Eating a variety of foods every day supports your health and well-being. Eating well before you become pregnant can help to provide the nutrition you need. Making healthy eating habits part of your life now will help to form life-long patterns for your family.
Following Canada’s food guide will help you have a healthy, well-balanced pattern of eating.
Choose a variety of foods from Canada’s food guide: Have plenty of vegetables and fruits with your meals and snacks, choose whole grain foods, eat a variety of protein foods (including plant-based protein foods), make water your drink of choice.
Canada’s food guide will help you choose the foods to eat that will help nourish you and your baby. This will help you meet your needs for vitamins, minerals and other nutrients.
Healthy eating is more than the foods you eat. It is also about enjoying your food, eating with others and cooking more often.
You can help support your health and the health of your baby by eating well before you become pregnant.
During pregnancy, your body will need more nutrients. You can get ready right now by choosing a variety of food from Canada’s food guide each day.
Folic acid is important in the very early weeks of pregnancy. This is a time when people often don’t know they are pregnant. That is why it is important to eat foods high in folate and take a multivitamin with 0.4 mg (400 mcg) of folic acid in it before becoming pregnant. Learn more about taking a multivitamin with folic acid in it before pregnancy here
Your body also needs more iron during pregnancy. This mineral helps to build your body’s iron stores before you become pregnant. Low iron (anemia) during pregnancy is linked to lower pregnancy weight gain and to preterm and low birthweight babies. Learn more about iron and food sources of iron here. To read about iron during pregnancy, see Healthy Parents, Healthy Children and Iron Foods for Pregnancy
Talk with your health care provider about:
You can call Health Link at 811 and talk with a Registered Dietitian. They can discuss nutrition and healthy eating in preparation for a healthy pregnancy. This may be helpful if you’re following a way of eating that limits certain foods (e.g., celiac diet, multiple food allergies or sensitivities, vegan diet).
Setting personal goals can help you improve your eating habits.
Visit Healthy Eating Starts Here for tips and resources on healthy eating. Focus on small changes that can help you meet your nutrition needs for a future pregnancy.
Making healthy eating habits part of your everyday life can make it easier for you to continue them throughout pregnancy and into parenthood.
Here are some tips to get you started:
Fluids help you digest your food and move nutrients around your body. The fluid you drink also helps carry waste out of your body.
Most adults should try to take in about 9-12 cups (2.25-3 litres) of fluid a day. This includes all beverages, soups, coffee, tea and the water that is part of foods like vegetables and fruit. Your fluid needs depend on your age, gender, body size and activity level.
There are times when you may need more fluid. On a hot day or if you’re very active, drink more to replace the fluid you lose through sweat.
Here are a few tips for choosing healthy drinks:
Drinks with added sugar include regular soft drinks, sports drinks, energy drinks, sweetened hot and cold drinks (e.g. hot chocolate or coffee drinks) or slush drinks.
Caffeine is found in coffee and coffee-based drinks, tea, soft drinks, energy drinks and some foods like chocolate.
Too much caffeine can have a negative effect on your health.
People planning to become pregnant should limit their caffeine intake to 300 mg per day. That’s about 2 cups (500 ml) of coffee.
Other adults should limit their caffeine intake to 400 mg per day. That’s about 3 cups (750 ml) of coffee.
Learn more about the amount of caffeine in different beverages and foods.
Foods can carry germs that are harmful to your health. Practicing safe food handling at home can help you avoid foodborne illnesses that can affect your health and that of your developing baby.
When in doubt, throw it out: If you aren’t sure if a food is safe, don’t eat it.
Foodborne illnesses can impact you and your developing baby during pregnancy. Your ability to fight off infections is decreased when you’re pregnant, making you more vulnerable to foodborne illness.
Practicing safe food handling, such as thoroughly and regularly washing hands, sanitizing surfaces, and using clean utensils and cooking equipment, can reduce your risk of encountering harmful germs like Listeria, E. coli, Salmonella, Campylobacter, and Toxoplasma gondii. Learning about these germs before pregnancy can help you know how to reduce your risk of getting a foodborne illness.
Some foods are best to avoid once you’re pregnant. Learn more about safe food alternatives and safe food handling during pregnancy.
For more information about food safety during pregnancy, see Healthy Parents Healthy Children.
A foodborne illness occurs when harmful germs, such as bacteria, parasites, or viruses, contaminate the food that you eat, making you sick. These germs may get into food when it’s prepared, processed, or if it’s washed with contaminated water.
There are two ways that foodborne illnesses occur:
Food poisoning or foodborne illness can happen when the food you eat contains harmful germs that make you sick.
The first symptom of foodborne illness is usually diarrhea. You may also feel sick to your stomach, vomit, have stomach cramps, fever, and in severe cases, blood in your stool. Excessive diarrhea and vomiting can cause dehydration.
While most people recover relatively quickly from food poisoning, some may experience lasting health effects. If you suspect you have a foodborne illness, consult your healthcare provider or call Health Link at 811 for guidance.
Report suspected foodborne illness to Alberta Health Services, Environmental Public Health through their online portal.
For more information on food poisoning symptoms, see Foodborne Illness and Safe Food Handling.
Germs can’t rapidly grow at temperatures that are too cold or hot. Maintaining proper cooking and storage temperatures is important to minimize the risk of foodborne illness. Here are some guidelines to follow:
Cross-contamination can happen when germs are transferred from one surface to another, potentially contaminating food. For example, if you’re handling raw meat and then pick up vegetables or touch the fridge door, you could transfer the germs on your hands to the other food or surfaces you touch.
Foods that carry the highest risk for food poisoning are raw meat and raw eggs. Here are some ways to prevent cross-contamination:
Check for expiry and best-before dates. Don’t buy foods past the expiry date.
Expiry dates are specific to perishable items, especially those that may pose health risks if consumed after the date. Consuming foods past their expiry date can lead to foodborne illnesses.
Best-before dates provide information on freshness and the potential shelf life of foods. While taste and texture may decrease over time, these dates do not reflect product safety.
When buying food, consider the following factors to reduce your risk of a foodborne illness:
Practice safe food handling when grocery shopping by picking up refrigerated and frozen foods last. Then, if available pack these items in insulated bags/containers and head straight home to store your groceries properly.
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