Weight gain seems to always be one of the topics of conversation for pregnant women. “How much should I gain?” “How do I stay healthy?” Turns out, how much weight you gain during pregnancy is very important.
Gaining the right amount of weight during pregnancy can help protect your health and the health of your baby. And gaining too much or too little can be harmful.
So how much weight gain is recommended?
Your health care provider uses your body mass index (BMI) before pregnancy to figure out how much weight you should gain during pregnancy. BMI is your body fat based on your height and weight.
- Underweight = BMI less than 18.5
- Healthy weight = BMI 18.5 to 24.9
- Overweight = BMI 25 to 29.9
- Obese = BMI more than 30
If you’re pregnant with one baby, the recommendations are as follows:
- If you were underweight before pregnancy, you want to gain about 28 to 40 pounds during pregnancy.
- If you were at a healthy weight before pregnancy, you want to gain about 25 to 35 pounds during pregnancy.
- If you were overweight before pregnancy, you want to gain about 15 to 25 pounds during pregnancy.
- If you were obese before pregnancy, you want to gain about 11 to 20 pounds during pregnancy.
And while you don’t want to gain too much or too little weight, don’t ever try to lose weight during pregnancy. If you have questions about healthy weight gain during pregnancy, talk to your health care provider.
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