Simple & Healthy Pregnancy Meals To Prevent and Control Gestational Diabetes

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When you’re going through your first trimester of pregnancy, coming up with meal ideas can be extra tricky. One moment you’re attempting to fill your body with all the best nutrients for your baby, and the next you feel overwhelmed with nausea. Balancing cravings with nutrients can feel like a balancing act.

Our team wants to take away the stress of ideating on meals and make it as easy as possible for you and your baby to eat healthy. That’s why we’ve put together a tried and true list of healthy meals to eat throughout your pregnancy that are proven to reduce nausea, prevent high blood sugar, and gestational diabetes:

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BREAKFAST

Craving somethin’ sweet? Here are few simple (and low sugar) breakfast ideas to satisfy your sweet tooth:

  1. 2 Muffins:

    1. Sweet potato muffins

    2. Banana flax & almond meal muffins with blueberries

    3. Pumpkin baked oatmeal cups

    4. Green smoothie muffins

  2. Smoothie (Add fiber such as chia seeds, berries, vegetables, flax seeds and protein to help balance blood sugars)

    1. ½ cup dark cherries, ½ cup almonds or 2 tablespoons almond butter, 1 cup spinach or kale, 1 cup almond milk

    2. ½ banana with 2 tablespoons peanut butter, 1 tablespoon flax or chia seeds, 1 cup unsweetened almond milk

    3. 1 cup of berries with ½ cup yogurt or kefir, 1 tablespoon of chia seeds

  3. Chia seed pudding

    1. Pumpkin spice

    2. With chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, ½ banana, or berries

  4. Other

    1. Bowl of mixed fruit with 2 tablespoons of ground flax seeds, pumpkin seeds, or sunflower seeds (optional-add a handful of fresh spinach)

    2. ½ cup oatmeal with 1 tablespoon of flax seeds (whole or ground), 1 tablespoon nut butter, 1 tablespoon butter

    3. “N’oatmeal” ½ cup of pumpkin seeds or flax seeds cooked like oatmeal. Add butter and honey to taste (the high amount of protein and fiber will allow for you to add some sweetener to it without raising blood sugars)

    4. Josie Baker's Adventure bread and topping

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Are you more of a savory kind of gal? Here’s a list of healthy, savory meals you can whip up for breakfast:

  1. 2 eggs and 1 piece of whole grain toast with butter, 1 slice of cheese

  2. 2 eggs, ½ cup of refried beans, salsa, avocado

  3. Omelet with spinach or arugala

  4. 1 cup of whole fat cottage cheese with 1 slice of whole grain toast and butter

  5. 2 eggs, 2 sausage, or 3 slices of bacon

  6. Sweet potato hash browns, 2 eggs, 1 sausage

  7. 1 avocado with lime, salt, pepper, 1 slice of whole grain toast with butter

  8. ½ avocado, ½ cup of cottage cheese, 1 slice of whole grain toast

  9. 2 eggs, bowl of fruit

  10. Roast broccolini with serving size of buckwheat polenta or grits

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LUNCH

When the middle of the day hits, it’s important to fuel your body with healthy nutrients to keep you going throughout the rest of the day. Think: highest carb meal at lunch. Pair it with protein and veggies to give you energy the rest of the day. During the first trimester, these are some options we’d recommend for lunch:

  • Salad with hemp hearts, chicken, beans, pumpkin seeds, tuna, or cheese

  • Egg or tuna salad on Mary’s Gone Crackers or other whole grain crackers, cucumbers, or celery

  • Quinoa with black beans, sweet potatoes, cucumber, lime dressing

  • Smoothie

  • Dinner leftovers

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SNACKTIME 

Now that you’re eating for two, it’s important to remember to have small snacks throughout the day (at least 1 snack a day minimum). Eat these in between meals, or right before bedtime if you have persistent nausea or high fasting blood sugars.

Some healthy snack ideas are:

  • Dark chocolate and almonds

  • 2 dates with dark chocolate and pistachios or almonds

  • Berries

  • Cherries and almonds

  • Carrots and hummus or peanut butter

  • Jicama, celery, radishes, peppers with hummus

  • Small apple (or ½ a large apple) or pear with cheese, walnuts

  • root vegetable chips (beets, taro, parsnip, etc) or high fiber cracker such as Mary’s Gone Crackers with cheese or hummus

  • Ants on a log (celery, nut butter, raisins)

  • Seaweed snacks

  • Sweet potato with nut butter

  • Banana with yogurt, kefir, or nut butter

  • Trail mix

  • Pumpkin seeds

  • 1 Muffin

  • Avocado drizzled with olive oil, salt, lime

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DINNER

Round out your days with a wholesome dinner. Veggies, protein, and plenty of healthy carbohydrate meals are key.

Try nutrient dense meals such as:

  • Roasted chicken with vegetables

  • Stir Fry

  • Bunless burger 

  • Roast with vegetables

  • Sausage and roast vegetables

  • Kale salad

  • Lentil Curry with coconut, sweet potato, and kale

  • Coconut cauliflower stew

  • Baked salmon with broccoli and root vegetable pure

  • Meatloaf with sweet potato 

  • Bolognese sauce over spaghetti squash

  • Dal (lentils) with avocado, tomato, and cucumber salad

Looking for more prenatal health advice? Read our blog on immune boosters that are safe to use during pregnancy or contact us to learn more about our prenatal services. If you are trying to get your snap back after baby, check out Fitness Volt’s How-Many-Calories-Per-Day-Calculator