When Hollywood star Jessica Alba turned to the ALMA Awards a few weeks ago, you never guessed it was a new mother. In the two months since she gave birth, the actress has lost 11 kg baby on a low fat, low carb regime. Then there's Jessica Alba who, even during the third trimester of pregnancy, looks just like she had a bad case of bloat.
With models like these, the Ministry of Health of the ultra-sensitive directive that would allow mothers Kiwi nine to 12 months for post-pregnancy weight loss has a hollow ring. It is hardly surprising that women trying to regain their stomachs much faster than - some even have the choice of food during pregnancy.
Dietitian Nikki Hart said is a trend, she noted. "It does not seem to be a drive by women in developed countries to" get their bodies back "earlier than in previous decades," she said. "The urban women are more concerned about how they will be charged if they do not return to their pre-pregnancy weight and May this affect how they manage their diets during pregnancy."
Hart believes there is more that while keeping up with the stars. "One factor that I recognized is economic dependence of many couples on income from the mother. I am often said that women feel the need to have some sort of control over their busy lives, juggling work with motherhood, they must get their weight under control, either through dieting or exercising, even if they are exhausted. "
There are many reasons why regimes during pregnancy is a bad idea, the main one being that in the sub-mothers, nutrients go to support the mother not the baby in its growth. "That baby will tend to be low birth weight and are at increased risk of stillbirth or neonatal death and increased risk of type 2 diabetes, heart disease and hypertension in adulthood" Says Hart.
To support fetal growth health of pregnant women need more nutrients such as proteins, carbohydrates, essential fatty acids, iron, zinc, selenium, iodine, more vitamins and, most importantly, folic acid, which should be taken before conception to prevent neural tube defects. The most delicate is that they did not need much more food for energy - only 340 extra calories in the second quarter and 425 for third.
So rather than eating for two, pregnant and lactating women should concentrate on consumption of a nutrient-rich food. Everything is going on with empty calories, especially sugar and high-salt processed foods. Instead meals should all be on a wide range of well-washed fruits and veges, lean meat, fish, nuts, seeds, WholeGrains, lentils, beans, pasta, linseed oil and dairy products. Combined with the recommended 30 minutes of moderate exercise per day, which should keep weight gain gradually within the health zone (between 11.5 and 16 kg if your pre-pregnancy weight was normal, thinner for women, less if you're overweight at the beginning).
For Hollywood stars it is facilitated by nutritionists and dieticians they have. They can afford to eat individualized plans. The rest of us have things to work for ourselves.
"There are many excellent resources and books to motherhood with good nutrition sections so women can obtain the necessary information," says Hart. "However, I always thought it would be nice if all pregnant women could have at least one free session with a dietitian or nutritionist to ensure only mothers and children are increasingly eating and good.
