We know that it’s important to gain a healthy amount of weight during pregnancy to help grow your little seed into a fully-blossomed baby, and if Hollywood movies were an accurate representation of real life, gaining weight would be as easy as blinking. This isn’t always the case, however, as many women face a serious decrease in appetite that can make gaining enough weight a difficult task. If what you’re currently doing just isn’t helping your appetite, check out the items on this list.
Keep it fresh
Often, a decrease in appetite is connected to a heightened sense of smell and aversions to certain foods. Keeping your house — and especially your kitchen — fresh and airy can help prevent the appearance of certain smells that could trigger a lessening of your appetite. Simply opening a window or two could help bring in some fresh air in, but even lighting a candle in your kitchen could help bring some fresher, more desirable smells into your home. Lemon candles tend to be perfect, as the citrus smell may help settle your stomach.
Eat small meals
Whether your decreased appetite is a result of morning sickness or something else, breaking your three large meals down into more smaller, more frequent ones can help your stomach feel settled, but not overly full and uncomfortable. Eating small meals makes it easier to get the nutrients you need, and keep yourself energized in a way that’s easier on your stomach.
Exercise
Have you ever run a marathon? Half-marathon? How about just a really tiring workout at the gym? We’ll stick with that one. Do you remember coming home from the gym and saying to yourself, “I could eat a horse, and a cow, and a cake?” That’s because exercise is one of the best natural ways to increase your appetite – your body needs to replace the calories it burned while working out, and you might get hungry as a result. So if you’re having trouble stomaching food, a bit of exercise might be just what the doctor ordered.
Little snacks
Though it might seem counter-intuitive, healthy light snacking can really help make your stomach feel better throughout the day, and give your appetite a boost. Light, high-protein foods like almonds are highly effective at helping to reduce morning sickness and nausea and the appetite decrease that may follow, so many veteran moms recommend snacking on them throughout the day in order to get the protein you need, and keep your stomach open for business.
Water, water, water, and some more water
Isn’t water the best? From fighting headaches to washing away cramps to transporting nutrients to your growing baby, water makes almost every pregnancy problem better. A decrease in appetite can become a vicious cycle, as not eating can make your stomach upset, which leads to a further decrease in appetite, and on and on, so drinking water throughout the day is a good way to make sure that your stomach isn’t completely empty. Having a BPA-free, non-toxic reusable water bottle is an excellent way to help make sure that you have easy access to water throughout the day.
Ginger tea, ginger candy, ginger anything
You didn’t think we would leave ginger off the list, did you? Ginger is known the world over for its stomach-settling, anti-nauseous properties, and is among the most highly recommended solutions for decreased appetite by pregnant women everywhere. Ginger is available in just about any form you can think of, from ginger ale, to ginger candies, to ginger lollipops, and more. Keeping your favorite ginger product nearby can be extremely helpful, as ginger can help settle your stomach instantly.
Try some new foods
Although most of the items on this list focus on addressing a decreased appetite due to nausea and morning sickness, sometimes, it’s variety that’s the problem. It’s easy to get in a predictable food routine, especially when you’re pregnant and routine becomes the name of the game, and notice a drop in appetite. This issue can be solved as simply as adding some variety to your diet, with new foods and recipes. Pregnancy-specific recipe books can be very helpful in bringing some diversity to your diet, so you’ll be able to make every meal into a treat.
