Pregnancy Health: Are You Gaining Enough Weight?

How to tell if you’re eating enough during pregnancy

Weight gain is an indicator of whether your pregnancy diet is balanced and well-nourished.

How to tell if you’re eating enough during pregnancy

Monitoring your weight gain is a quick and simple way to assess if you are having a balanced and well-nourished diet during pregnancy.

According to Ms Kellie Kong, Dietitian from the Department of Nutrition & Dietetics at KK Women's and Children's Hospital (KKH), a member of the SingHealth group, an unbalanced diet during pregnancy can predispose your baby to chronic diseases later on in life, so aim to put on the appropriate amount of weight.

To determine how much you should gain during pregnancy:

Calculate your Body Mass Index before pregnancy (Pre-Pregnancy BMI) Body Mass Index = Weight (kg) before pregnancy / Height (m) x Height (m)
Refer to the table below and aim for the weekly and total weight gain corresponding to your Pre-Pregnancy BMI

Stages of pregnancy	Acceptable weight gain based on pre-pregnancy BMI
	below 18.5	18.5 to 24.9	25 to 29.9	30 or more
1st trimester (week 1 - 12) (Weeks 1 to 12, total weight gain in kg during this period)	0.5 - 2.0	0.5 - 2.0	0.5 - 2.0	0.5 - 2.0
2nd & 3rd trimesters (week 13 - 40) (kg per week)	0.44 - 0.58	0.39 - 0.50	0.23 - 0.33	0.16 - 0.25
Recommended total weight gain (kg) for entire pregnancy	12.7 -18.1	11.3 - 15.9	6.8 - 11.3	5.0 - 9.1