Being pregnant and vegetarian

[CobainsAngel]

Hi, I'm new here and I'm seven, almost eight weeks in to my first pregnancy!
There is so much I wish to know as like I said, his is my first baby and you know, you want to try be as clued up as you can!
Anyways, so far I've not seen a thread about being a veggie expecting mother...
So I thought I'd start one! :)
I'm veggie and healthy and although I suffered with horrid morning sickness, I'm starting to eat properly again...
What got up my nose is that I knew before I was pregnant that I was healthy but my midwife had the cheek to tell me I don't eat properly! Now, to be fair, as a veggie I'm unlikely to take dietary tips from a meat eater, and please don't think I am selfish as I know my body is shared now. Anyway, I even been to my doctors and spoke about my diet and even asked if I could have multi vitamin tablets in case he thinks my diet will effect my baby...
He said my diet is fine, everything is fine and I am healthy, as long as I stay away from the obvious foods, I'll be ok and baby will be healthy...
I'm glad he confirmed it! I can keep myself healthy so I'm sure I can manage to keep my little one well through pregnancy too!
Oh yeah, I had an early scan at 6 weeks one day, everything was said to be well so far!
Has any other vegetarian pregnant ladies, or veggie mothers had people telling you that you are not eating properly?
It really gets up my nose when I get told I am selfish for not eating meat whilst pregnant...

I've been a vegetarian for 20 odd years and managed to have two healthy babies, the most recent of which was 10lb!

I never gave being vegetarian during pregnancy a moment's thought. In fact I would worry more if I ate meat tbh, with all the pollutants/hormones/nasties that can get into it.

I've been a vegetarian since birth and am 29+1 today. No one has told me I'm not eating properly.

TBH, I think we veggies actually have an advantage as half the things they tell you not to eat during pregnancy we don't eat anyway. So we don't actually have to limit our diet that much.

Hi there,

Congratulations on your pregnancy! I am 30wks with my first and also a vegetarian. I actually get quite a hard time from my DH who is not a vegetarian and believes I am not eating healthily enough!
I have been fine throughout however my iron levels dropped a bit and the midwife recommended taking Spa tone which I have been taking daily and will have another test next visit.
You know your body well enough to ensure you get everything as required as you normally would so dont worry about it, relax and enjoy it! (by the way you will get used to this as you are now officially public property and people will give you their opininons on absolutley everything!!!)

Thank you! You are all brilliant! See, the main problem which I worried about was omega 3, but I have a vegan friend which advised me that raw seeds are high in omega 3! Good stuff! I agree about being more worried if I was eating meat...
Oh, haha! I'm expecting it all to come, frenchfries22! =P I had everyones opinions when I wasn't pregnant, now that I am I have already had people poking their noses in!
Hey, have any of you found it tough bringing up veggie babies? I mean, there's only one powdered milk which is actually veggie as far as I know, but breast is best? Also, did anyone have any stick over bringing up a veggie baby? I've been told by my midwife that it's cruel! :| Surely it's not cruel bringing up a veggie baby!

May I suggest you change your midwife?!

My children are being brought up veggie, and again its not something I even consider as an issue. But then I have been veggie for so long that to me its completely normal, most of our friends are veggie, we live in a vegetarian community, and I have absolutely no doubts about the suitability of a vegetarian diet for children.

I don't think there are any vegetarian formula milks anymore. There's an online chart that shows whats in them all, I will try to post it. I'm pretty sure they all contain LCPs (long chain fatty acids) derived from fish oils.

Congratulations - I am another pregnant veggie. I am 11 weeks and have been veggie for 20 years. This is my third. My children are also veggie and they are healthy and happy. It has never been a problem. In fact, one paediatrician reminded me that large populations of the world are veggie and this doesn't affect their health at all!

I did get mildly anaemic towards the end of pregnancy 2, but so do some meat eaters. I will probably take iron supplements. My doctors have recommended this. And they have never had an issue with me being a pregnant veggie. It sounds as if your midwife is pretty ignorant!

