Why do we talk about weight and weight gain in pregnancy?

Weight - and in particular weight gain - are an important part of pregnancy. When you book in for pregnancy your midwife will weigh you. They may also ask about your weight history (whether you tend to stay the same weight, or have gained or lost weight). They will use your weight and height to calculate your Body Mass Index (BMI). BMI is not a measure of someone's overall health and cannot tell us anything specific about a person's health or wellbeing, but there is evidence that in general, pregnant people with a BMI of 30kg/m2 or more have an increased risk of developing Gestational Diabetes and some other pregnancy-related complications.

Pregnancy weight gain includes the weight of the baby, placenta and amniotic fluid, additional breast tissue and fat stores for milk production, and in the last trimester the weight of increased blood volume. All of these things are normal parts of a healthy pregnancy.

If you have a BMI of 30kg/m2 or more, you may be invited to a maternal health antenatal group, or offered an appointment with a dietitian. This will depend on where you are having your antenatal care. These sessions support people to have a healthy, positive pregnancy. They are non-judgmental and are not about weight loss.

If you find it difficult or upsetting to discuss your weight or would prefer not to know your weight or BMI please tell your team.

What does weight gain look like in pregnancy?

Every person’s body responds differently to pregnancy. It is estimated that most people who are pregnant with one baby will gain 10kg to 12.5kg (22lb to 28lb) across 40 weeks of pregnancy, most of that from 20 weeks onwards. If you have a BMI above 30kg/m2 you might be advised to try to gain less weight. If you have a BMI below 18.5kg/m2 you might be advised to try to gain more weight. If you are expecting more than one baby your team might also advise you about weight gain.

There are many reasons why people gain different amounts of weight, for example: changes in food preferences, increased or decreased appetite, nausea or vomiting, or changes in activity levels related to fatigue or pregnancy-related aches and pains such as pelvic girdle pain or low back pain.

Weight gain can impact the risk of some pregnancy-related complications. Gaining too much weight can increase the risk of developing Gestational Diabetes and high blood pressure. Not gaining enough weight can lead to premature birth or having a very small baby. Doing the best you can to eat well and have a healthy amount of pregnancy weight gain will help to reduce these risks. Attending all of your antenatal appointments means that advice can be tailored to you.

I would like to lose weight. Can I do this if I’m pregnant?

It is rare that someone would be advised not to gain weight in pregnancy. Weight gain is an important part of a healthy pregnancy.

Please speak to your team if you:

Tips for healthy weight gain in pregnancy

  1. Eat regularly – Three meals a day, plus two or three small snacks if needed.
  2. Be aware of your portion sizes.
  3. Eat plenty of vegetables and snack on fruit, wholegrain crackers, hummus, low sugar yoghurt, or a palmful of nuts. Reduce crisps, biscuits, pastry and cakes.
  4. Eat less saturated fat (fatty meat, pastries, biscuits, chocolate).
  5. Eat more fibre (wholegrains, fruit and vegetables, beans and pulses).
  6. Avoid sugar-sweetened drinks and limit sweetened foods.
  7. Don’t ‘eat for two’. Your baby or babies will do most of their growing in the third trimester, so adding in an additional snack or two at that stage will provide enough energy and nutrients for you all.
  8. Drink plenty of water.
  9. Be as active as you can. There are lots of activity and exercise resources on the WEPP website.
  10. Speak to your team if you are concerned about your weight, appetite, nausea and vomiting, or taste changes.

More Healthy Living Advice

Eating Well

Read More

Fruit, Vegetables and Fibre

Read More

Understanding Food Labels

Read More

Vegetarian and Vegan Diets

Read More

Gestational Diabetes

Read More

Eating and Drinking with Pregnancy Sickness

Read More

Making Small Changes

Read More

Accessibility Tools

Your choices will be saved as a non-identifying cookie. This means that each time you load a webpage from this website, your chosen accessibility options will be applied. These cookies will last for 28 days before resetting.

Text To Speech

When text to speech is active, you can click the play button to hear the whole sites content read aloud. You can also highlight a section of text and press play, to hear only the highlighted text.

Settings

1
1

Translate

Choose a language from the Google provided selector below.

Screen Mask

A screen mask is a reading tool which follows your cursor. It allows you to remove distractions from around the page and gives a clear area of focus.

Text Size

Use these icons to increase, decrease or reset the size of the text throughout the site.

Contrast

Change the colour of text and the background of the site with the selectors below. This removes images and makes the content across the site easier to read.