Eating well for pregnancy

Take at least 400 micrograms of folic acid a day while you're trying to get pregnant, and during the first 12 weeks of pregnancy. Folic acid reduces the risk of your baby having a neural tube defect, such as spina bifida. A neural tube defect is when the foetus's spinal cord (part of the body's nervous system) doesn't form normally.

Folic acid tablets are widely available from pharmacies, or you can talk to your GP about getting a prescription.

Don't worry if you get pregnant unexpectedly and weren't taking folic acid supplements. Start taking them as soon as you find out, until you're past the first 12 weeks of pregnancy.

• Do take your folic acid supplement every day.
• Do eat plenty of food rich in folate (the natural form of folic acid), such as green leafy vegetables, including spinach and watercress, nuts, pulses, wholegrains and fruit juice.

And:

• Don't take supplements that contain vitamin A, because too much vitamin A can cause foetal abnormalities.
• Don't eat liver or products that contain it, such as paté. Liver contains a lot of vitamin A.

Alcohol
When you drink, alcohol reaches your baby through the placenta. Too much exposure to alcohol can seriously affect your baby's development. If you're trying to conceive, or are already pregnant, the government advises that you should avoid drinking alcohol. If you choose to drink:

• don't have more than one or two units once or twice a week, and
• don't drink enough to feel drunk.

Getting pregnant may be more difficult if you drink. It's known that drinking heavily throughout pregnancy can result in Foetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS). Children with this syndrome have restricted growth, facial abnormalities and learning and behavioural disorders. When a woman drinks while pregnant, the alcohol passes into the baby's bloodstream.

The safest approach is to not drink at all.

Caffeine
You don't need to cut out caffeine completely, but don't have more than 200mg a day as high levels can result in babies having a low birth weight, which can increase the risk of health problems in later life. Too much caffeine can also cause miscarriage. There's caffeine in chocolate, cola and 'energy' drinks, as well as tea and coffee.

The amount of caffeine in foods and drinks will vary, but each of the following contains roughly 200mg of caffeine or less:

• Two mugs of tea (75mg each). 
• Two mugs of instant coffee (100mg each). 
• One mug of filter coffee (140mg each).  
• Five cans of cola (around 40mg each).
• Two cans of 'energy' drink (around 80mg each).
• Four 50g bars of dark chocolate (around 50g of caffeine each). Milk chocolate contains around half as much caffeine as dark chocolate.

Before November 2008, pregnant women were advised to have no more than 300mg of caffeine a day. Don't worry if you're pregnant and have been following the 300mg limit. The risks are likely to be very small.   

Try to have less than 200mg of caffeine a day during the rest of your pregnancy.

Eat safely

Bacterial infections such as listeriosis, salmonella and toxoplasmosis can be dangerous for pregnant women and their unborn babies. The bacteria can harm the unborn baby and interfere with its normal development. Taking the following the steps can help you to avoid harmful bacteria:

• Do cook eggs thoroughly until the whites and yolks are solid. Avoid any foods that contain raw or lightly cooked eggs, such as home-made mayonnaise, sauces and puddings.
• Do make sure that all meats are cooked thoroughly. This is especially important with poultry (such as chicken and turkey) and food made from minced meat (such as burgers and sausages). Make sure that they're very hot all the way through, and there's no trace of blood or pink meat. Treat all meat at barbecues with caution. 
• Do wash your hands, utensils and work surfaces after handling raw meat. It may contain bacteria, which can cause food poisoning. 
• Do wash fruit, vegetables and salads to remove all traces of soil.
• Do heat ready meals until they're very hot all the way through. This is especially important for meals that contain poultry.

And: 

• Don't eat mould-ripened soft cheese, such as brie and camembert, or blue cheese, such as Stilton or Danish blue. You can eat hard cheeses (e.g. cheddar, parmesan), cottage cheese, mozarella, and processed cheese (such as cheese spread).
• Don't eat any kind of paté, including vegetable paté, because it can contain listeria.
• Don't eat liver or liver products, such as liver paté or liver sausage, as this is a very rich source of vitamin A (which can harm your unborn baby). 
• Don't eat more than two portions of oily fish a week (for example, mackerel, trout or fresh tuna), or more than four cans of tuna (around 140g per can). These contain high levels of mercury, which can harm your baby's developing nervous system.
• Don't eat marlin, shark or swordfish. These can contain high levels of mercury, which can damage your baby's developing nervous system.  
• Don't eat raw shellfish, as they can contain bacteria and viruses that can cause food poisoning.

Balanced diet

A well-balanced diet will supply all the energy and nutrients needed by you and your growing baby.

• Do eat plenty of fruit and vegetables (fresh, frozen, tinned, dried or juice); at least five portions a day.
• Do eat plenty of foods from the starchy carbohydrate group, such as breads, cereals, rice, pasta, noodles, maize, millet, yams and potatoes. Choose wholegrain versions whenever you can.
• Do have milk and other dairy products (e.g. yoghurt, hard cheese) to ensure that you have a good intake of calcium. Use low-fat varieties where you can. For example, semi-skimmed or skimmed milk, low-fat yoghurt and reduced-fat hard cheese. 
• Do get enough vitamin D. It keeps bones healthy and provides your baby with enough vitamin D for the first few months of life. Take a 10-microgram supplement of vitamin D each day. Your body makes vitamin D from exposure to sunlight, but the amount of time you need in the sun to make enough vitamin varies from person to person. If you have dark skin or always cover your skin, you may be at particular risk of vitamin D deficiency. Talk to your midwife or doctor if you're worried about this.
• Do get plenty of iron because some women can develop low iron levels during pregnancy. Iron is found in meat, green leafy vegetables (such as spinach and watercress), pulses, bread and fortified cereals. Your midwife can advise you whether you need to take an iron supplement.
• Do eat protein foods, such as meat, fish, poultry, eggs, beans, soya, pulses and nuts (see below for information on peanuts). Have a good variety to ensure that you get enough protein and important nutrients, such as iron, zinc, magnesium and essential fatty acids. Fatty acids include omega 3 fats (found in flaxseed oil, rapeseed oil, and oily fish, such as mackerel and sardines).
• Do stay active and move around.

And:

• Don't eat for two. You don’t need extra calories until the final three months, when you need around 200 extra calories a day (equivalent to two slices of toast with margarine or butter). Be guided by your appetite. When you feel hungry between meals, choose a healthy snack such as fruit, yoghurt or a bowl of cereal.
• Don't try to lose weight during pregnancy. This can affect your baby's weight, and may stop you from getting all the nutrients that you both need. Don't skip meals, even if you feel sick. Eating little and often can keep your energy level up and can help to fight off morning sickness.

Nuts
If you want to eat peanuts or foods containing peanuts (such as peanut butter) during pregnancy, you can do so as part of a healthy balanced diet, unless you're allergic to them or your health professional advises you not to.

The government previously advised women to avoid eating peanuts during pregnancy if there was a history of allergy (such as asthma, eczema, hayfever or food allergy) in their baby’s immediate family, but this advice has now changed.

The latest research shows that there's no clear evidence that eating peanuts during pregnancy affects the chances of your baby developing a peanut allergy. 

If you have any queries, talk to your GP, midwife or your health visitor.