Pregnancy
Pregnancy Nutrition
Serving Size
You may be accustomed to thinking of a serving as a “helping” or a plateful. Using this type of standard, the recommendation of 6-11 servings of grains a day seems overwhelming. Who can eat 6 bowls of cereal, or 6 plates of pasta!
A serving is not the same as a helping. In fact, most “helpings” are actually two or three servings of a given food. For example, most cereals have a serving size of about 3/4 to 1 full cup, or 8 oz. But most bowls in which cereals are eaten hold 2 cups or more. Fill the bowl with cereal, and you’ve got two servings of grains.
Grains
A serving from the grain group is 30 – 50 GRAMS, which is 1 slice of bread, 1/2 an English muffin or hamburger roll, about 1 cup of ready-to-eat cereal, or about 1/2 cup of cooked cereal, pasta, or rice.
Vegetables
A serving of a vegetable is 1 cup of raw leafy vegetables or 1/2 cup of other vegetables whether cooked or raw.
You may also count 3/4 cup of vegetable juice as one serving but when vegetables are juiced you lose the fiber. For the best digestion you will need to maintain a good proportion of fiber in your diet, so try not to replace more than one fruit serving with juice per day.
Fruit
A serving of fruit is 1 medium fruit (about the size of your fist) or 1/2 cup of chopped, cooked or canned fruit.
You may also count 3/4 cup of fruit juice as one serving, but when fruit is juiced you lose the fiber. For the best digestion you will need to maintain a good proportion of fiber in your diet, so try not to replace more than one fruit serving with juice per day.
Dairy
A serving of dairy food is 1 cup of milk or yogurt. You may also count 30 GRAMS TO 50 GRAMS of natural cheese or 2 ounces of processed cheese as one serving.
Low-fat versions of dairy foods use the same serving size as full-fat versions.
MEAT
A serving of meat is 70 grams, roughly the size of a deck of cards. This is true whether you want to eat beef, chicken, pork, lamb, bison, venison, ostrich, or quail.
You may also count 1/2 cup of cooked beans or tofu, 1 egg, 2 tablespoons of peanut butter, or 1/3 cup of nuts.
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