Question

suppose you are an anganwari worker, which two benefits you can provide to pregnant women. how will you raise the ethical standard in anganwari centre? Make a diet plan for a pregnant woman adding one iron rich and one protein rich dish in the plan.

Answer 1

1. Eat a healthful, pre-pregnancy diet.

Diet and lifestyle choices can have a significant impact on your fertility.  Eating well and developing healthy habits are important before and during pregnancy.

A large study conducted by Harvard researchers showed that women who adhered to a combination of five or more lifestyle factors, including specific changes to their diets, were at a 69% lower risk of ovulatory disorder infertility.

The following diet and lifestyle factors from the Fertility Diet will help you follow a healthy pre-pregnancy diet.

Increase the amount of “good” fats in your diet.

Monounsaturated fats are often known as “good fats.” Eat more avocados, nuts, and seeds, and use olive oil and canola oil for cooking and in salad dressings.

Limit foods containing trans fats.

Examples of these types of foods include vegetable shortenings, some margarines, baked goods, pie crusts, frostings, and fried foods. Check the Nutrition Facts Panel for trans fats.  You can also check the ingredients list for “hydrogenated” or “partially hydrogenated” vegetable oil.

Choose low glycemic index (GI) and glycemic load (GL)carbohydrates.

These foods include dried beans, legumes, fresh fruits, 100% whole-grain breads, oatmeal, quinoa, and non-starchy vegetables. The GI is a measure of how much and how quickly a carbohydrate-containing food increases blood sugar and insulin levels. Foods are ranked on a scale of 1-100. In general, eating foods that have a low GI (<55) results in a slower rise in blood sugar levels and less insulin secretion.

GI alone cannot tell the entire story.  The GL also needs to be considered to get an accurate understanding of a food’s total effect on blood sugar.  A Harvard Health article explains this in more detail and provides a list of foods according to GI and GL

In general, limit processed carbohydrates such as white rice, bread, and pasta, and most crackers, chips, cookies, and other packaged foods.  This is beneficial for any woman trying to conceive, and especially important if you have PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome).

Eat more vegetarian sources of iron.

Good vegetarian sources of iron include spinach, beans, legumes, prunes, and cashews.



Vitamin D3

Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin produced in our skin cells in response to sun exposure. If you are in the sun enough, at the right time of year, you will make all the vitamin D you need.

Most of us don’t get enough sun exposure to maintain adequate levels of vitamin D. Our diets don’t provide enough vitamin D either. Few foods naturally contain much vitamin D.

Getting enough vitamin D to achieve an optimal vitamin D blood level is important before and during pregnancy.  Several studies have linked vitamin D blood levels of 30 ng/mL or higher with better pregnancy rates.

It is important to have your vitamin D level checked when you start trying to conceive.  If your vitamin D level is low (below 30 ng/mL), take 2,000 to 4,000 IU of vitamin D3 for a few months to restore you to a normal level.  Once your level is normal, take 2,000 IU of vitamin D3 per day to keep you in the normal range.

Low vitamin D levels have been linked to pregnancy complications such as gestational diabetes (high blood sugar), preeclampsia (pregnancy-induced high blood pressure), and bacterial vaginosis (bacterial overgrowth in the vagina).

Typical prenatal vitamins provide only 400-1000 IU of vitamin D, which is not enough for most women.  Higher doses (2,000 to 4,000 IU) of vitamin D3 per day are safe during pregnancy and are effective in achieving normal vitamin D levels.