Flaxseed is great you can sprinkle in porridge and it gives you omega 3 and is quite tasty. I am not sure about milk I actually haven't thought to check will be trying my best to go the breast route. Not sure if you have read the skinny bitch books - I know quite controversial but there is a pregnancy one that made me think about a few things

I've been veggie for more than 25 years and had two healthy vegetarian pregnancies with both babies over 9lbs (both now very tall, healthy vegetarian children). My GP was very supportive (he was also vegetarian, no surprise there); hospital was horrified, but this was in Japan so they are not so used to vegetarians, and when they saw the huge (by Japanese standards) healthy baby I produced, they stopped bothering me about it for the second baby.

I was also slightly anaemic towards the end of the second one, but I agree that judging by all my friends' experiences, that seems fairly normal for veggies and meat eaters alike. I didn't take any particular supplements except folic acid and iron when prescribed, just ate a good variety of tofu, pulses, eggs, dairy, fruit & veg.

Hi. I'm an 11 week pregnant veggie and although I've always been healthy with no anaemia etc, I now take a suppliment called 'pregnacare' I think which contains folic acid as well as other vits but is suitable for vegetarians and for pregnancy. Also take a vegetarian omega 3 suppliment- hard to get hold of as most are non veggie. I'm sure I could manage on a good diet but i'm being cautious as through nausea i've lost weight rather than gained and am eating a restricted diet with little veg as it makes me feel worse!

I'm almost 36 weeks with my first baby. I don't eat meat or eggs and try to limit my dairy intake. I've had a very healthy pregnancy with no worries about anaemia or baby's growth. As many have already posted, your diet is probably a lot healthier than average (as long as you're not replacing meat with cheese at every meal like I did in my teens!).

I'm not veggie anymore but I still don't eat meat (I eat fish). I haven't had any issues and my iron levels have been great so far (I'm now 30 weeks).

Taking a prenatal multi-supplement is good for anyone - not only should you supplement folic acid for the 1st trimester, you should also supplement vitamin D throughout pregnancy.

You all have been great help! Like Tinwe, I also have been losing a little bit of weight due to horrible MS, but when I asked my doctor about taking vitamins two days ago, he said I should be able to manage, plus taking more tablets will make me sick...
I'll ask again on Monday when I go back, because I'll be wary of taking unprescribed medication!
I've seen veggie friendly omega 3 in supermarkets like Morrisons! In the mean time I'll try and control it by diet, as I have now got my apatite back, woo!
I agree, my midwife was rather rude about my diet... She's only my GP midwife so I'm sure she#s not as important as the hospital midwife that I'll be seeing?
Anyways, you ladies have reassured me lots! Congratulations with your pregnancies and births!
I'm made up with all your comments, true help! More are welcome ;) x

Hey! Seen the same midwife again last week, and I was really sick the night previous and woken up and still didn't feel fresh,and had to make my way to see her at quarter to ten... So I expected I wouldn't be "glowing", and the fact I have a pale complexion anyways... The midwife told me that I should stock up on eating meat because I look pale and could be anemic... I had my blood tests done a few weeks back,and again a couple of weeks ago and I'm completely fine and not anemic! That's my update anyways... I understand my iron intake MIGHT drop towards the end of pregnancy like EVERYONE else's, whether they eat meat or not... I agree that as she is a meat eater she doesn't understand the veggie diet, and if most doctors/midwife knew then maybe most would recommend it? Oh well, I'm very reassured regardless of what meat eating friends, family or midwives say about my diet not being the best... I'm doing fine and my baby is going strong ;) xx

I'm also veggie and had healthy pregnancies, no problems with anaemia in either. (Kids also veggie and absolutely healthy.) Plenty of meat-eaters follow terrible diets lacking in vitamins and minerals because they do not eat enough fruit and veg and whole grains, which I bet your ignorant midwife would not think to query!

Seriously, find another midwife. If she's ignorant about this, there's no telling what else she lacks education about. You may need to see her quite a lot during your pregnancy, so get someone you feel confident about and comfortable with.

I have been veggie for 16 years now, and have had 3 big fat healthy babies and am almost 15 weeks with another, all have been veggie from birth, no problems whatsoever, I did get anaemic towards the end of all my pregnancies but it was nothing some iron tablets couldnt fix, I mix fed all of mine, and the formula I used was sma white, I think this is veggie friendly, or was, but there were times when they had sma gold, which I know isnt veggie friendly but needs must, same with the vitamin k injection at birth, it isnt veggie friendly (think it has bovine summat or other in it? might have made that up) but I still went for it.

I have been veggie/vegan for 28yrs and have had 2 healthy pregnancies so far and am 17 weeks into another and iron levels are normal again.

