Fresh fruits and vegetables are a very important part of a healthy pregnancy. They are full of fiber and essential nutrients, which make them an important part of any healthy diet – and should be kept in abundance in your kitchen while you are pregnant.

Fruits and vegetables are critical components of pregnancy nutrition that provide various vitamins and minerals, as well as fiber to aid digestion. Include 3-5 servings of fresh fruits and vegetables each day. One of these servings should  be a dark orange vegetable, and two should be of the dark leafy green vegetable variety.

For example:

The fiber content of fruits and vegetables provides a number of benefits, one is they keep your bowels moving. This helps prevent hemorrhoids and constipation, which are two common concerns during pregnancy.

Fruits are an important source of nutrients such as potassium and Vitamin C. Vitamin C, found in many fruits and vegetables, helps you absorb iron and promotes healthy gums for both you and your baby.

Dark green vegetables have vitamin A, iron and folate — which are important nutrients during pregnancy.

How much you should eat

Try to eat 2 cups of fruit and 2 ½ to 3 cups of vegetables a day is a good reference to use when trying to figure out exactly how to get in what you need.

An example of what is considered a cup:

• 1 cup raw or cooked vegetables
• 2 cups raw leafy greens (or 1 cup of leafy greens and 1/2 cup of other vegetables)
• 1 cup raw, canned, or frozen fruit
• 2 small bananas (less than 6 inches) or 1 large (8 to 9 inches)
• 1/2 cup dried fruit
• 1 medium to large piece of fruit (example 1 large orange, 1 medium pear or grapefruit, 2 large plums, 1/2 large apple)
• 1 cup 100 percent fruit juice, vegetable juice, or fruit-vegetable juice

For maximum nutrition, vary the color of produce you choose, making sure to include dark green and dark yellow, orange, red and purple. One of these servings needs to be a dark orange vegetable, and two should be of the dark leafy green vegetable variety.  Make sure you still include plenty of leafy greens as well.  Including 3-5 servings of fresh fruits and vegetables each day will keep you and your baby healthy!!

Fresh is preferred, as but frozen and canned are good as long as you avoid fruit packaged in heavy syrup.

There are many wonderful fruit and vegetable options so enjoy!!

Other great resources are www.babycenter.com and www.mayoclinic.com where some of the information for blog was adapted from.