Though intermittent fasting (IF) is the latest health trend, it has been part of many people's cultural and religious practices for thousands of years. What is IF? Intermittent fasting is a dietary strategy that alternates fasting and eating periods. Methods include the 5:2 diet (5 normal days, 2 non-consecutive, low-calorie days), alternate-day fasting (alternating normal and 500-calorie days), and time-restricted eating (e.g., 16:8, with an 8-hour eating window). Research shows benefits like improved insulin sensitivity, reduced inflammation,...

What's for breakfast?   Sometimes it's hard to get inspired, and for some reason, healthy has become synonymous with flavorless. This is far from the truth! While pregnant, starting the day off with a healthy breakfast is incredibly important for a number of reasons. A healthy breakfast:   Provides essential nutrients: Breakfast is an opportunity to fuel your body with essential nutrients that are important for fetal development, such as protein, calcium, iron, and folic acid. Helps maintain a healthy...

Many women, when diagnosed with gestational diabetes, feel overwhelmed, even guilty. It’s important to understand that during pregnancy, women’s bodies go through many changes, including hormonal changes and weight gain. These changes cause a woman’s body to use insulin less efficiently. All women experience some insulin resistance during late pregnancy.  Gestational diabetes usually develops around week 24 of pregnancy, and all women should be tested for it. For women who do test positive for gestational diabetes,...

With the refrigerator shelves packed with different kinds of yogurt, it’s hard to know which is the best to buy. For pregnant women, most commercial yogurts are safe and, in fact pasteurized yogurt is a great snack choice throughout your pregnancy. Your developing baby needs calcium, proteins, and vitamin B12. Yogurt (PASTEURIZED) promotes healthy digestion, strengthens the immune system, and supports fetal development. What’s not to love? Why would somebody say not to eat yogurt? Some...

Pregnancy is strange. Certainly it’s miraculous. But ask any woman, and she’ll probably tell you it’s uncomfortable, exciting, daunting, terrifying, painful, overwhelming, nauseating, exhilarating. And, most definitely,  it’s … strange. First a woman grows an organ – the placenta. Then she grows another human being.  It’s the ultimate in awesome biology and chemistry and whoa! And, for some reason, everyone becomes a pregnancy expert as soon as they see a woman with a baby belly. These experts...

National Nutrition Month is a great time to focus on making smart food and exercise decisions for better health. With so much information out there, it can be hard to sort through trends and get to solid, reliable advice. Here are 8 tips that can help you make better health choices to improve your chances of healthy fertility, prenatal nutrition, and a healthy postnatal experience. Know thyself: There isn't a one-size-fits-all nutrition plan, as nutrition...