Iron helps to manufacture an adequate supply of hemoglobin, important for pregnant moms, who experience a 40 to 50 percent increase in blood volume during pregnancy. Your unborn baby is also storing iron that will last for the first few months of life outside your womb. Baby takes what she needs from your store of iron first, so she won't suffer if your intake is inadequate. However, you will end up with anemia, a red blood cell deficiency that can make you feel tired and makes it harder for your blood to carry oxygen throughout your body and to the baby. To combat anemia, eat a variety of iron-rich foods like liver, red meat, fish, poultry, enriched breads and cereals, leafy green vegetables, eggs, and dried fruits. Your health care provider will recommend an iron-enriched prenatal vitamin or iron supplement to make up for any deficiency.

Take iron supplements between meals with plenty of water to eliminate some of the common side effects, like constipation, diarrhea, and nausea. Although taking iron supplements between meals promotes better absorption, if you're suffering from morning sickness and find it difficult to keep your supplements down, you should try taking them with a meal. If constipation is a problem, add prune juice or other high fiber sources to your diet. To enhance absorption of iron, take your supplement with a fruit juice rich in ascorbic acid (vitamin C), such as orange juice. Remember that tea and coffee contain substances that can inhibit your absorption of iron (as well as calcium), so try to avoid using these to wash down supplements or as an accompaniment to iron-rich foods.

Each year approximately 3,000 babies are born with neural tube defects. Up to 70 percent of these defects could be prevented by adequate intake of folic acid, yet according to a 2004 March of Dimes survey, only 40 percent of American women of childbearing age take a daily multivitamin containing folate to ensure that they meet the daily requirements.

Another critical nutrient in pregnancy is folic acid (folate), which significantly lowers your baby's risk of developing neural tube defects (birth defects of the brain and spinal cord, such as spinal bifida and anencephaly). Because the neural tube forms during the first four weeks of pregnancy before many women even realize they are pregnant, the CDC recommends that all women of childbearing age get at least 400 micrograms (mcg) of folic acid daily. Pregnant women and women planning a pregnancy should get 400 mcg daily of folic acid in food or supplement form.

Foods rich in folate include orange juice, enriched breads and grain products, leafy green vegetables, and dried beans. Since 1998 the FDA has required that grain products such as enriched breads, pastas, rice, and corn meal also be fortified with this important nutrient. Today there are dozens of breakfast cereals on the market that contain 100 percent of the daily value of folic acid, and just one bowl each morning can make a big difference to your baby's health. Most prenatal vitamins also include the RDA of folic acid.

Women's Recommended Daily Allowance (by age)

If you aren't a numbers person or feel overwhelmed by the thought of logging every item that passes your lips, don't worry. Take your prenatal supplement as prescribed by your doctor to bank those vitamins and minerals, then follow a few simple guidelines to ensure that you and baby get your daily fuel.

Visit www.MyPyramid.com and customize a USDA food pyramid. Keep copies on your refrigerator, in your bag, or anywhere else where it will be easily accessible when you make meal choices. Then use the pyramid serving suggestions as a minimum guide for a balanced, healthy diet. Be sure to touch base with your provider about how your individual nutrition needs vary if you have a food allergy or other health condition requiring a special diet.

The USDA's “My Pyramid Plan” provides all the necessary nutrients for you and your growing baby.