Such changes are partly due to the nourishment demands of the fetus and partly to other physiological variations that affect absorption and metabolism of nutrients. These changes help insure normal development of the baby and fill the subsequent demands of lactation, or nursing. Changes in nutritional needs in pregnancy appear to be related to the body's adaptation to pregnancy because the changes occur too early to be responding solely to fetal needs.
Pregnant women require different amounts of iron, folic acid, sodium, and sugar intake.
The consequences of maternal malnourishment may include health problems for the mother and an infant of low birth weight who may have nutritional and other deficiencies. However, there is not universal agreement on the necessity of folate supplements for all pregnant women. Women can get additional folate by eating more green leafy vegetables, certain fruits, and liver and other organ meats but need to do so even before becoming pregnant. Severe folate deficiency can result in a condition called megaloblastic anemia, which occurs most often in the last trimester of pregnancy. In this condition the mother's heart, liver and spleen may become enlarged, and the life of the fetus may be threatened.