It begins with time in the womb!
Becoming a mother is one of the most amazing feelings for us ladies. As a mother, it became quite necessary that I look towards what best supports my baby’s brain health and overall development.
So, giving a smart, intellectual start to your baby is possible if you take small steps at a time.
Join me on this journey to boost your baby’s brain development.
In this blog, I will be with you on the following highlights:
Magical Bites: Superfoods for Mom and Baby’s Brain Power
We all know pregnancy comes with unusual cravings; however, to ensure the betterment of our unborn bundle of joy, we must eat healthy for optimal baby development during pregnancy.
Spinach: Spinach (known as Palak in Hindi), is a power-packed superfood mothers should incorporate into their diets. Rich in vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin K, iron, folate, and potassium, Spinach as a superfood, does wonders during pregnancy, not just for the mom but for the baby as well. It provides essential nutrients like folate along with others and helps our baby’s overall development.
Coconut: Coconut is another superfood for expecting women. It was my faithful companion throughout my pregnancy journey. It helps maintain amniotic fluid levels and is essential in preventing dehydration-related difficulties such as low birth weight and preterm labor. I highly recommend this superfood to fellow expecting women for its nourishing benefits promoting overall well-being.
Jaggery: As an expecting mother, I added jaggery to my diet. It not only prevents anemia but also boosts hemoglobin levels in your body. Jaggery helps with digestion-related issues, strengthens our immune system, and flushes out toxins. All this aids mothers in maintaining good health, which directly leads to a baby’s healthy development.
Legumes: Legumes are another superfood for pregnant ladies or mothers with infant diet concerns. By adding enough legume-rich diets to their lifestyle, mothers get optimal fibre, protein, folate, iron, and calcium. I opted for diets including lentils, chickpeas, beans, and soybeans.
Almonds: Among all dry-fruit families, almonds stand out as the king! It is particularly essential during pregnancy and for the baby’s brain development. Incorporating almonds into my diet during pregnancy, I ensured I got optimal protein, healthy fats, and vitamins. Making sure of this secures a healthy pregnancy and also helps to prevent possible birth-related issues.
Methi Dana: Methi dana (Fenugreek) has surprising benefits for our health during pregnancy. We get iron, folate, and calcium from fenugreek. To the little I know about Folate besides calcium and iron, it is a crucial nutrient that helps in baby’s brain development and prevents neural tube defects. Including Methi in your diet ensures optimal health and development for the unborn baby.
Yoga Benefiting Mother and Baby’s Development: Embracing The Miracle of Life!
Yoga has been there for more than 5000 years in India, most of us know that! But to talk specifically about what it does to help develop a baby’s brain is a highlight.
Prenatal yoga is unquestionably beneficial for infant mothers and babies’ overall development. When I opted for yoga as part of my lifestyle during pregnancy, it lowered stress and made my pregnancy journey easier. Expecting mothers to make their lives stress-free, improve mental health, and have better physical health must make yoga part of their daily routine.
Let’s not forget ourselves (I meant with the phase a pregnant mother goes by) and how yoga helps in managing the phase altogether:
- Lessens stress, anxiety, and depression
The combination of breathing with careful movements helps elevate symptoms like stress and depression during pregnancy. Slow breathing stimulates the neurological system and blocks cortisol, which, when in excess, can lead to depression. Through gentle exercises and mindful breathing, pregnant ladies get emotional balance. - Less Painful Labour Experience
Another vital benefit of prenatal yoga is that it helps expecting mothers ease the pain during labor.
By promoting physical strength, relaxation, and flexibility, prenatal yoga can improve the labor experience while delivering the baby. Prenatal yoga includes some poses that target muscles used during delivery. Hence, enhanced endurance!
The breathing exercises contribute to the effective management of pain during contractions. In short, prenatal yoga eases anxiety, promotes a positive mindset, cultivates mental resilience, and has a positive impact during labor. - Boosts blood flow
The movements and stretching while performing yoga help increase blood flow to the heart. It helps a baby with its overall development by increasing oxygen-rich blood. Proper blood flow is essential for a robust supply of oxygen and nutrients for optimal baby brain development. During pregnancy, this enhanced blood flow contributes to the better health of a mother and the ideal growth of the foetus.
Sleep Quality: For Better Baby Development
Proper and quality sleep is crucial for us mothers to ease the pregnancy process. Correct? So, during this time, an adequate sleep pattern is vital since it is not just associated with us; it also affects the health and development of our baby’s brain and overall well-being.
At the time of pregnancy, it is essential to maintain a healthy immune system. After all, everything we do can affect the child we carry! And having proper sleep is required for better immune function and correct baby development.
Tips for Better Sleep:
- Ensure finding a comfortable position to sleep.
- Strategize eating and drinking to avoid triggering acidic reflux.
- Make sure to reduce screen time and non-relaxing exercises before going to bed.
- Incorporate calming breathing exercises and gentle yoga into your day.
Knowing that Indian culture has so much to offer is bliss. You can bring this bliss to yourself and your baby’s development by adding simple steps to your routine. Begin with a few yoga asanas and one of the superfoods to lay the right foundation and optimal baby brain development.
