EATING VITAMINS AND MINERALS

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Healthy eating has an extremely vital place in the overall success of pregnancy and the general level of wellness of a woman. How should we ingest our vitamins and minerals? People generally think of taking a multivitamin pill with an ingredient list spanning the length of the whole bottle or needing to eat ten apples a day. What we feed ourselves needs to speak to our common sense together with our bellies.

While a super multivitamin looks like a tremendous insurance policy, the benefits from these pills is far from clear. Some may even be harmful when taken in high doses for extended periods. It is also not clear how much the average person needs, and the "normal" range varies greatly.

When speaking of multivitamins, not every pill is created equal. Even if the number of ingredients reads impressively, we need to read in between the lines to see what forms of nutrients are included. Let us take a look at iron for example. There are various forms of iron, some are absorbed well in the body and some make hefty frying pans. We need to differentiate between them to know the utility of the iron in your pill. Is it a useful sort or something else?

Another point to keep in mind is the potential for strong reactions with harsh supplements. I had tried using an iron pill during my first pregnancy. It was a dramatic experience to say the least. The pill had an instant recoiling effect on my stomach. It was only possible for me to hold down the iron if I ran to bed for the night IMMEDIATELY after taking it. Even if it had stayed down successfully through the night, it was expelled upon arising together with the contents of a "frozen" stomach. It was clear the iron was not absorbed and also not my dinner!

It is also important to note how nutrients benefit a person. The Almighty created foods with wisdom. Each food is provided to benefit mankind in particular ways. There are elements in our foods we cannot begin to understand and benefits without measure. When we extract them from their natural state and purify them to white powder, their benefits are certainly altered. It is not logical that a woman should need to eat an extreme amount of food to satisfy her daily needs. The Almighty placed the appropriate quantities of nutrients in the foods He has made available to us. However, it is important to choose wisely which foods to eat and how much to consume in order to ingest the appropriate amount of nutrients.

I took multivitamins until some time in the middle of my fourth pregnancy. I am certainly someone who experiences my share of pregnancy nausea, but I definitely recall increased nauseousness immediately after taking the pill and throughout the day. I also had a general feeling of never knowing what I needed to eat. In short, I was nauseous, hungry, and not clear how to deal with it.

When I tried to go pill-free and take in my vitamins only in through healthy, sensible eating, I felt a completely different experience. My nausea was more manageable and my food seemed to agree with my stomach much better. For the first time, I began to have real "cravings" for particular foods, like carrots or tomatoes. After eating these foods, I felt satisfied and healthy. I used my natural cravings to develop a personal system of eating which worked well for me. Being in tune to the needs of your body is an important tool. When your needs change, you are sensitive to it and can act accordingly.

Is this method good for everyone? A woman needs to know herself and be ready to take responsibility for the outcomes of her choices. While paying attention to ones needs is definitely advised, not everyone is willing to eat in an appropriate manner to satisfy their nutritional requirements with diet alone. Those who stay ten feet away from the salad bar or despise eating fish probably need to invest their time in seeking out sensible supplementation.

There are also women who have increased needs for a particular nutrient despite a generally balanced diet. They need to either eat a therapeutic amount of food containing this nutrient or take a single supplement. For example, through suffering a miscarriage I had lost a significant amount of blood and needed extra iron. I had felt dizzy in general and especially when reading. Under such circumstances, a woman can start either an iron supplement or an iron-packed diet. After my previous iron pill experience, I choose the second option. I started an aggressive diet consisting of two exclusive lentil and tomato meals a day, and one daily bread meal. The lentils are rich in iron and the vitamin C in the tomatoes helps with iron absorption. In a short time, I felt stronger than before the miscarriage and was blessed with a healthy pregnancy a few months later.

Every woman needs to do what is right for herself. When a woman eats in order to be strong and healthy, she can be a better vessel to do the will of her Creator. In subsequent articles, we will discuss particular nutrients which need to be included in a standard pregnancy diet and how to tweak pre-existing diets to be healthier.

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