good food can improve their health
and the health of their little ones. I create new video's all the time, so if you don't want
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Without a doubt, what you eat when you are pregnant will affect your pregnancy outcome,
and when you are carrying multiples, nutritional demands are magnified.
In multiple pregnancies, the chances for foetal growth restriction is much higher than in a single
pregnancy, but luckily the right nutrition can really have a positive impact on that.
When you're carrying more than one bub, there is an increased demand for energy,
protein and many micronutrients. The amount that you need to eat will depend on a few factors,
including your pre-pregnancy BMI or body mass index, and how many babies you are
carrying. In general, you want to modify your intake to reach specific weight goals
rather than trying to calculate strict calorie requirements. A practical strategy to help you
increase your calories is to include more nutrient-dense fats in your diet.
Healthy fats come from olive oil, avocado, nuts and seeds. Fats are very energy dense meaning that
we only have to eat a little to get a significant amount of energy. If you choose healthy fats like
the ones I mentioned, you will also be increasing your antioxidant intake which may potentially
have beneficial effects on your risk for preeclampsia and preterm birth.
Eating enough is often easier said than done. You may feel very nauseous in your first trimester
and usually the more bubs you have, the more nauseous you'll feel
because of higher levels of the hormone HCG. To add to this, as your bubs get bigger,
they press on your organs, like your stomach, making eating larger meals quite difficult.
If you are struggling with either of these problems, chat to a dietitian
so that they can help you manage these symptoms and optimise your intake. If you'd like, you're
welcome to book a nutrition assessment with one of our dietitians at melaniemcgrice.com/BookNow.
Looking a little more closely at specific nutrients of concern,
let's start with protein. Protein is the building block of all the cells in your body and since
you are literally growing more than one human being, your protein requirements will go up to
about 20%. To put that into perspective, a normal weight woman (according to her BMI) who is eating around
3500 calories to nourish her growing babies, will need about 175 grams of protein per day.
That's equivalent to having at least 3 glasses of milk a day, plus 500 grams of steak.
To meet these high requirements, it's important that you eat a wide variety of protein-containing
foods. The type you'll choose will depend on your personal preference. Ideal protein
sources include lean meat, fish, and skin-free poultry, eggs, dried beans, peas, and tofu.
If you don't eat enough food in general, this protein will be diverted away from
building cells to being used for energy. So eating enough and having enough protein is important.
Reaching these goals can be tough, so it's important to not try to get in
all your energy and protein needs in a single sitting. Try your best to eat energy and nutrient
dense foods more often by splitting your intake over three meals and three snacks,
or even more frequently than that if you need to! Most of your nutrients should come from your food,
but in some instances supplementation is helpful, especially when it comes to iron and vitamin D.
Many women pregnant with multiples are at a higher risk of iron deficiency anaemia.
This is associated with preterm delivery and so this is something we want to avoid.
Heme iron from animal sources like red meat, poultry, pork, fish and eggs is encouraged
because it is well absorbed and easy for the body to use. Non-heme iron from fortified breads,
grains, vegetables and nuts can also be eaten as part of a healthy and varied diet.
Vitamin D is necessary for calcium absorption and deficiency is common in pregnancy.
Your bub's vitamin D levels are dependent on yours and low levels increase
the risk for neonatal rickets. Getting some sun exposure and taking a vitamin
D supplement containing about 1000 international units of vitamin D per day
should be enough to meet your increased needs, but it's wise to have your vitamin D levels tested,
and supplements personally prescribed according to your stores. Having enough
vitamin D has also been linked to a higher birth weight and better newborn weight gain.
Optimising your intake when you are pregnant with multiples doesn't need to be a chore.
With a bit of careful planning and support from your dietitian, you can do this! Make
sure you order our amazing Multiples Nutrition Toolkit to give you the full picture of what
to do throughout your pregnancy. You'll find the details in the description box below this video.
Thanks for joining me! I'll look forward to seeing you again soon!