Lily Nichols is a Registered Dietitian with an expertise in pregnancy nutrition – with an emphasis on real food. I get a LOT of questions about nutrition for pregnancy, prenatal nutrition, pre-conception nutrition…and this is FAR from my area of expertise outside of what I’ve learned in school and working with a few handfuls of clients who were pregnant. So instead of me rambling on about my clinical experience and what I learned in school about pregnancy nutrition (especially as someone who is not a mom, not pregnant, and has no plans to get pregnant have kids any time soon), I figured I would bring in an expert guest on. My only (and best!) choice was a no-brainer – Lily Nichols is a Registered Dietitian and the author of Real Food for Pregnancy and Real Food for Gestational Diabetes, and I’ve used her pregnancy nutrition book with all of my clients who are interested in nutrition for preconception or pregnancy! Lily’s focus is on upping the micronutrients and increasing the amount of nutrients in your pregnancy food plan, by what she calls “reverse-engineering” the increased nutrient requirements during pregnancy, and focusing on getting those nutrients from real food. There is a lot of conflicting information out there on nutrition for pregnancy, so on today’s episode Lily is trying to provide more guidance on the most nutrient-forward diet to build a strong baby and mama in an easy-to-understand and non-judgemental way.

On today’s episode, we discuss:

Most prenatal nutrition advice is seriously outdated, and how the current nutritional guidelines may actually make people feel worse
Confusing recommendations for protein, fat, and micronutrients during pregnancy
There is so much pressure to be the ‘perfect’ pregnant woman to create the most ‘perfect and healthy baby’ – how do you manage perfectionist tendencies and allow for grace when it comes to what you eat?
Why it’s so easy to become obsessed with nutrition while pregnant.
There is a a lot of guilt when you can’t ‘measure up’ to what you think you’re “supposed” to be doing
Troubleshooting first trimester nausea and morning sickness
Mindful eating during pregnancy and the importance of trusting your body
Most important nutrients to focus on from supplements during pregnancy
Can you get all the nutrients you need in pregnancy from food?
Body image and relationship with food during pregnancy and postpartum
Nutrient requirements postpartum are actually higher than during pregnancy

“Some nutrition guidelines actually push us away from eating the foods that contain the nutrients we need for pregnancy.”

Recommended Resources:

Article: Why Prenatal Nutrition Guidelines Need to be Updated
Lily’s Book: Real Food for Pregnancy
Real Food for Gestational Diabetes
Lily’s Website: https://lilynicholsrdn.com/

Lily Nichols is a Registered Dietitian/Nutritionist, Certified Diabetes Educator, researcher, and author with a passion for evidence-based prenatal nutrition and exercise. Drawing from the current scientific literature and the wisdom of traditional cultures, her work is known for being research-focused, thorough, and sensible. Her bestselling book, Real Food for Gestational Diabetes (and online course of the same name), presents a revolutionary nutrient-dense, lower carb diet for managing gestational diabetes. Her unique approach has not only helped tens of thousands of women manage their gestational diabetes (most without the need for blood sugar-lowering medication), but has also influenced nutrition policies internationally.

Lily’s second book, Real Food for Pregnancy, is an evidence-based look at the gap between conventional prenatal nutrition guidelines and what’s optimal for mother and baby. With over 930 citations, this is the most comprehensive text on prenatal nutrition to date.

Lily is also creator of the popular blog, www.LilyNicholsRDN.com, which explores a variety of topics related to real food, mindful eating, and pregnancy nutrition.