Preconception Care
Why you need to be thinking about preconception nutrition NOW!
So it is common knowledge and understanding that nutrition through pregnancy is really important, but what about before you fall pregnant?
Preconception nutrition and lifestyle has the power to not only affect your pregnancy and your baby but also your grandchildren’s health - it’s a big responsibility. Given that around 50% of pregnancies are ‘whoopies’ pregnancies, or pregnancies that are unplanned, developing good habits now will not only enhance your fertility but give the best environment for your bubba to grow!
Let’s firstly take a look at the preconception period.
Have you heard of the term ‘trimester zero’? It is the period of time before you get pregnant and is what I like to call the preconception period, and it’s not just a case of a few days of preparation. The preconception period can be years in duration, and it can be a little overwhelming thinking about fertility and optimising the body when, for most, this period is made up of time that we are actively trying not to get pregnant! Therefore, I will clarify it a little further.
Ideally, preconception is the 3-6 months before you fall pregnant, or longer. Why?
Three months before conceiving is a critical time as egg cells are developing and maturing before you ovulate. The development of sperm also impacts the health of the embryo, as a full sperm cycle takes about 64 days, so what your partner is eating and drinking in the lead up to conceiving can have an impact.
Additionally, as your requirements for specific nutrients increase when you are pregnant and breastfeeding, you don’t want to be behind the eight ball before you fall pregnant.
I recommend that 6-12 months is a good timeframe to be working on all elements of yourself to help correct any nutritional deficiencies, as well as to optimise your lifestyle and weight for conception and pregnancy. This is particularly important if you are stopping contraceptives during this timeframe.
So let’s get into some of the most important nutrients to focus on during the preconception period as a woman:
Folate
This is an essential mineral to promote the healthy development of your baby’s neural tube, which starts to form often before you even get a positive pregnancy test!
Being low in folate is quite common in women, which is why it is suggested to take prenatal supplements that include folate for the preconception period.
Some key foods that folate can be found in include lentils, legume beans, green leafy vegetables (the darker, the better!), avocados and oranges.
Iodine
Iodine is an essential mineral that is important for a healthy thyroid and thyroid hormone production. These thyroid hormones are needed for normal growth and development of tissues in your body. If iodine levels are low during early pregnancy, then this can affect the baby with growth and developmental abnormalities.
Some of the best foods that contain iodine are oysters, seaweed, salmon and fortified food. This can include iodised salt or salt with dulse.
Zinc
Zinc is an essential trace element important for rapid cell division and growth during pregnancy. Your zinc demands increase during pregnancy and lactation, which only makes it harder to adequately support the rapid growth of your baby if you are already low in zinc prior to conception.
Zinc can be found in a variety of food items such as oysters, beef, chicken, eggs, fish, milk, cheese, cashews, legumes such as chickpeas, and seeds.
Vitamin D
Delivered to the body through sunlight, Vitamin D is another important nutrient that we need to consider through pre-conception. It has been found that inadequate vitamin D status pre-conception and during pregnancy could lead to eczema, asthma and food allergy, as well as increased risk of gestational diabetes, pre-eclampsia and small-for-gestational-age infants 1.
Emerging evidence suggests it may play a role in hormonal balance, ovulation, egg development, and embryo quality, more so if you are deficient than anything else. Check your Vitamin D status with your GP and load up on fortified eggs, salmon and tuna (and most importantly some sunshine) in the meantime.
Getting enough healthy fats alongside vitamin D is important to help your body absorb this important nutrient, so check you are getting some extra virgin olive oil, avocado, oily fish, nuts & seeds each day.
Now, these are only a few of the critical elements and nutrition of preconception care. There are many more that can influence our child’s (and possibly grandchild’s) future health, as well as ours, the women's health, long term.
Whilst the planning may still be in the very ‘fun’ stage of your pregnancy journey, ensuring adequate nutrition during preconception is vital to ensure you start your growing family with healthy habits early.
Blog is written by Samantha Anderson
Day J, Savani S, Krempley BD, Nguyen M, Kitlinska JB. Influence of paternal preconception exposures on their offspring: through epigenetics to phenotype. Am J Stem Cells. 2016;5(1):11-18. Published 2016 May 15.