NUTRITIONAL REQUIREMENTS DURING PREGNANCY AND LACTATION
- BERTHA S. BURKE, M.A.;
- HAROLD C. STUART, M.D.
Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text.
Excerpt
The normal physiologic processes of the body are greatly altered during pregnancy and lactation, and additional demands are imposed on the maternal organism during each period. Digestion and absorption from the intestinal tract are frequently impaired, especially during the early months of pregnancy, and nutritional requirements are considerably elevated during the latter half of pregnancy and during lactation. It is not strange, therefore, that evidences of nutritional deficiencies are more likely to appear at these times, and it is obvious that the diets of pregnant and lactating women deserve special consideration. Since considerable evidence has accumulated in recent years which indicates that faulty nutrition during pregnancy may affect the pregnant woman or her fetus in ways not usually considered to be signs of malnutrition, someof the studies from which this evidence has come will be reviewed. They provide a background for understanding the special requirements of this period and the
Footnotes
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This paper, prepared at the request of the Council of Foods and Nutrition, is one of a series which will appear in THE JOURNAL. The entire series will appear later in book form as the Council's Handbook of Nutrition.
