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Good nutrition for pregnant and breastfeeding women

Updated Generic C-IYCF Counselling Package, 2024 (UNICEF | 2024)
Good nutrition for pregnant and breastfeeding women

Key Messages

  • During your pregnancy and breastfeeding, healthy eating and physical activity help you stay healthy, attain or maintain a healthy weight, prevent excessive weight gain and help your baby grow well.
  • Healthy eating is eating a variety of foods, including green and orange vegetables, meat, fish, beans, nuts, whole grains and fruit, and reducing your intake of fat, salt and sugar.
  • Foods that are nutritious to eat during pregnancy and breastfeeding include milk and milk products, fresh fruits and vegetables, meat, fish, eggs, grains, peas and beans.
  • Drinking tea or coffee with meals can interfere with your body’s ability to take nutrients from the foods you eat. Limit or avoid the amount of tea and coffee you drink during pregnancy.
  • Use iodized salt when preparing meals to help your baby’s brain and body develop well.
  • Drink water whenever you are thirsty. Avoid beverages that are high in sugar.
  • Take iron and folic acid tablets daily to prevent anaemia during pregnancy and for at least three months after your baby is born.
  • Take any multi-micronutrient supplements or medicines prescribed by your health care provider.
  • Take deworming tablets to help prevent anaemia, as advised by your health care provider.
  • In areas where there is a lot of malaria, sleep under an insecticide-treated mosquito net and take anti-malarial tablets as prescribed by your health care provider.
  • Adolescent mothers: You need more food, care and rest than an older mother. Nourish your own body, which is still growing, as you nourish your growing baby.

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