Valentine’s Day chocolates
Tuesday, February 14th, 2012
Happy Valentine’s Day! I don’t know about you, but I can always convince myself that a piece of dark chocolate is not only tasty but good for me. After all, it’s a fine source of antioxidants – right? Yes, but you know the drill when it comes to candy – everything in moderation.
When you’re pregnant you need to be careful to eat a healthy diet. You’ve heard how important it is to take in lots of fruits and vegetables, whole grains and lean meat and fish. Watch out for the hidden sugar in fruit drinks and sodas. With chocolate, it’s not just the sugar, it’s the fat, too. A little piece once in a while is fine, but try to keep that box at bay for the rest of the day. You don’t want to give your pregnant body any incentive to shift toward gestational diabetes.
Most women need around 300 extra calories per day during pregnancy. For example, one healthy snack like four fig bars and a glass of skim milk will provide these extra calories. However, the exact amount of extra calories you need depends on your weight before pregnancy. Talk to your health provider to learn more about a healthy eating plan that’s right for you.
Enjoy that occasional treat – you deserve it! But watch what you eat the rest of the time.
There are lots of good reasons to breastfeed, but this one is my all time favorite. Breastfeeding may help you lose the weight gained in pregnancy. According to experts, women who breastfeed exclusively for more than 3 months lose more weight than those who do not. I personally benefited from nursing and was back to my pre-pregnancy weight by six months. I should also mention that after I got my doctor’s OK, I started to do a lot walking each day and continued to watch my diet. My appetite went through the roof though, so it was really difficult to eat healthy all of the time. Especially because I was craving cookies night and day. I never had such a sweet tooth in my life! The 
