5 Morning Rituals for a Healthier Day & Healthier you

Don’t underestimate the importance of mother’s nutrition both during and after pregnancy and its direct relation to baby’s brain development and infant cognition. #FeedIQ

From the time you realize you are going to be a mom, you have your mommy instincts up. An expecting mother gets into gear, in making her lifestyle better, her food choices healthier. It’s a journey of making yourself ready to have that bundle of joy in your arms – happy healthy and sound. One of the key area of improvement in a pregnant lady’s life is always the nutrition. When you meet your doctor on your first month checkup, she never fails to explain you the importance of mother’s nutrition both during and post pregnancy. Good nutrition with balanced diet leads to a healthy pregnancy and a healthy baby. But did you know about the importance of mother’s nutrition for developing baby’s cognition? Yes, good nutrition for the mother results in good cognitive development in your baby both in the womb and for the first 1 year of its life. It’s the mother who feeds IQ through her nutrition in the baby and helps in developing better infant cognition. #FeedIQ

What is the Importance of Mother’s Nutrition during pregnancy?

This is one place where your doctor and your mother and grandmother will agree.

PREGNANCY = GOOD NUTRITIOUS FOOD FOR THE MOTHER.

Baby’s brain development has already started by the time you are 6 months pregnant. The last 3 months of pregnancy is crucial for brain development. The health and nutritional status of a mother during pregnancy is directly related to the development of brain during foetal stage of a baby. The size of the brain of a baby at birth is almost 70% of adult size of the brain. Poor nutrition, often, hinders in neurodevelopmental potential and brain development of the baby.

What are the Nutrients a Pregnant mother needs the most for better infant cognition?

Apart from having a protein rich diet, a pregnant mother requires several nutrients specially during pregnancy which helps in good brain development and infant cognition.

1. Folate & Folic Acid – Folic Acid and folate directly helps in the development of the neural tube of the baby. Low folate levels in mom can lead to neurodevelopmental problem in babies.

2. Iodine – Iodine deficiency can lead to mental retardation.

3. Iron – Iron deficiency can lead to anaemia and low birth-weight

4. Vitamin D – Vitamin D Deficiency can lead to lower bone density in your baby in their growing years

Lack of these micro-nutrients can hamper the foetal development. Pregnancy is the time when you should not compromise with good nutrition that has all the macro and micro nutrients that an expecting mother’s body needs.

When I was expecting I remember taking folic acids every single day. Folic acid, vitamin and iron supplements continued even after pregnancy. Because a breastfeeding mother needs all these nutrients too. She feeds those nutrients to the baby through breastfeeding.

What is the importance of mother’s nutrition post pregnancy?

Once you have the baby, for the first three months your sole responsibility is to provide him with good nutrition so that he can get bigger and better. All the nutrition that a baby needs is in the breastmilk. He doesn’t need anything else in the first 6 months of his life. Not even water. Breastfeeding is best for brain growth and neuro-motor development of the babies. Nearly two-third of the brain weight is resultant of phospholipids and long chain fatty acids.

What are the nutrients that helps in baby’s brain development and infant cognition?

Baby’s brain development is directly related to two vital nutrients – DHA and Natural Vitamin E, both of which are present in the mother’s milk. Apart from these AA, choline, taurine and lutein provide all that a baby needs for his brain’s growth.

Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), is a long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acid is a very important brain nutrient. It is naturally found in the mother’s milk and is directly related to the amount of DHA in the mother’s diet. Did you know, human milk contains 30 times more DHA than cow’s milk? Baby’s DHA, however, is prone to oxidation and needs protection against damage.

Natural Vitamin E, is a powerful anti-oxidant present in the breast milk that helps in preventing DHA from oxidization. Natural Vitamin E is found in brain regions that support visual, memory and language development in a baby.

How can a mother ensure proper nutrition post pregnancy that helps in infant cognition and baby’s brain development? #FeedIQ

The mom feeds IQ to the baby through breastfeeding and brain stimulants. While breastfeeding is important, we also need to realise the importance of quality of breast milk. Breastmilk should also be rich with nutrients. The diet of the mom determines the quality of breast milk. While its necessary that she includes foods that are rich in protein, vitamins, Iron but many a times, only food cannot provide all the micro-nutrients needed by the body.

Dietary supplements like SimMomIQ+ by Abbot helps in meeting all the requirements of key nutrients during pregnancy & Lactation. SimMomIQ+ is enriched with brain nutrients like DHA, Choline, Zinc, Iodine, Folic Acids.

Brain function depends on a continuous supply of nutrients, including micronutrients and fatty acids. That is why never undermine the role of breastfeeding for. Pregnancy and postpartum are periods when the body demands increased nutrients. The mom and the family need to realize the importance of mother’s nutrition during this time for baby’s brain development and better infant cognition.