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The top 6 that you should take during your pregnancy

De top 6 die je beter kunt nemen tijdens je zwangerschap

'Eat healthy and varied' is what you always hear. You will undoubtedly wonder what you can and cannot eat during your pregnancy. This blog lists the most important 6 recommendations from the Health Council.

 

  1. Folic acid, also called vitamin B11, is important for the growth and functioning of the body. What is it in? Folic acid is mainly found in (green) vegetables, whole grain products, bread, meat and dairy. Taking folic acid reduces the risk of spina bifida, premature birth, low birth weight and possibly a cleft lip, jaw or palate. What is the advice? The advice is to take 400 micrograms of folic acid until the 10th week of pregnancy. What recipes can I make? Tasty recipes with lots of folic acid include broccoli soup with salmon, a spinach smoothie with blueberries or a delicious salad with spinach, beetroot and feta!

 

  1. Vitamin D plays an important role in maintaining strong bones, teeth, muscles and the immune system. What's in it? Important sources of vitamin D are fatty fish, meat and eggs. Sometimes it is also added to margarine, low-fat margarine and baking and roasting products. In addition, we can make our own vitamin D through sunlight. What is the advice? You need extra vitamin D during your pregnancy. The advice is to take 10 micrograms of vitamin D during the entire pregnancy. Tip! It is best to buy vitamin D in oil form, because that is how vitamin D is best absorbed into the body. You can also increase your vitamin D by taking a nice walk. In addition to vitamin D, this is also good for your resistance and condition! What recipes can I make? An easy way to boost your vitamin D intake is an egg fried in olive oil!

 

  1. Calcium is very important for the development of your Mini's bones and teeth. What is it in? Calcium occurs naturally in dairy products, grain products and green vegetables. Sufficient calcium reduces the risk of getting high blood pressure, preeclampsia and/or premature birth. What is the advice? The advice is to get 1000 milligrams of calcium. What recipes can you make? Good options for getting your calcium intake are milk, yogurt and cottage cheese. Don't you eat dairy? Then you can go for plant-based milk (with extra added calcium, it says on the packaging) or a green smoothie with spinach, broccoli or kale, for example. In addition to a lot of calcium, broken flaxseed also contains a lot of omega-3, protein and fiber. You can easily add this to your smoothie or yogurt!

 

  1. Iron plays an important role in the baby's blood production. What is it in? Iron is naturally abundant in (red) meat, legumes, grain products, whole wheat bread, (green) vegetables, eggs and nuts. What recipes can you make? A delicious dish rich in iron is, for example, a dish of broccoli, chicken and sweet potato. Tip! Eat the iron-rich food in combination with vitamin C. This ensures a better absorption of the iron. Think, for example, of fruit or vegetables (red bell pepper and broccoli).

 

  1. Iodine plays an important role in your baby's growth and brain development. What's in it? Iodine is naturally present in dairy, eggs and fish. Do you eat little bread and are you vegetarian? You can do a test via the site of the Nutrition Center to see if you are getting enough iodine! https://www.voedingscentrum.nl/nl.aspx

 

  1. Fish fatty acids is important for a good brain development of the child. Fish consists of the fatty acids eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and doxosahexaenoic acid (DHA). We cannot sufficiently produce these fatty acids ourselves, so it is important to get these fatty acids through food. Research shows that eating fish two to three times a week lowers the risk of preterm birth by 10%. However, there are also drawbacks to consuming fish. For example, some types of fish contain substances such as methylmercury, dioxins and PFAS that are harmful to your Mini. What's in it? In fish! Which types of fish fall under oily or lean fish, and which types are not recommended during pregnancy can be found at: https://www.voedingscentrum.nl/nl/service/vraag-en-antwoord/zwanger-en-baby/is-het-goed-om-vis-te-eten-tijdens-je-zwangerschap-.aspx . For women who prefer not to eat fish, there are also plant-based options to get EPA and DHA. They can take fish fatty acid supplements based on seaweeds and algae. What is the advice? The advice is to eat oily fish once and lean fish once. For pregnant women who do not eat fish, the advice is to take 250 to 450 milligrams of DHA.

 

Sources/links:
Health Council: Dietary Recommendations for Pregnant Women 2021: https://www.gezondheidsraad.nl/documenten/adviezen/2021/06/22/voedingsaanbevelingen-voor-zwangere-vrouwen
Nutrition center: https://www.voedingscentrum.nl/nl.aspx

Guest blog Vini Mini with Pure Goat Company

Gastblog Vini Mini met Pure Goat Company

Vini Mini: healthy & happy life without food allergies for all Minis!

What is a food allergy?

With a food allergy, your immune system reacts to the proteins in certain foods. These proteins are called allergens. The most common food allergies in children in the Netherlands are to milk, egg, peanuts, nuts, soy, fish and wheat.

What is the difference between allergy and intolerance?

In case of a food allergy  the immune system plays a role, but not in food intolerance. With a food allergy, the immune system goes on the attack and therefore you usually get symptoms soon after eating the food.

