Having a Good Size Baby

Just wondering why you are concerned? Remember that ultrasounds generally are not accurate at estimations of baby's weight if that is your concern. Providers using their hands to guess at size can be more accurate but it depends on the person.

As for "empty calories" like soda, candy, etc they will usually grow a bigger baby because of all the sugar. Women who gain more weight in pregnancy tend to have bigger babies but there are more health risks with gaining too much weight.

There is something called the Brewer Diet (try googling it) that recommends very high protein intake. Although there is limited data to support the protein intake for health reasons, many providers believe the high protein intake is reponsible for growing big babies.

Average baby weight at term is 7 pounds 8 oz with the range of normal being from 5 pounds 9 ounces to 8 pounds 13 ounces. Anything above and below that is considered outside the norm.

I believe that women just tend to grow certain size babies. If you are small and the baby's father is samll then of course you should expect a small baby and vice versa for big people. Good luck with the pregnancy.

Protein is very important during pregnancy, as well as calcium. Eggs and cottage cheese are good to eat if meat isn't real appealing to you. Also make sure you get all your vitamins...best way is to eat your veggies. And drink lots of milk.

My son was 7#10 but an early c-section. Daughter cooked 2 weeks longer and was 8#7. Both times I just ate what I was hungry for. I generally have a pretty healthy diet and eat meat maybe once a week. During both pregnancies I had *major* dairy cravings, so I tended to eat lots of yogurt and ice cream and drink lots of milk. Aside from that, I tended to have the same breakfast every morning (because it stuck with me and helped w/ all those lovely pregnancy-induced digestive issues). Steel-cut oats with salt and a bit of butter, followed by plain whole-milk yogurt with stewed dried fruit (usually apricots, prunes, and cranberries cooked w/ some water and a cinnamon stick until soft), wheat germ, flax seed, and pecans. I called it my "pregnancy power breakfast", though I still eat it with some frequency.

My little one was 8#12oz. I took my vitamins and ate healthy. I think the baby takes what he/she needs and leaves the rest for you. So as long as you are not loosing wt, I am sure everything is fine. I do not think that you can choose how much the baby gains by eating more or less if that was the case, then my friend who gained 65 lbs baby would have been bigger than mine when I gained 40 lbs.
Congratulations and good luck!

DD, my first, was 8lbs 10 oz, 1 week early. My twins were 6lbs, 2oz and 6lbs, 4oz 4 weeks early. I ate lots of fruit, salads with both. Chicken with DD and with the twins steak, meatloaf, cheeseburgers (they wanted meat!) I could even look at a dessert.

Good Luck!
Jenny

It wasn't the healthiest choice but I ate quite a bit of ice cream during my second pregnancy. My daughter was born 5 weeks early and weighed 7 lbs, 1 oz. Good luck. She is almost 3 now and she loves her ice cream.

My d was born at 8 lbs 5 oz. last year. She is bigger than most 1 yr olds. My triplets were born 10 yrs ago at 3 15, 4 4 and 4 6. Both pregnancies I had almost no apetite but I went crazy for milk. I had to have it or I didn;t feel right. I also made sure I got protein and fruits and veggies. Eat right and your baby will be fine.

Is your ob concerned? If not, then don't worry about it. In the last month the baby will add a lot of fat to the body (don't worry; the fat is good and necessary...it's not like they're being lazy and getting obese).

Keep eating what is normal for your height/weight plus an additional 400-600 calories. Babies come in many shapes and sizes and there is no 'one size fits all'.

My first two were 9 lb,my last was 9.6 lb and 53 inches.
With the first one I ate like a pig,healthy,too but lots of cheese cake,.Gained 60 lb !!!
I got pregnant after 8 month right away and tried not to eat so much sweet stuff,
and my third one ater waiting 10 years, I ate very healthy,
but I never realy ate anything specific.
I believe I just make big babies.
I couldn't eat a lot for the firt 3/4 month due to extreme nausea.
So I would say,just eat healthy,and a nice balanced diet.
Good luck with your pregnancy.....