How to eat granola for pregnant women is good for health

Many pregnant women eat granola, a mixture of baked oats, nuts, and dried fruit, as a snack, but it should be less than 50 grams per day to be beneficial.

Granola is a dish originating from European and American countries, recently introduced and popularized in Vietnam. This dish includes a mixture of toasted oats, macadamia nuts, cashews, walnuts, almonds, raisins, chia seeds, flavoring powder... Granola is easy to combine with fresh milk or unsweetened yogurt, fruit.

According to nutritionist Nguyen Thi Quynh, Department of Nutrition, Tam Anh General Hospital Hanoi, 100g of granola provides 350-550 kcal, including about 14-32g of fat and 20-54g of carbohydrates.

Granola includes many types such as walnuts, cashews, and almonds combined. Photo: Freepik — Granola includes many types such as walnuts, cashews, and almonds combined. Photo: *Freepik*

Granola is easy to eat, so many pregnant women can eat it without controlling the amount. Some pregnant women use it as a replacement for main meals, leading to excess energy, causing metabolic disorders such as gestational diabetes.

Granola makes you feel full for a long time, sometimes causing bloating, making pregnant women uncomfortable and not appetizing. Overusing this food can cause an imbalance in the nutrients taken into the body, affecting the weight gain of pregnant women and the development of the fetus.

Pregnant women with gestational diabetes should limit their regular consumption of granola. Because dried fruits such as raisins, dried bananas and nuts contain high levels of carbohydrates. Pregnant women should consume about 30 grams per day to control their sugar levels.

Pregnant women with stable health indicators should limit the amount of granola consumed per day to about 50g. Should eat a balanced diet, with enough of the 4 main food groups including carbohydrates (rice, tubers and processed products such as noodles, vermicelli, glass noodles), protein (meat, fish, eggs, milk, shrimp), fat (vegetable oil, nuts), vitamins and minerals (green vegetables and ripe fruits).

According to expert Quynh, the loss of control over protein and fat intake is very common among pregnant Vietnamese women due to the concept of "pregnant women must eat for two". Vietnamese meals often include stir-fried, fried, and deep-fried dishes using animal fat, which is not good for health.

Pregnant women need regular check-ups and screening tests during pregnancy.

Khue Lam

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