Intolerance is a collective term for reactions to food that are not allergic in nature. For example, lactose intolerance, where the body has difficulty digesting milk sugars; and gluten intolerance (celiac disease). Complaints that occur here are often stomach and intestinal complaints and can sometimes only occur much later, making it often difficult to recognize an intolerance.

Number of children with food allergies has doubled in the past 10 years

More and more children have food allergies. About 7% of all children in the Netherlands have a food allergy and this number has even doubled in the past 10 years!

But how come? There are several elements that can influence the development of a food allergy.

Eczema is the biggest risk factor for developing a food allergy

Many people think that eczema is a reaction to a food allergy, but this is the other way around.

In scientific studies they have found that children can become allergic through the skin.

So if your Mini has eczema, the allergens (such as a peanut) can enter through the broken skin. The immune system of your Mini does not understand what this is and immediately starts producing antibodies.

If you then give the peanut via the correct route (namely via the gastrointestinal tract), your Mini can get an allergic reaction!

That's why giving your baby allergens early is so important

Most babies get eczema around 4 months. If you then ensure that you simultaneously give allergens in the right way, i.e. through food, your Mini's body will understand that it is "good".

Also for children without eczema it is advice to start early with allergens

For children with eczema, it is important that you start giving peanuts and eggs before the age of 6 months. And for all other children, the general advice of the Nutrition Center and consultation bureau is to start giving peanuts and eggs before the age of 8 months.

After that, it is important that you continue to give peanuts and egg weekly for 6 months, to prevent your Mini from eventually becoming allergic.

80% of the peanut & egg allergies can be prevented!

Recent scientific studies (EAT, LEAP, PETIT, NL Peanut) show that giving allergens early and often (such as peanut and egg) drastically reduces the risk of a food allergy.

Early introduction of milk may also have a preventive effect

The above scientific studies have been done on peanuts and eggs, but early introduction of milk may also have a preventive effect.

For example, the conclusion of a study in 2020* is that giving a small amount of cow's milk every day (in addition to breastfeeding) can reduce the risk of a later cow's milk allergy. Further studies have yet to support this, but the first evidence is there.

Because the protein structure of cow's milk and goat's milk is similar in many ways**; this conclusion could possibly also be made for goat milk.

85% of children outgrow milk allergy

Melkallergie is de meest voorkomende allergie bij baby’s. Maar er is gelukkig goed nieuws, want ongeveer 85% groeit over deze allergie heen voor het 5e levensjaar! Voor pinda en noten is dit slechts 20%.

Hoe weet ik of mijn kindje allergisch is?

Your child may have a reaction after eating a certain food. There is a difference between an acute reaction and a later reaction.

  • By acute reaction here is meant an IgE-mediated reaction, in which a reaction of the immune system takes place. The complaints arise immediately after eating (between 1 minute and 2 hours) and usually consist of:
  • skin reactions (especially hives/hives or facial swelling)
  • vomit
  • red watery eyes
  • runny nose
  • wheezing inhalation or exhalation.
  • A later response will only follow after 2 hours or the next day or even later. This is not a sign of an IgE-mediated allergy, but it is also very annoying for you and your Mini. The most common complaints are skin rash or abdominal pain/cramps.

If you think your child may be allergic, you can keep a food diary to see what the reaction may be. Especially if it is a later response, this is sometimes quite a puzzle. Because they often have colic…

Always call the GP or consultation bureau to discuss this and to investigate further if necessary.

Vini Mini: The healthy, easy and reliable way to feed allergens to your baby  

We are Laurie Lancee and Jozien Boersma and together we founded Vini Mini. Our world changed when we became mothers; especially when Laurie's son Viggo had a severe allergic reaction when he was 6 months old. Fortunately, by giving allergens early and often, we were able to prevent a food allergy at Viggo.

Vini Mini was born from this, because we believe that every Mini has the right to a happy, healthy and carefree life without food allergies.

With our supplements we want to help parents to provide allergens to their Mini in a healthy, easy and reliable way. The supplement can easily be added to the vegetable or fruit snack.

First of all, we made a test, in collaboration with a pediatric allergist, to determine which product best suits your Mini. After answering a few questions about age, familial predisposition, previous reactions and eczema; you can see whether it is best to give your Mini peanuts the first time in three or six smaller steps.

You can start with our my first peanut in 3 (or 6) steps where you give increasing amounts of peanut to your Mini to to see if there is a reaction to peanut.

If this goes well, you can continue with our my first peanut follow-up kit, where you add a scoop of peanut to the snack of your Mini every week for 6 months.

Start giving peanuts to your Mini now!

Do you also want to start giving peanuts to your Mini? Then do first our test to see which products are most suitable for your Mini.

Do you have any questions; then we are happy to help you! You can contact info@vinimini.nl.

Love,

Laurie & Jozien

Giving peanut and egg to your baby in the hospital

Pinda en ei geven aan je baby in het ziekenhuis
When should you go to the hospital to give your baby peanuts and egg? Read here how a food challenge test on a peanut poli works.