Nausea time

By week 7 the dreaded pregnancy nausea has settled in. Like a lot of women, mine is all day nausea, although it does get worse around dinner time. And just like my first pregnancy (with my twins) the thought of vegetables is disgusting, which is very out of character for me, as I love vegetables usually.

The smell of our regular chicken, vegetable stir fry cooking in the kitchen makes me feel nauseas, and the thought of eating it absolutely disgusts me. All I can eat is toast, pasta, toasted cheese sandwiches and crackers. I was worried that I was not meeting my vegetables intake, so I bought a greens powder with the idea to take it daily. I managed to drink it a couple of times, but the taste made me gag, so that’s a no-go unfortunately.

Then one day, I discovered soup!! Yes! I figured out that I can eat vegetables if they are cooked really well in a soup or a casserole, or if they are hidden in a meal such as vegetable shepherd’s pie.  Feeding a pregnant woman is like feeding a toddler. You have to find a way to hide vegetables in meals, by finely chopping or grating vegetables and sneaking them in.

For a few days in a row I pretty much live on cheese and tomato toasties. I just can’t get enough of the heavy carbs right now. Another thing I remembered from my first pregnancy, is that gravy makes everything ok! For a few weeks, gravy is poured over vegetables to make them palatable.

My husband made steak for dinner one night… I take a bite. OH. MY. GOD! I just about devour it all in 2 minutes. Yes, red meat is goooooood. I guess that’s my body craving essential nutrients like iron, zinc, B12 and protein.

First trimester fatigue

I am tried all the time! I have stopped exercising because I’m just too tired, and I’m starting to feel sluggish. Plus, the low-fibre, high-carbohydrate diet is making me feel very bloated. I’ve added in a high fibre breakfast cereal every morning, which has helped, as well as trying to get some more fruit in. Again, just like my toddlers when they don’t eat vegetables, I try and increase fruit to make sure I am meeting my fibre intake.

Supplement review

Currently I’m taking a few supplements: Prenatal multivitamin, omega-3 DHA/EPA, and iron bisglycinate (this type of iron does not cause constipation or nausea). I’ve also started to take calcium, something I don’t usually take, but I realised I wasn’t meeting my calcium intake on a normal day. And in addition, I’ve reduced my dairy intake as it has been giving me an unsettled stomach, so there is just no way I can meet the RDI for calcium in pregnancy (which is 1000mg per day) on my nausea restricted, dairy-restricted diet. The calcium I’m using is a hydroxyapatite form, which is the most absorbable form of calcium, and with vitamin K2 which assists calcium deposition into the bones.

from an Expert Author

Diana Newman

BHSc Nutr Med, MNutr – Nutritionist

Diana is a registered nutritionist with close to 10 years’ experience in the industry working as a clinical nutritionist. She completed her undergraduate in Nutritional Medicine, followed by a Master’s Degree in Human Nutrition through Deakin University and is a member of the Australian Natural Therapists Association (ANTA) and Nutrition Society Australia (NSA).

Diana’s area of clinical expertise lies in digestive disorders, cardio metabolic conditions, fertility, pregnancy and infant nutrition. Diana is also a mum to 2 year old identical twin girls, and has spent recent years completing additional training in fertility and pregnancy nutrition through Monash University and Well College Global.

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