The oVegan and vegetarian diet fully meets the required indicators for the content of useful and nutritious substances for pregnant women. Newborn babies of vegetarian mothers usually have the same weight as non-vegetarian babies and are within normal weight limits for newborns.
The diet of pregnant and lactating vegan mothers should contain a reliable source of daily intake of vitamin B12.
If there is concern about inadequate synthesis of vitamin D, due to limited exposure to sunlight, skin color and tone, season, or use of sunscreen, vitamin D should be taken alone or as part of fortified foods.
Iron supplements may also be needed to prevent or treat iron deficiency anemia, which is common during pregnancy.
Women who want to become pregnant or women in the periconseptional period should consume 400 mg of folic acid daily from fortified foods, special vitamin complexes, in addition to foods from the main, even varied, diet.
Vegetarian neonates and young children have been observed to have reduced levels of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) molecules in the spinal cord fluid and blood levels compared to those in non-vegetarian children, but the functional significance of this fact has not yet been determined. Also, the level of this acid in the breast milk of vegan and ovo-lacto-vegetarian women is lower than that of non-vegetarian women.
Because DHA plays a role in brain and eye development, and because dietary intake of this acid can be very important for the fetus and newborn, pregnant and lactating vegan and vegetarian women should include in their diet (provided that eggs are not consumed regularly) sources of DHA, and linolenic acid, in particular, such as flaxseed, flaxseed oil, Canola oil (a type of rapeseed useful for humans ), soybean oil, or use vegetarian sources of these acids, such as microalgae. Products containing linoleic acid (corn, safflower and sunflower oil) and trans fatty acids (pack margarine, hydrogenated fats) should be limited. they can inhibit the production of DHA from linolenic acid.