As veganism becomes more popular, many women are choosing to follow a plant-based diet — even during pregnancy. However, it’s crucial to maintain a balanced diet during this time that provides all essential nutrients to meet your increased nutritional needs and ensure a healthy pregnancy.
A vegan pregnancy diet excludes all foods of animal origin, i.e. not only meat and fish, but also milk, dairy products, eggs, gelatin, honey, etc.
Eating a vegan diet during pregnancy can be challenging and requires extra care and nutrition knowledge to ensure you’re getting the right amount of key vitamins and minerals.
Vegan pregnancy diet – what you need to know
Historically, vegetarian or vegan diets have been criticized for lacking nutrients and being inappropriate for more sensitive life stages, such as pregnancy.
This is because they tend to be naturally low in micronutrients like vitamin B12 and vitamin D, omega-3 fats, iron, iodine, calcium, and zinc — all of which are especially important during pregnancy.
Vegan pregnancy and potential health challenges
A low intake of these nutrients can result in nutrient deficiencies and pregnancy complications. For instance, insufficient vitamin B12 levels during pregnancy may raise your risk of miscarriage, preterm birth, or birth defects.
In addition, a vegan pregnancy diet has been associated with lower birth weight, which may be linked to reduced maternal weight gain during pregnancy.
Vegan pregnancy and nutritional considerations
If you’re vegan, it’s important to ensure you’re getting enough iron and vitamin B12, which are commonly found in animal products, as well as vitamin D (often found in eggs), calcium (typically found in dairy), and iodine (in seafood).
A vegan pregnancy—without meat, fish, dairy products, and eggs—is therefore not ideal for pregnant women unless carefully planned, as it requires extra attention to certain nutrients.
If you want to eat a vegan pregnancy diet despite the indication of possible health risks for your baby, you may need personalized nutrition counseling, frequent medical check-ups (regular control of your blood values) and additional nutritional supplements.
Vegan while pregnant: Why supplements are a must
A vegan diet for pregnant women must include the right supplements to avoid falling short on essential nutrients needed for a healthy pregnancy. If you choose to be vegan while pregnant, it’s especially important to plan your nutrition carefully.
Good sources of vitamin B12 for vegetarians include milk, cheese and eggs. For vegans, some great options are: Breakfast cereals fortified with B12, unsweetened soy drinks fortified with B12, yeast extract (like Marmite) and nutritional yeast flakes fortified with B12.
In addition, high-quality nutritional supplements are a must (including folic acid, vitamin B12, vitamin D, iodine, zinc, and calcium) to help prevent nutrient deficiencies during pregnancy.
If you don’t eat fish, supplements with long-chain omega-3 fatty acids, such as DHA, are also advisable. On top of that, taking extra iron makes sense, as plant-based iron is absorbed less efficiently than iron from animal sources.
Pregnant vegetarian diet – safe nutritional choices
On the other hand, a well-planned pregnant vegetarian diet (excluding meat, poultry, and fish but including protein sources like eggs and dairy products) can be considered safe and nutritionally adequate during pregnancy and lactation!
However, attention must be given to certain nutrients that are less abundant in plant-based sources. Pregnant women following a lacto-ovo-vegetarian diet should ensure adequate intake of vitamin B12 through dairy and eggs, and consider supplementation to be on the safe side when nutrition matters most.
Plant-based pregnancy diet
Vegetarians can continue to avoid meat and fish during pregnancy by following a well-balanced plant-based pregnancy diet. It’s just important to choose the right foods – such as pulses, tofu, eggs and dairy products for that extra portion of protein!
The Planetary Health Diet is perfect for flexitarians who eat meat only occasionally.
