Vegan,pregnant and always hungry

[celeste kp]

I'm 17 weeks pregnant with my first baby and I find that I'm having a hard time eating enough. It doesn't help any that I am still suffering from a little bit of "morning sickness",and have  more food aversions than cravings and when I do have slight cravings,they're not for the healthiest of things. Normally,I'm incredibly healthy and absolutely love to cook wonderful,healthy meals. Since becoming pregnant,I haven't enjoyed cooking or even eating,yet I'm hungry all of the time.  When dinner comes around,I half-heartedly make a meal,more for my husband than for myself, and find I can barely eat it. The only time I can eat a good amount is when eating out,but, living in Denmark,one of the most expensive countries,I don't have that kind of money,nor is there that many options for vegans here.

Has anyone else gone through these problems-not having any desire to eat,or even just being hungry all of the time to the point of gagging and sometimes actually throwing up from hunger,while being vegan,let me know and if you have any suggestions on how to deal. Any good recipes to try that are healthy yet comforting? Any other advice? I only want to hear about vegan ideas,as I have zero desire to eat any form of animal product. Thanks.

[ali171]

Before I got pregnant I was drinking coconut milk to gain weight. It definitely did the trick but I forced myself to drink it a few times a day and got quite sick of the taste. Now I hate the stuff. You could try coconut milk if you like it or add it to other foods. 

Other things you can try that have worked for me include eating lots of peanut butter (deemed safe in uk studies) and eating 4-5 meals a day which can be a bit of a challenge. I started drinking soy based protein shakes towards the end. For the first several months I was having fruit smoothies instead with hemp and flax but I got a bit sick of them. I also ate a lot of potato chips in the beginning if I could not stand the thought of eating something else.

[ahimsamom]

I definitely agree with the coconut milk. I used to freeze it in ice cube trays and suck on the cubes.

I also did a smoothie a day with hemp seed and coconut oil. That seemed to help.

I had horrible morning sickness (ALL DAY SICKNESS) and could not down tofu or anything fried. I found myself leaning towards simple grains and steamed veggies with a sauce or gravy when I felt the worst. I really find steamed veggies comforting, don't know why.

[Comtessa]

I loved Raisin Bran with soy milk when I was pregnant!  For a while there it was the ONLY thing I enjoyed.  Then my MW recommended it to boost my iron, so I gave myself carte blanche to eat it all the time.  Give yourself permission to eat that kind of stuff!

I normally love fresh raw veggies, but I had a serious aversion to them -- especially lettuce -- while pregnant.  So I got my greens in by eating dark green veggies cooked into other things, like spinach pies or spinach lasagna. 

Load up on nuts and nut butters -- they're great, concentrated sources of protein and healthy fats.  Add flaxseed meal to things for your Omega-3's.  Definitely go to town on coconut milk.  And don't discount all the good stuff made with soy out there -- just don't overdo it, of course.  I couldn't manage the texture of tofu for a while, but found that I did ok with dried TVP that was soaked and cooked into things like chilis and soups. 

Don't push yourself to eat foods that you don't feel good about eating.  If you can eat a lot when you go out, but not when you cook, it's probably because when you go out, you're giving yourself permission to eat food that you wouldn't cook at home -- fattier foods, perhaps, or loaded with starch, etc.  Let yourself cook those things, if they appeal to you, and you'll find you're not so hungry all the time.

Good luck!!! 

[kylie1]

I craved meat and junk food all throughout both my pregnancies. Apparently, that's very common for vegetarians...*sigh*

[flyrabbitfly]

I second coconut milk and peanut butter- great energy-packed nutritious foods- I like to blend coconut milk with the bananas that have gotten overripe and put them in the freezer in molds for pops. DS LOVES them too- esp for teething! Esp with morning sickness, cold stuff can hit the spot...

You can easily add PB to a stir fry or a smoothie for some extra protein and good-brain-fats... during times of high stress/no time to eat, I've literally eaten a couple of tablespoons of PB at every meal, right off the spoon, because I didn't have time/option to cook enough calories for what i was doing- it helped me not to lose weight and was the only thing that would "stick to the ribs" and not leaving me crying with hunger a few minutes after a meal...if right off the spoon has some gag factor, I'd do 1 banana, some PB, some coconut milk and some ice in the blender for a smoothie...

When I was pregnant, I used to eat a couple of cliff bars every day- they had a lot of protein and were filling and required 0 energy input on my part:).

If you're feeling really bad- let DH do the cooking. Forage a little, tell him what you want (what his baby wants!) and let him do it. It sounds like you are needing some help taking care of (the two of) you, and that is his job, for better or worse, yes?

[JessS]

Try eating easy to eat foods that are full of protein - like chick peas or quinoa. Neither are difficult to prepare, set it and leave it kind of thing, but pack a big punch when it comes to filling you up. 

My easy to eat favorite foods include sweet potatoes, nuts and seeds, smoothies with Sun Warrior (the best vegan protein powder) and oatmeal. 

[rainbow_mandala]

It's been a month since you posted so I don't know if this is still an issue for you but I thought I'd reply.  The first few months were pretty hard for me, the only things that helped was forgoing my desire to always eat super healthy (couldn't handle my usual daily salads, they would make me gag).  I just ate what I could, trying to keep things balanced, but if all I desired was pizza and cereal then that's what I ate.  I didn't crave meat or very much junk food and I also ate a good amount of protein, that helped a lot.  Almond and hemp butter on toast were my friends as was stir fry, noodle-based salads, smoothies made with yogurt and fruit and veggie burgers.  I hope this helps some! 

Also, I gained 50 pounds and lost it all within the first 4 months postpartum.

[josamen]

I'm no expert on pregnancies but it seems to me that cravings for foods with more fat than some might be comfortable with might be because the developing unborn baby needs some of this fat to help his body develop...I mean we all need SOME fat in our diet to help things like skin tone and stuff like that....so the high-fat cravings might be the result of having to supply the necessary level of fat for not only your own body but the unborn baby's body as well...same for the protein cravings......so I agree with the other women on here to not be afraid of the higher-fat and higher protein foods during the pregnancy....they will probably help you feel more full during your pregnancy

[CStone1]

I found healthy fats such as flax oil, coconut oil, olive oil, almond butter, avocados, tahini, hemp seeds and walnuts to be very helpful. Hemp seeds are particularly nutritious and sometimes I would just eat a tablespoon or two as a snack when I didn't feel like eating much. Spirulina is also an excellent food - can be mixed with smoothies, juice or water. Try small amounts through out the day if the flavor is too strong. It is a great source of protein and many vitamins and minerals. Smaller more frequent meals can also be very helpful.