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Pregnancy Nutrition Tips from Dr. Howard Shapiro, especially written for G to G expectant mothers:
‘Good Fats’ for Pregnancy and Infant Feeding
Dr. Howard Shapiro
www.pictureperfectweightloss.com |
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“Chances are that you heard of the health benefits of a group of fats called omega-3’s. One particular member of this group, DHA or docosahexaenoic acid, is of special significance during pregnancy and infancy. Adequate amounts of DHA are important for proper brain and eye development, and from the third trimester of pregnancy through the first two years of life DHA levels in the brain increase rapidly. At least a dozen studies have documented that infants with higher blood levels of DHA score better on tests of brain and visual function. In one study pregnant women received 200mg. DHA each day, or placebo, through at least 4 months of breast-feeding. The infants of the supplemented mothers scored higher on cognitive function tests at 30 months and 5 years—long after the supplementation ended. |
A 2007 consensus statement developed by the European Commission research project PeriLip recommends that all pregnant and breastfeeding women consume an average of at least 200mg. DHA per day. Most women in North America consume only about 60-80mg. DHA a day. The recommendations can be met by eating 2-3 servings (3-4 ounces each) of fish, especially fatty fish, per week. However, because of high mercury and PCB levels, the Food and Drug Administration recommends that pregnant and breastfeeding women should not eat swordfish, tilefish, king mackerel and shark. Intake of albacore tuna should be limited to 6 ounces per week. DHA supplements made from fish oil are commercially available. For those who choose not to eat fish or take fish oil supplements, a vegetarian form of DHA is also available: It is made from micro algae—a tiny sea plant cultivated as a source of DHA and other nutrients added to foods, beverages, infant formula and food supplements. A daily dose of 300mgs. is adequate for pregnancy and lactation. Flaxseeds and flax oil, walnuts and walnut oil, and canola oil are excellent sources of a related essential fatty acid called ALA (alpha-linolenic acid). The body is able to convert varying amount of ALA to DHA; so if you’re consuming these foods on a regular basis, your requirement for DHA from seafood or supplements will be somewhat lower. Breast milk from a well-nourished mother provides adequate amounts of DHA and AA (arachidonic acid—another unsaturated fatty acid), and is the preferred source of infant nutrition. Infants who are not breastfed should receive formula containing both DHA and AA. “
Dr. Howard Shapiro has been acclaimed for his proven program of “Food Awareness Training”. Dr. Shapiro has had a successful holistic nutrition, health, weight loss and weight maintenace practice in Manhattan for more than 20 years. He is dedicated to Nutrition and Healthy eating for those seeking greater awareness of what we put into our bodies. For Generation to Generation Pregnancy Products, he focuses on nutrition education for increasing more beneficial foods for pregnancy intake, rather than unfavorable ingredients. He has been featured in the New York Times, New York Daily News, New Woman, Vogue, Mademoiselle, W, Marie Claire, Cosmopolitan, Self, Ladies Home Journal, Woman’s Day, Good Housekeeping, Parents Magazine, Longevity, and Reader’s Digest. He has helped hundreds of celebrity, executive, and model clients. Dr. Shapiro’s multi-faceted healthy eating programs continue to be featured on Good Morning America and The View.
Perinatal Specialist, Georgia Montgomery
on Generation to Generation Pregnancy Products:
“I’ve been a hospital Health Educator for many years now, and as an instructor in Childbirth Preparation, Breastfeeding, Newborn Care and Infant/Child CPR and Safety, I’ve made it a special point to keep up on the health implications of products used by pregnant women. The health and well being of mothers and babies is at the core of my life’s work. As such, it is a pleasure to know about Generation to Generation’s commitment to provide mothers with health-promoting products that are safe for moms-to-be.
In my classes, I stress the importance of knowing the connection between what products mom is using and the health of her unborn baby. Everything that comes into contact with mom will have an impact on baby to one degree or other, so it is important to maintain healthy skin (the largest organ on the body) and also to relieve stress and worry for mom, which research has shown does affect her unborn baby. So, products for skin and hair need to be carefully chosen.
Just looking at the depth and breadth of research and mindfulness that has gone into the development of these products has me breathing a sigh of relief; finally moms have a safe resource for beauty products which maintain integrity, quality and an eye towards the healthy future of our babies.
In a larger sense, it’s a sign of the times that we’re becoming more aware as a culture, of the importance of overall health for mothers-to-be. Generation to Generation is a wonderful step in a more healthy direction for this and upcoming generations of babies and moms.”
Georgia Montgomery
CBE, CD, LE, BLS
About Georgia:
Georgia Montgomery, CD, CCE, LE, BLS, is a leading Perinatal educator and specialist in newborn care and breastfeeding in the San Francisco Bay Area. She is dedicated to providing parents with the information and the skills that will help to empower them to make healthy decisions about their birth experience, and to provide the best possible education and resources for Bay Area families.
She has had over 16 years, hands-on experience with newborns and taught for 5 years at University of California SF Medical Center, California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco. She presently teaches at UCSF Medical Center, Kaiser and Marin General Hospitals.
Her services include:
Infant/Child CPR - Private and Group
Private Childbirth Preparation, Newborn Care or Breastfeeding Classes
To learn more about Georgia Montgomery and her dedicated involvement with Pregnancy and newborns, please visit:
Planning a “Heart and Soul Baby Shower”
It’s so much fun to plan a shower, and have all your friends together for such a milestone event in life! If you want to give your baby-to-be a beautiful start to life, by caring about other children, consider having your Shower Planner contact Project Night Night for adorable tote bags to be filled with blankies and stuffed animals for homeless children to sleep with in shelters in your area. All your friends together can stuff the bags that go directly to a little one who will cuddle the items you fill it with! You will be able to tell your baby-to-be one day, “Many children received comforting items from Mommy and my friends, all because you were going to be born to us precious little one”.
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