During pregnancy, healthy foods provide the optimum mix of baby-building nutrients. Starting in the second trimester, you'll need about 300 additional calories in your diet every day.

Here are some choice foods to add to your pregnancy diet, making those extra calories count by providing a variety of nutrients that benefit you and your child.

Beans

Why: Chickpeas, lentils, black beans, and soybeans supply fiber, protein, iron, folate, calcium, and zinc.
Enjoy: In chili and soups, salads, and pasta dishes; as hummus with whole-grain crackers or in roll-up sandwiches.

Beef

Why: Lean cuts of beef, such as top sirloin steak, pack protein, vitamins B6, B12, and niacin as well as zinc and iron in highly absorbable forms. Beef is also concentrated in choline, required for brain development and peak cognitive powers.
Enjoy: Add lean ground beef to pasta sauces, use in tacos, as burgers, in stir-fry dishes, and in chili.

Berries

Why: They're packed with carbohydrates, vitamin C, potassium, folate, fiber, and fluid. The phytonutrients in berries are naturally occurring beneficial plant compounds that protect cells from damage.
Enjoy: On top of whole-grain cereal, in smoothies made with yogurt or milk, in pancakes, and in salads. Layer yogurt with berries and crunchy whole-grain cereal for a dessert parfait.

Broccoli

Why: For the folate, fiber, calcium, lutein, zeaxanthin, carotenoids to foster healthy vision, and potassium for fluid balance and normal blood pressure. Broccoli also contains the raw materials for vitamin A production in the body.
Enjoy: As part of pasta and stir-fry dishes, steamed and topped with a smattering of olive oil, pureed and added to soups, or roasted: chop broccoli into bite-sized pieces, coat lightly with olive oil and roast on a baking sheet at 400 degrees Fahrenheit until tender, about 15 minutes.

Cheese (pasteurized)

Why: Cheese supplies concentrated amounts of calcium, phosphorus, and magnesium for your bones and your baby's, plus vitamin B12 and protein (use reduced-fat varieties, such as Cabot 50% Light Cheddar to save on calories, fat, and cholesterol).
Enjoy: As snacks with whole-grain crackers or fruit, sprinkled on top of soups, in salads, sandwiches, and omelets.

Eggs

Why: Eggs supply the gold-standard of protein because they provide all of the amino acids you and your baby need to thrive. They also include more than a dozen vitamins and minerals, such as choline, lutein, and zeaxanthin. Certain brands supply the omega-3 fats baby needs for brain development and peak vision, so check the label.
Enjoy: In omelets and frittatas, in salads and sandwiches, in homemade waffles, crepes, and whole-grain French toast, as snacks, hard-cooked, or scrambled.

Milk

Why: It's an excellent source of calcium, phosphorus, and vitamin D -- bone-building nutrients mother and child require every day. Milk also packs protein, vitamin A, and B vitamins.
Enjoy: Plain or flavored, in smoothies made with fruit, over whole-grain cereal and fruit, and in pudding. Prepare oatmeal in the microwave with milk instead of water.

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As You Journey through Menopause, Vivelle-Dot Is By Your Side

VIVELLE-DOT (estradiol transdermal system) IS AVAILABLE BY PRESCRIPTION ONLY.

INDICATION

Vivelle-Dot is used after menopause to: reduce moderate to severe hot flashes; treat moderate to severe dryness, itching and burning in or around the vagina; help reduce your chances of getting osteoporosis (thin weak bones); and treat certain conditions in which a young woman's ovaries do not produce enough estrogens naturally. Vivelle-Dot 0.025 mg/day is only used to prevent osteoporosis from menopause. If you use Vivelle-Dot only to treat your dryness, itching, and burning in and around your vagina or if you use Vivelle-Dot only to prevent osteoporosis from menopause, talk with your healthcare professional about whether a different treatment or medicine without estrogens might be better for you.

IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION

Estrogens increase the chances of getting cancer of the uterus (womb). Report any unusual vaginal bleeding right away while you are taking estrogens. Vaginal bleeding after menopause may be a warning sign of cancer of the uterus (womb).

Do not use estrogens with or without progestins to prevent heart disease, heart attacks, or strokes. Using estrogens with or without progestins may increase your chances of getting heart attacks, strokes, breast cancer, and blood clots. Using estrogens with progestins may increase your risk of dementia (decline in memory and thinking skills).

Vivelle-Dot should not be used if you have unusual vaginal bleeding; currently have or have had certain cancers, including cancer of the breast or uterus; had a stroke or heart attack in the recent past (for example, in the past year); currently have or have had blood clots; currently have or have had liver problems; or think you may be, or know that you are, pregnant.

The most common side effects that may occur with Vivelle-Dot are headache, breast tenderness, and back pain.

You and your healthcare professional should talk regularly about whether you still need treatment with Vivelle-Dot.

You are encouraged to report negative side effects of prescription drugs to the FDA. Visit www.fda.gov/medwatch or call 1-800-FDA-1088.

Please see Full Prescribing Information for Vivelle-Dot.

Prescribing Information