Trimester zero is the name for the time before pregnancy, when you can prepare your body and overall health ahead of conception. For people planning for a baby, this is the preconception phase and may last for several weeks or months leading up to becoming pregnant. During the trimester zero period, the focus should be on improving diet and overall nutrition, making healthy lifestyle choices, and ensuring adequate intake of key nutrients to support normal fertility and reproductive health, early foetal development and a healthy start to pregnancy.
Highlights
- Trimester zero is the time before pregnancy, when you can help to actively prepare your body and overall health ahead of conception
- We explore how you can use trimester zero period to make positive changes to health, nutrition, and lifestyle habits
- We look at the Pregnacare supplements suitable for trimester zero and when you should take them ahead of conception.
What Does Trimester Zero Mean?
Trimester zero is the name for the time before pregnancy, when you can prepare your body and overall health ahead of conception. For people planning for a baby, this is the preconception phase and may last for several months leading up to becoming pregnant. During the trimester zero period, the focus should be on improving diet and overall nutrition, making healthy lifestyle choices, and ensuring adequate intake of key nutrients to support early foetal development and a healthy start to pregnancy.
Why Is Trimester Zero Important?
Trimester zero is important because it is beneficial to prepare your body for a healthy pregnancy, whenever that may happen. The health of your body before conception is important as foetal development in pregnancy happens very early on, often before you even realise that you are pregnant.
What Should You Do During Trimester Zero?
There are several key steps you can make during the trimester zero period when it comes to preparing your physical and mental health for pregnancy.
We’d recommend taking the following positive lifestyle changes, ideally a few months before you start trying to get pregnant:
Start Key Supplements Including Folic Acid
Take a daily 400µg supplement of folic acid. The UK Department of Health recommend that you take this amount of folic acid for at least one month before and for at least the first trimester of pregnancy. This is because supplemental folic acid intake increases maternal folate status. Low maternal folate status is a risk factor in the development of neural tube defects in the developing foetus. It can also be beneficial to take it for at least 3 months before conception, to help safeguard your nutritional stores. If you are at higher risk of neural tube defects your health care professional may recommend you take a higher dose of 5mg folic acid.
Focus on Nutrition
It’s always important to eat a healthy, balanced diet, but especially so during the trimester zero period. Try to eat a wide range of fruits and vegetables (especially those containing natural folates), as well as foods that have been fortified with folic acid.
Folate, the natural form of folic acid, can be found in a wide variety of foods, including green leafy vegetables such as spinach or cabbage, broccoli, oranges and yeast extract.
Although a healthy diet would normally provide you with enough folate, it’s not possible to get the additional folic acid that’s recommended to support a pregnancy through these natural sources alone. This is the reason that daily dietary supplements are recommended.
It is also important to stay hydrated, so make sure you drink plenty of water each day.
Check Your Health
In the trimester zero period, it can be helpful to visit your GP to discuss your plans and see if they have any advice. You can also check you are up to date with all vaccinations.
If you are currently receiving medical treatment or taking long term medication, it’s very important to check with your doctor to make sure that your medication is safe to use during pregnancy, or if any changes will need to be made to your treatment before you try to conceive. Before you stop taking any medication that you have been prescribed, always consult your doctor.
Make Positive Lifestyle Changes
It is natural to want to make positive lifestyle changes for both you and your partner ahead of trying for a baby. These types of changes can involve adopting a healthy, balanced diet, maintaining a healthy weight, cutting down on caffeine and stopping drinking alcohol, giving up smoking and starting regular exercise.
Make time for both physical activities and mental wellbeing during the trimester zero stage, and focus on reducing stress where possible.
Track Your Cycle
Ahead of and during the trimester zero period it can help to track your menstrual cycle so you’re in tune with your body and aware of your most fertile days. Read our post on when you are most fertile and how to track your fertility.
Remember Your Mental Health
Deciding to try for a baby is an exciting step in your life. However, the trimester zero period can be overwhelming, especially if it is lasting longer than you’d expected. Try and focus on maintaining a positive mindset at the same time as maintaining your physical health. Staying positive and focusing on self-care can make a difference to your emotional well-being. Read our post on how to stay positive when trying to conceive.
Why Is Folic Acid So Important In The Trimester Zero Period?
Folic acid is an important B vitamin (vitamin B9) that plays an important role in the process of cell division, which is why it becomes particularly important in the very early days of pregnancy when cell division is at its most rapid. Because of this, women’s bodies need extra folic acid both before conception, in the trimester zero period, and during early pregnancy to help support the development of their babies.
Supplemental folic acid intake increases maternal folate status*. Low maternal folate status is a risk factor in the development of neural tube defects in the developing foetus. NTDs occur when the brain and spine fail to form properly during the first 28 days of pregnancy, before many women even realise that they are pregnant.
It is for this reason that it’s so important that women increase their intake of folic acid BEFORE they try to conceive. As well as playing a role in the process of cell division, folic acid also contributes to maternal tissue growth during pregnancy.
Folic acid is water soluble, which means that our bodies can’t store it very well. This is why you need to ensure that you’re getting a fresh supply of folic acid every day.
What Is the Recommended Diet for Trimester Zero / Preconception Health?
When you are in the trimester zero period and preparing your body for pregnancy, you should eat a diet that is healthy, varied and balanced and includes a wide range of colourful fruits and vegetables, starchy foods, protein sources and some dairy.
The basics of a healthy lifestyle when you’re trying for a baby are the same for women and men:
- Consume a balanced and varied diet, rich in vitamins and minerals
- Eat plenty of fruit and vegetables (at least 5 portions each day) to boost vitamin and mineral intakes
- Choose iron rich protein foods such as lean meats, eggs, beans and lentils
- Try to include one portion of oily fish each week, e.g. salmon, trout, mackerel, sardines
- Avoid shark, swordfish and marlin, and limit tuna (fresh and canned) due to high mercury content
- Include low fat dairy foods every day for extra calcium, such as low fat milk and yoghurts
- Avoid anything containing high amounts of fat and sugar and choose healthier snacks, such as fresh fruit, dried fruit and fortified breakfast cereals
- Drink lots of water.
Read more in our post on what to eat when you’re trying for a baby.
Comments (0)