Unexpected ways the Vegan Diet is Perfect For Pregnancy!

Hey, I'm not here to convert you to veganism. I'm just here to let you know the unexpected ways the vegan pregnancy diet is actually great for you and your baby. I'm not going to get into the ethical parts of veganism here or push you onto anything (a post for another time). Everyone's dietary needs are different.

However, while pregnant myself, there were many motivations for me to go vegan. Read this post if you'd like to know why. I was curious but mostly for my own health reasons and vegan sources of prenatal nutrients are ideal. Along the way I discovered ways plant-based pregnancy nutrition is actually simple, helpful and easy for growing a baby.

What's In This Post?

Sound wild to you? Let me elaborate:

• 1. The American Pregnancy Association Recommendations
• 2. Less Morning Sickness
• 3. Essential Nutrients
• 4. Gut Flora
• 5. Shopping Made Simple

✨Psst, I detail more about my experiences with trying to conceive, pregnancy, babyhood and so much more in the full book: "Consciously Natural Momma: Natural Parenting Methods from Conception Through the Terrific Twos!".✨

You might be thinking veganism would make being pregnant more difficult but allow me to explain.

The American Pregnancy Association Recommendations

You can't completely disregard these dietary recommendations they know what they're talking about.

First, the things you need to avoid:

• Alcohol
• Caffeine
• Smoking
• Raw eggs
• Smoked seafood
• Raw animal meat
• Unpasteurized Milk
• Soft Cheeses
• Deli Meat
• Fish high in mercury (tuna or swordfish)

Would you look at that, most of those are animal products and not vegan. Just saved you a lot of trouble didn't I?

Second, the things that are encouraged:

• Fruits
• Bread
• Grains
• Vegetables
• Leafy Greens
• Dairy Products

All of which are naturally vegan except for dairy. Breads are usually vegan. And dairy products are recommended for the calcium, protein, vitamin D and other added nutrients.

Such nutrients can easily be found elsewhere. 100% full fat unsweetened coconut milk is one of the best alternatives that and offers more than cow milk can. It's also great for vegan toddlers because the main reason we give toddlers milk is for the fats, which help form their rapidly growing brain.

They also recommend nursing women not to consume dairy because the baby's stomach can't digest the enzymes and it will give them a very upset stomach. Dairy causes inflammation in the body and a slew of symptoms follow.

Other things:

Drink ALL the glorious h2o you can as well! Water is your best friend! Especially, at this time! H2o removes toxins, helps nutrients along, hydrates you of course and grows your awesome baby.

If you need your cup of joe but also want to cut out the caffeine, I don't blame you. I found chicory coffee! Seriously, I was so jazzed about this stuff the first day I tried it I told everyone and had 3 cups!

Chicory is not going to give you that caffeine racing heart beat buzz, but that's the point. But wait, it's even more awesome because it's also, herbal packed full of nutrients, caffeine-free, acid-free and prebiotics. If you want to drink coffee again, mix this into coffee grounds also you can and it still tastes great with the extra benefits.

They also recommend calorie intake as well, don't skip that either.

• Add 0 calories during 1st. trimester
• Add 200 calories during 2nd. trimester
• Add 300 calories during 1st. trimester

Very simply done with anther sandwich or a few hearty snacks throughout the day. So, there's all of that, Next!

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Less Morning Sickness

Here's something you won't hear in mainstream pregnancy information. Morning sickness (really, all day sickness) is said to be caused by the body trying to protect the fetus from harmful toxins. Especially, early in pregnancy.

In the first trimester a pregnant woman's sense of smell and taste is typically hypersensitive. Which may be an evolutionary aspect to cause aversion to foods that harbor possible harmful substances.

The body views animal products such as meat and dairy as harmful to the fetus. Avoiding these substances should lessen the chance of morning sickness.

I believe this theory checks out. I genuinely didn't eat any animal products during pregnancy. I had a little bit of upset stomach in the first trimester. However, never any actual morning sickness.

Once, I cooked black beans and didn't know I was supposed to soak them prior. I definitely got sick immediately and I was in the 2nd tri. J. didn't feel an ounce of upset stomach from this.

Essential Nutrients

Some people believe we can eat whatever we want while pregnant and growing baby will get what they need. I don't think it's true though! This is a time to nourish our bodies the most.

>We need a lot of different vitamins and nutrients but the four main ones are protein, folic acid, calcium, and iron. Many people believe we can only get these from eating animals but that is also not the truth.

The only one we can't get is vitamin B12 because with agriculture it's been sourced out of the soil. The animals actually get B12 from supplements. So, just take a B12 supplement. Problem solved.

You also need to be taking a good quality prenatal vitamin. I recommend this one because it's derived from fruits and vegetables rather than chemically made. Huge game changer when it comes to absorption and lessens the risk of constipation in pregnancy.

Sure, there are plenty of vegan "junk" foods too. You know, french fries, pizza, chips, cookies. Balance is definitely key.

I think we can all agree, eating highly processed foods just makes us feel like crud anyway.

A vegan diet full of fruits, veggies, leafy greens, grains and all the sources of fats and protein is sure to give you the essential nutrients you need. It's honestly just easier. Especially, eating raw because there you go, guesswork gone.

Gut Flora

Now, gut flora is actually how I fell into veganism. My health was the first factor. I'd be surprised if you haven't heard of gut health by now. The gist is we basically have millions of bacteria in what's called our "microbiome". Some helpful, some not so much. A common bacteria among women is candida. Which is the cause of yeast infections.

This can get all out of wack by eating processed foods, processed sugars and antibiotics. Guess who's heavily treated with antibiotics? Animals who are later slaughtered. Antibiotics are great for wiping out the "bad" bacteria but it also wipes the bacteria we want. With a heavily sugared diet, the bad bacteria flourishes. See what I mean?

A Vegan diet, especially raw or mostly raw is devoid of processed sugars, chemicals and antibiotics. Done deal.

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Shopping Made Simple

There's an entire section of the grocery store you can just walk on past now!

One hell of a perk to me!

But hey also, salads are so simple to throw together. Super versatile and hearty if you make em right. And totally not boring either.

Smoothies became my best friend! I'm not saying you have to be a smoothie expert to be a vegan, but I'm saying you can make them.

Upon becoming vegan I actually learned about so many foods I didn't know existed before as well. You can buy proteins as pantry staples instead of animal products that need to be cooked promptly. I'm talking about quinoa, legumes, rice, and beans.

Hey, and trust me you do get used to the taste of these new foods. They seem to last a lot longer as well and tons of make ahead and freeze options out there.

None of it has to be expensive either, just new, possibly different, but also you learn new ways of making meals. Win!

Wrap Up:

All right, I hope you gained some awesome insight from this post. The prenatal vegan diet is absolutely perfect for mother's to be. It's simple, full of essential nutrients, easier that prepping and cooking meat and may even save you from morning sickness! I think those are all super wins for me. I know I wasn't here to convert you, but maybe you can be convinced now!

I'm so glad you're here and I hope you're inspired to be a vegan.

Xo,
Shannon

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