CobainsAngel - I am really shocked about the attitude from your midwife as I have had no negative comments from mine, just to eat marmite and apricots to keep iron levels up. These people are in a position of power as so many of us look to them for help and advice, to abuse that power by forcing their own opinions is unforgivable.

I had 2 healthy veggie pregnancies (although I lapsed right at the end of the second one and ate roast chicken for the first time in 17 years).

I took multi-vits both time, went to the gym and was never anaemic.

Your midwife sounds very out of touch .

I unexpectedly found out I was pregnant two weeks ago. I'm now 13 weeks! The doctors and midwife assured me that the very fact I am vegetarian means I shouldn't to worry about not knowing and perhaps eating wrongly. As a vegetarian my daily diet - a huge variety of fruit and veg, tofu, nuts and pulses, yoghurt - is probably the best diet for an unaware expectant mother and they've told me not to change anything. If I had been surviving on McDonalds rather than folic acid-rich vegetables I'm sure they'd be more worried. I do live in LA (although I'm English) so maybe their attitude is more modern here.

But my mother and Grandmother are also both lifelong vegetarians, in my grandmothers case she had four healthy babies in Scotland on rations both during and after the war (very unusual then), and my mum had two. We are all still very healthy and a happy vegetarian family! And my Grandma is still going strong (and vegetarian) at nearly 90, while many of her meat-eating friends are long since gone.

I'm no expert on diets but I think that what matters is eating healthily, and that doesn't necessarily mean meat.

I am vegetarian and expecting my first baby, I am 21 weeks at the mo...My mid-wife said that there is no need to take any supplements/vitamins unless your bloods come back stating a deficiency somewhere. My iron is high and all is good. As long as you are eating healthily and taking in all your body and baby needs there is nothing to worry about! :)

I am not vegetarian (and obviously in the minority here) but I always find when I am pregnant I go right off meat and in fact crave vegan or raw food. It seems an indication to me that my body is showing me the best things to eat - going back to my own childhood as I was brought up vegan for quite a while.

Unfortunately many midwives and health visitors are terribly uninformed about good nutrition and just spout the same nonsense they were probably told when pregnant themselves. It's a good idea to watch out when your baby is born because in my experience most of the information they give you is terribly out of date and not based on any evidence whatsoever. Ds1 had a cow's milk sensitivity so I was very aware of needing to give him plant-based sources of calcium but many health professionals had problems with that. You may also hear lots of guff about fully breastfed babies needing Vit D supplements and iron supplements (as if the formula is better than breast milk when in fact the manufacturers are always trying and failing to meet that gold standard.) Best to do your own research - and if you are used to a vegetarian diet yourself, you will know a lot about making sure it is well balanced.

Thank you! Everyones advice is brilliant! I'm due to see her again on February 2nd... Lat time I seen her she was ignoring my veggie diet and telling me to eat meat, blah blah... I think I will have to change her! Like what's been aid here, and I said to my partner, my midwife is there to reassure me that everything is going to be fine,that I'm doing well and keep me positive, rather than saying that with the way I'm eating I'm more likely to have a poorly baby! My midwife also commented on the fact I looked rather pale... The night before I went to see her, I wasn't well as some smells to this day even, makes me feel rather queezy! That and I wore no make up, and I am naturally like a milk bottle =P
Still, I don't need comments like that or to feel awful and as if I could be making my baby poorly!...
Well, last Friday I had my scan at 21 weeks 4 days and I am pleased to say that everything is normal! Beautiful, perfect, bloods are fine, I'm fine, everything is fine! And my daughter is brilliant too =P She is the right size, has everything she needs, forever dancing so I have nothing to worry about! So far I am another successful veggie mum to be! _ With a little fatty on the way! Haha! The only naughty bit about my diet is that my little one wants crisps and fizzy pop, but I've learned to replace fizzy pop more often with water and Jasmine tea, and eat more fruit, even though I still go and eat crisps, lol! I'm pleased with how things are going so far and I am very pleased with the advice from everyone here! You are all brilliant and I wish you were all my midwives )'= lol! (Hormones... Sorry! Haha).
All help and advice is always welcome, and I'mm be posting another forum out tomorrow, (well today now after some sleep) so please look out for it and feel free to advise me there, too! (= xxx