Overview
How does your weight affect your pregnancy?
The basics of prenatal care are the same for everyone, regardless of size. You'll get what you need to have a healthy baby.
But if you are not at a weight that is healthy for you, it can make a difference in a few things. Being underweight or overweight can increase the chances of some problems during pregnancy. So your doctor or midwife will pay close attention to your health and your baby's health. You may have some extra doctor or midwife visits and tests. And you may have some tests earlier in your pregnancy.
Work with your doctor or midwife to get the care you need. Go to all your doctor or midwife visits, and follow their advice about what to do and what to avoid during pregnancy.
How much weight gain is healthy during pregnancy?
There's no fixed number of pounds that you should be aiming for. Instead, there's a range of weight gain that's good for you and your baby. Based on your weight before pregnancy, experts say it's generally best to gain about:
- 28 lb (13 kg) to 40 lb (18 kg) if you're underweight.
- 25 lb (11 kg) to 35 lb (16 kg) if you're at a healthy weight.
- 15 lb (7 kg) to 25 lb (11 kg) if you're overweight.
- 11 lb (5 kg) to 20 lb (9 kg) if you're very overweight (obese). In some cases, a doctor may recommend that you don't gain any weight.
If you have questions about weight gain during pregnancy, talk with your doctor about what's right for you. Gaining a healthy amount of weight helps you have a healthy pregnancy.
What problems can happen?
Being underweight during pregnancy can increase the risk for problems such as:
- Having a baby that is a low birth weight. This can increase a baby's risk for health and development problems as they get older.
- Preterm birth.
Being overweight or having obesity during pregnancy can increase the risk for:
- Problems such as high blood pressure, gestational diabetes, and preeclampsia.
- Cesarean birth and a higher risk of problems from it.
- Miscarriage or stillbirth.
- Having a baby with a birth defect, such as a heart defect or neural tube defects.
- Having a baby that is too large. This can cause problems during labor and delivery.
How much extra food do you need to eat?
How much food you need to eat during pregnancy depends on:
- Your height.
- How much you weigh when you get pregnant.
- How active you are.
- If you're carrying more than one fetus (multiple pregnancy).
In the first trimester, you'll probably need the same amount of calories as you did before you were pregnant. In general, in your second trimester, you need to eat about 340 extra calories a day.1 In your third trimester, you need to eat about 450 extra calories a day.
What can you do to have a healthy pregnancy?
The best things you can do for you and your baby are to eat healthy foods, get regular exercise, avoid alcohol and smoking, and go to your doctor or midwife visits.
- Eat a variety of foods from all the food groups. Make sure to get enough calcium and folic acid. Ask your doctor or midwife how much folic acid you should be taking.
- You may want to work with a dietitian to help you plan healthy meals to get the right amount of calories for you.
- Talk to your doctor or midwife about how you can exercise safely. If you didn't exercise much before you got pregnant, talk to your doctor or midwife about how you can slowly get more active. They may want to set up an exercise program with you.
